Sustainability Programs Recognized by Keep Oklahoma Beautiful
Owasso – December 17, 2015: Keep Oklahoma Beautiful (KOB) held its 25th Annual Environmental Excellence Awards Celebration on Monday, November 30, 2015 at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. Owasso Strong Neighborhood Initiative-Owasso CARES was awarded Affiliate of the Year and the Great American Cleanup Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) Trash Off Best Overall Effort for their exceptional participation in KOB programs and relentless energy that goes above and beyond.
OSNI-Owasso CARES partnered with local Girl Scout Troop 661 to create Keep Owasso Clean, a new program, and launched it on the same date as the ODOT Trash Off. Keep Owasso Clean encourages a litter free community by coordinating monthly volunteer efforts and by educating residents. During the event, volunteers collected 38 bags of trash and two bags of plastic bottles for recycling.
In addition to their participation in the ODOT Trash Off day, OSNI-Owasso CARES coordinated its 10th bi-annual Owasso CARES Day of Service and Free Disposal Day with neighborhood and community-wide cleanup/beautification projects on Saturday, April 25. The projects completed impacted Main Street Business District, ODOT right-of-way along US HWY 169, Tyann Plaza shopping area, Owasso City Hall, Bailey Ranch Golf Maintenance Facility, Owasso High and Mid-High Schools, and the Baptist Retirement Center.
During the group’s Day of Service and Free Disposal Day, a total of 362 volunteers worked on community and neighborhood projects hitting a new record for volunteer participation. With a combined 1,158 hours, these volunteers collected 45 yard-waste bags, 21 trash bags, two recycled bags, 3,732 pound of E-Waste, and disposed of 180 tons of debris.
“With the individual neighborhoods participating and the City offering Free Disposal Day, this was the largest coordinated Day of Service events to date for OSNI-Owasso CARES,” said Jerry Fowler, OSNI-Owasso CARES Neighborhood Coordinator.
Keep Oklahoma Beautiful has been recognizing Oklahomans who support the mission to empower Oklahoma citizens to preserve and enhance the state’s natural beauty and ensure a healthy, sustainable environment for 25 years.
For more information regarding Owasso Strong Neighborhood Initiative-Owasso CARES, visit: http://www.cityofowasso.com/239/Owasso-CARES
For more information about KOB, a complete list of award winning programs and how you can participate, visit: www.keepoklahomabeautiful.com
