Giving Green to Keep Boone County Green

Our Trash for Cash is in hibernation for the winter but 2008 was easily its best year ever. We had a whopping 67 non–profit groups get their hands dirty and relieve Boone County roads of their litter. In return, we donated $100 to each group for every mile of roadway they cleaned. All in all, Boone County nonprofits picked up more than 600 miles of littered right–of–way and removed more than 22.5 tons of trash from our land–that’s more than 45,000 pounds of garbage! They definitely worked hard to earn their donations! For those who had hoped to participate in Trash for Cash, have no fear–it will return in 2009. Call Boone County Solid Waste at (859) 334-3151 or email Becky Haltermon at bhaltermon@boonecountyky.org for more information.

Quotes from Real, Actual Trash for Cash Participants:

"We had several cars stop to thank us for picking up the garbage… It is time to keep our community clean and the solution is simple. Everyone just needs to throw their trash in a trash can. Let’s all do our part to keep our state looking beautiful."
- Jennifer Metcalf, 220 Youth Ministries, The Gathering Place Church

"As Boone County residents, we are blessed to live in one of the nicest counties in our country. In addition to a thriving economy, we have the best of both worlds: the beauty of the countryside and the quick access to the city. With this privilege also come a responsibility to our community; a responsibility that we all have to make Boone County a pleasant place to live and work. Unfortunately, there are those who do not consider the effects of their actions upon others, creating unnecessary litter and debris."
- Cindy Thomas, Ambassadors 4H Club

"The students of Mary, Queen of Heaven School would like to ask the community member to please think before littering. It is not a pleasant task cleaning up other people’s garbage and messes, and it does not present our Boone County very well to the public."
- David A. Reker, Principal, Mary, Queen of Heaven School

"Shame on the smokers who continue to believe that cigarette butts are not litter!"
- Jim Bailie, Hopeful Lutheran Church

"After cleaning nearly ten miles of roadways, the fourteen individuals were awakened to the reality of pollution in our communities. Other than the typical cigarette butts and aluminum cans, we also came across an unlikely combination of a pregnancy test and a Miller Lite bottle. The most entertaining moment came with the discovery of an unwelcome snake that gave the girls quite a scream."
- Kayla Michels, Simon-Kenton High School

"Why do people do this?’ my eight-year-old son asks as we clean up trash along County roads in Petersburg… The common quality of trash provides the answer I need for my son. People litter because it’s easy for them. They finish a drink then toss the container out a car window or off a boat and don’t think about it again. The trouble is their solution to quickly get rid of trash creates an ugly mess and numerous problems? Moms have enough tough questions to answer, let’s eliminate this one."
- Jeni McArtor, St. Henry District High School Girls Soccer

"We decided that every person wanting to get a drivers license should have to participate in at least one roadside clean up project before they would reiceve their license. Maybe then there would be less trash on our roads."
- Chip Helton, Student Pastor, Florence Baptist Temple

"Our club had picked up litter last year and we were distressed that so much more litter had been thrown onto our County roads."
- Joyce Voet, Young Guns 4-H Drill Team

"We are sad to report that the littering of our highways by motorists is still a big problem… I wonder why this trash can’t be kept in the car until the driver reaches home or trash can along the way? It so no problem for those of us who want to keep our community clean."
- Carolyn Lalley

"The money raised for our school is for a worthwhile cause, but it is sad to see so much litter…"
- Teri Winkler, Yealey Elementary

"Just wait the ten minutes and throw it away in a trash can instead of the side of the road. You have no idea what that little thing would do for our environment and communities."
- Jonathan Averdick, Northern Kentucky Young Life

"…Litter is a disgusting and illegal practice… I urge all residents of Boone County to think before they throw out a bottle or even flick a cigarette."
- Maria McWhorter, Florence Church of God

"Some of the kids took it to heart, wondering what kind of person would want to dirty their community. This was a real eye-opener for them. It was very disgusting picking up the cigarette butts and other used items that children this age should not be seeing."
- Carmen Hamilton, Boone County Pee Wee Football League Buckeyes

"I will spend my day plucking bottles, cans, shoes, buckets, roof insulation, and barrels from the mud. It doesn’t take long for the giant blue trash bags to fill up. I drag one up an incline to set it down in what’s now a long line of filled bags that set among bright orange flowers along the road. Working on the banks of the Ohio River was not the easiest job. It was hot and dirty. I looked at the trash bags that lined the road then at the river bank. I was pleased that we had cleaned up so much but also disappointed that so much trash (that couldn’t be reached) still littered the bank. Why do people litter? "
- Chelsea, Sandy, and Madison Swinford, Boone County Pee Wee Football League Longhorn Cheerleaders

"The worst thing I think that went through our Girls Scouts’ heads was how awful it was to pick up someone else’s trash. They thought it was disrespectful for someone to expect other people to clean up after them."
- Jean Edwards, Girl Scout Troop 9463

"One scout, Alyssa, age eleven,… said ‘Trash is so ugly and it makes our community look like a giant dump. It is so easy to throw trash out of your car window where you do not live but you would not like all of that trash around your home!"
- Kris Lindsey, Girl Scout Troop 9103

"The parents involved were excited to do this fundraiser for our team. But, for the kids, it seemed to go deeper than that. Boone County is their home. They learn at school about ecology and saving the planet. Today that got to be a part of that effort first hand!"
- Lorraine Sanz, Boone County Pee Wee Football League Knights

"I think that litter is disgustin. Now after doing Trash for Cash I will never litter again."
- Janell Sanzenbacker, Boone County Pee Wee Football League Eagles Cheerleading

"Why do these people think they have the right to just throw their trash on the ground? It’s not fair for those of us who don’t litter but still have to live in the same area as the people who don?t care about the earth."
- Ashli Pyles, Ryle High School Cheerleading

"We enjoyed helping make our little slice of the world nicer, but it’s a kind of hollow enjoyment. Can anyone find enjoyment form another’s stupidity or ignorance? Littering is an uglifying thing that’s so easy to avoid. How hard can it be to us the ashtray instead of tossing a cigarette butt out the window? How difficult is it to keep the garbage from lunch in the car until you stop and toss it into a trash can?"
- Tonya Kazior, Five Star Cheerleading

"Litter is gross. Who would throw a soiled adult diaper ot the car window?"
- Rebekah Duchette, Girl Scout Troop 43

"Throwing beer cans, candy wrappers, and soda bottle out the window while driving may be easy for one person, but becomes a lot of work for another, and dangerous for everyone."
- Bryan Duncan, Belleview Baptist Church