Ready to start this new year right?
I hope you will consider joining Keep Liberty Beautiful and 3,800 of our closest friends this year as we clean up, green up and recycle away in Liberty County. We do appreciate all our volunteers, but we realistically know that the more volunteers we have, the more that we can do for our community.
If you are not sure what we do at Keep Liberty Beautiful, let me share a little KLB 101. Keep Liberty Beautiful is an award-winning program established in Liberty County in 1983. It is a community education, volunteer action program with these focus areas:
• litter prevention and eradication
• recycling and waste reduction
• community improvement/beautification
• storm-water pollution education.
So what does that mean? We think that community education is the key part of helping local citizens take ownership for the health and vitality of our community. We work toward empowering those of us who live and work and play here to take care of our little piece of the planet here in Liberty County. Our focus areas may seem like they have little in common, but they all fit together to create a greener, healthier community for all of us. We need you to volunteer because there is much that can be done to achieve this goal.
Here are some of our upcoming activities to create a Liberty County designed by you:
• Arbor Day Awareness is Feb. 20-21 to recognize Georgia Arbor Day and to emphasize the benefits of trees. We hold tree giveaways these days to encourage local citizens to plant and grow trees to increase our tree canopy.    
• Great American Cleanup is held in spring as part of the international clean-up effort sponsored by Keep America Beautiful to clean and beautify American communities. We partner with our local cities to hold citywide cleanup days. Mark these days on your calendar:
March 14 — Walthourville, Allenhurst
March 21 — Midway, Riceboro
March 28 — Gum Branch
April 25 — Hinesville
More dates for cleanups are being scheduled every day, so consider joining in for your local city or neighborhood cleanup and make a difference where you live.
• Quarterly Recycle It! Fairs enhance our local recycling drop-off program by providing collection days for additional items including electronics, cellphones, batteries, paint, fluorescent bulbs and CFLs, old medications, motor oil, car batteries and more. The next Recycle It! Fair is scheduled for Feb. 21 in three locations in the county.
• Our annual Earth Day Celebration is held on International Earth Day — April 22 — each year. This afternoon festival, which is put on by a host of local businesses and organizations, celebrates ways to go green and have fun doing it. It is a free, must-do event for families.
National Planting Day in September is celebrated with Native Plants and Friends Giveaways on Sept. 11-12.
• Our annual Rivers Alive waterway cleanups are held in over 50 locations in October to protect our waterways — large and small — from litter and debris. The main event day is Oct. 24. We also do an annual beach cleanup on St. Catherines’ beach each year through the generosity of local boaters who provide transportation for volunteers to this beautiful barrier island.
• America Recycles Day activities in November increase awareness in our schools and around our community about the value of waste reduction and recycling. America Recycles Day is Nov. 15.
• Adopt Liberty projects offer opportunities for individuals, families or groups to select and “adopt” a special green space, roadway, waterway or neighborhood to care for on a quarterly basis.
• Beautification projects enhance our roadways, public venues, schools and even organizations and businesses interested in adding to the “green” here in our community.
• Storm-water pollution awareness is included in year-round activities. As a coastal county, water issues and protection should be vitally important to all of us who live here.
Most KLB projects can include involvement of younger children with adult supervision, of course, or teens looking for an interesting community service activity.
Call us at 880-4888, email us at klcb@coastalnow.net, go to www.keeplibertybeautiful.org or follow us on Facebook.

Swida is director of Keep Liberty Beautiful.