There is one thing about Southerners that you can bet on: We know how to make just about anything fun!
So believe me when I tell you that this spring’s Great American Cleanup activities in Liberty County will be the most fun you will ever have while picking up litter. The Great American Cleanup is an international environmental-cleanup experience. Thousands of communities across America and even several other countries, like Bermuda and the Bahamas, will hold community cleanups and improvement events this spring.
Although I honestly can say I would love to participate in a litter cleanup this spring in Bermuda, I still think we will have more fun here in our county than just about anywhere.
The Great American Cleanup has been around for 28 years. This event, sponsored by Keep America Beautiful, is America’s largest organized community-improvement program. As I said, we do ours Southern-style. Like mixing up a great barbecue sauce or gumbo, you have to start with the right mix of quality ingredients. For a perfectly blended Great American Cleanup, we start with the most essential ingredient: a group of fantastic local volunteers. We add some great “cooks” and, in this case, you cannot have too many in the kitchen. Our cooks are our Great American Cleanup chairwomen, Krystal Hart and Kasey Bozeman, and their kitchen assistants, our Keep Liberty Beautiful board members. They will make sure each cleanup event throughout Liberty County is well-seasoned with a mix of appropriate tools, specific directions and, yes, a little bit of hard work with the perfect dash of fun and food to top it off.
We try to make our events fun, whether they are litter cleanups, recycling collections, environmental education or creating green spaces. Even though I think “killing litter” is serious business and crucial for any community, we still can make it an enjoyable experience!
We are counting on people like you to step up and make a difference by volunteering in our local citywide and community cleanup days in March and April. Why? Well, if you won’t stand up and make a statement about fighting litter in our community, who will? I think we often wait for others to make the effort for causes or concerns that actually matter to us instead of taking the lead. I hope you will take the lead this year in your neighborhood and city for the Great American Cleanup. We can live litter-free, or close to it, with your involvement.
We have a large county with many neighborhoods, roads and green spaces.  Every municipality is working now to have a special day to stop litter in its tracks in their town. Here are the upcoming cleanup dates:
March 22
•8:30 a.m., Midway (meet at fire station)
• 8:30 a.m. Walthourville (meet at city hall)
• 8:30 a.m. Allenhurst (meet at city hall)
March 29
•8:30 a.m., East End (meet at Dorchester Village Civic Center)
• 8 a.m., Riceboro (meet at Riceboro Creek)
• 8 a.m., Gum Branch (meet at Gum Branch Recreation Park)
April 5
•8:30 a.m., Flemington (meet at city hall)
April 26
•8:30 a.m. Hinesville (meet at Bradwell Park)
Our roadways often are the only impression that people visiting or driving through our community ever see. These roads should leave a positive impression about our community, neighborhoods, businesses and people. These cleanups will not only be a chance to pick up unsightly litter, but also serve as a symbolic opportunity for us to take back our roads from those who litter. It is the first step — and yes, a continuing one — in making a lasting change.
We have to take ownership for what our community looks like. Look around your neighborhood or town and see if there is a project waiting to happen. If no one else in your area is planning one, step up to the plate and organize it. Give me a call if you are interested, and we will help you get started.
Everybody can make a difference — male or female, youngsters and “oldsters,” individuals and families, nonprofit organizations and businesses. Please contact us if you are interested in doing your part and say “yes” when someone calls you for your help. Together, we can make sure that Liberty County looks like the great community that it is — and have fun while we do it, y’all.
For more information, call 880-4888 or email klcb@coastalnow.net.