Keep Sidney Beautiful receives recognition award

Keep Sidney Beautiful was one of the more than 75 organizations and individuals recognized at the Keep America Beautiful national awards ceremony on Feb. 1 in Orlando, Fla.

Keep Sidney Beautiful received a state affiliate recognition award during the President's Circle Awards breakfast at the conference.

According to a press release from KAB, the President's Circle Award recognizes exemplary performance made by certified affiliates of the national nonprofit in creating clean, green and beautiful communities. In qualifying for a President's Circle Award, Keep Sidney Beautiful has met Keep America Beautiful's standards of merit by conducting an annual Community Appearance Index, calculating the affiliate's cost/benefit ratio and administering activities in the areas of litter prevention, recycling and waste reduction, and beautification and community greening, according to the press release.

Keep Sidney Beautiful is composed of 10 board members and local volunteers. The organization puts together such events as electronics recycle day, paper shredding day and the great trash race. The great trash race will be held again the first weekend in May.

"We are also trying to bring back the tire recycling day," said Bev Arellano, director of Keep Sidney Beautiful.

Along with community events, Keep Sidney Beautiful uses the tools set forth by Keep America Beautiful, such as the community appearance index-litter index. This is a tool used to asses overall appearances of communities. A team of community, business and government representatives asses communities using a scoring system. The scoring system is based on a visual assessment of overall community appearance. Factors such as litter, illegal signs, graffiti, abandoned or junk vehicles, and outside storage are taken into consideration.

"Before the Great Trash Race we drive around the community and asses litter based on a one to 10 scale," Arellano said.

Another tool used by Keep Sidney Beautiful is the cost/analysis tool. This tool is used in leveraging community resources, and determines monetary value returned to the community for every dollar invested by the government.

According to Arellano, the organization applies for grants to assist in the clean up projects and then the volunteers put in the work.

According to Keep America's Beautiful's website, the organization was established in 1953 and consists of a national network of more than 600 statewide and community-based affiliates whose programs, initiatives and efforts, supported by millions of volunteers, help transform public spaces into beautiful places.

"One of Keep America Beautiful's most effective tools is the work of our grassroots network of community-based affiliate organizations, which has an impact on millions of Americans each year," said Keep America Beautiful President and CEO Jennifer Jehn. "Our affiliates are providing real solutions that help create communities that are socially connected, environmentally healthy and economically sound."