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Great American Cleanup around corner
Keep Liberty Beautiful
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As cold as it has been this winter, we’ve recently seen a few hints that spring is on the way. The season is Keep Liberty County Beautiful’s busiest time of year. Each year, we participate in the Great American Cleanup — KLCB’s “signature” national cleanup event.
The annual GAC is from March 1-May 31. Technically, the cleanup got under way when we hosted several Arbor Day events Feb. 19 in conjunction with Georgia’s State Arbor Day. KLCB also recenlty had a Recycle It! Fair, where approximately two tons of electronics and household hazardous waste items were collected. We also have collected a half ton of telephone books from local residents for recycling. But there is much more on the way!
Our theme for this year’s Great American Cleanup is “It’s a small, small, world … and if you help, we can get it cleaned up.” It is tied in with Disney’s volunteer ticket promotion, “Give a Day, Get a Day.”
We’ve had lots of fun with cleanup challenges in past years, so get your mouse ears on and get ready for a challenge. We have several “challenge coaches” who are looking for businesses, clubs, schools organizations and civic groups to take the challenge and get involved. These coaches mean business. They plan to eradicate litter in their communities. If you haven’t been recruited yet, call the KLCB office and we’ll hook you up with a challenge.
Here is an overview of our upcoming events. These outings can only be successful with the support and participation of local residents.
• March 13 and April 10: Neighborhoods and communities day.             
We invite all local neighborhoods and communities to select either of these days or another suitable date to spruce up their areas as a part of the GAC. Now is the time to plan a cleanup or beautification project for your neighborhood. Communities that are registered will receive water for volunteers and cleanup supplies, including on-loan litter reachers, work gloves and safety vests. All particpants receive Great American Cleanup T-shirts and each neighborhood gets a “N.E.A.T. Neighborhood” recognition sign to display for a quarter.
Make it a fun day by having a block party or potluck lunch for volunteers when the project is finished.
• March 27, April 10, April 17: Small towns, big cleanup days.
Most of our towns — Riceboro, Midway, Flemington, Gum Branch and Walthourville — have already set their big cleanup days, and they will be providing lunch for volunteers. Many municipalities had their largest cleanups ever last year, so they are ready to exceed those numbers now by getting many local residents, businesses and churches to lend a hand. We hope to have 100 percent participation from Liberty County municipalities this year.
• March-May: Campus cleanups.
All local schools and colleges are encouraged to plan campus cleanups or roadside cleanups during the Great American Cleanup. We already have a couple school clubs signed up. All participating schools will receive cleanup supplies and on-loan tools for their projects. We will have awards for the schools with the most participation.
• April 24: City of Hinesville cleanup day.
The city of Hinesville’s cleanup is part of Georgia Cities Week. Once again, we will have supplies, tools and GAC T-shirts for volunteers. The city will also have a tailgate for hungry volunteers when they are finished.
Yes, spring is a busy but fun time for our community. In the past four years, we’ve watched these cleanups and other activities grow dramatically in participation. I would be remiss if I did not point out that the credit for that increase is due not only to local residents who care about the community, but also to the support and guidance the program has received during the years from my supervisor, David C. Sapp, director for Liberty County’s Solid Waste Department.
Dave is retiring this week and he will be sincerely missed by everyone who works with him. His knowledge and unique ability to envision what is needed to grow and improve programs and services are not easy to find. We thank you for your years of dedicated service, Dave. Thankfully, though, Dave will remain active on our Keep Liberty County Beautiful advisory council.

For more information on Keep Liberty County Beautiful programs, contact Swida at 880-4888 or klcb@coastalnow.net.
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Visit with children a real eye-opener
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One of my favorite activities as a state senator is when I get to speak to students at our local schools. This year, I spoke to third-grade students at May Howard Elementary and Marshpoint Elementary in Chatham County and Button Gwinnett Elementary in Liberty County.
The students from each of the schools had been studying civics and were familiar with the three branches of government — executive, judicial and legislative. I explained my role as a senator in the legislative process and told the children how the citizen legislature in the state of Georgia works.
Presenting each of the schools with a Georgia state flag, I explained the three principles for which the state flag stands — wisdom, justice and moderation — and had them recite the pledge to the flag with me. 
The students at all three schools were bright, respectful and well-disciplined — a tribute to their families and especially to their teachers, who had prepared the students for my visit with ideas for great questions.
The students in Ms. Hutchinson’s class at Marshpoint Elementary were impressive in singing the preamble to the Constitution during my visit. What a great way to learn such an important part of our nation’s history — another wonderful example of the great job our teachers are doing.
I was delighted last week to receive thank-you letters from some of the students. Here are excerpts from a few of their letters:
 
Dear Mr. Carter,
Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to come speak to us. I learned so much! I learned that there are two kinds of Pledge of Allegiances. That is pretty cool.
Do you travel all over the world do you? I really like that you taught me more about the three branches of government.
— Megan
 
Dear Sen. Carter,
Thank you for telling us about your job and your favorite thing about your job. I liked the Georgia state flag. I still have more questions. Do you have to work on Saturday and Sunday? Are you the only one who makes the laws?
Yours truly,
Ryleigh 


Dear Sen. Buddy Carter,
Thank you for coming and letting us have a little bit of your time. I want you to know that I learned something new. The Georgia pledge! Justice, wisdom and modesty! Thanks again!
— Liam
 
Dear Sen. Buddy Carter,
Thank you for coming and helping us learn more about the government and some of your job. Thank you for giving us a Georgia flag. It was fun when you came. Thank you for giving us some questions so we could answer them.
P.S. Did you ride in a limousine? I was going to ask you a question but then I forgot. But now I remember. How many rooms are there where you work? You can send me a note if you can.
Your friend,
Erin
 
I’m uncertain whether the students learned as much from me during my visit as I learned from them. One thing that I was reminded of was the honesty that comes from the innocence of childhood. I wasn’t quite sure how to interpret some of the questions, such as the one asked in this letter:
 
Dear Sen. Carter,
I loved your speech. Thanks for coming to our school. I think my favorite part was when we held the flag. It was so fun! I have a question: How many people voted for you?
Sincerely,
Shelly
 
I also was more than a little concerned about a recurring question in the thank-you notes that was posed to me during one of my visits by a beautiful, brown-eyed girl who, with a very serious look on her face, asked “Did you ever get re-elected be-fore?”


What a great group of young people! My faith and hope in our future has been reassured. What an amazing job our families and teachers are doing on a daily basis to support and encourage our next generation. Thank you for your dedication to teaching our leaders of tomor-row.

Sen. Buddy Carter can be reached at Coverdell Legislative Office Building (C.L.O.B.) Room 301-A, Atlanta, GA, 30334. His Capitol office number is 404-656-5109

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