Grant

June 23 2021

Two Beautiful Projects Awarded Green Grants

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized ADA compliant, Beautification, garden, Grant, Grants, native plants, Sensory Trail

A special focus of our Green Grants this year is to support diverse groups and underserved populations by adding five additional grant awards, for a total of thirty-five awards!

Today we recognize Pulaski County High School, a public high school who will receive $1,000 for their “Sensory Trail” Community Beautification project. They began converting overgrown walking paths behind the school to a handicap-accessible trail and native plant oasis. The Sensory Trail is designed for people with disabilities, and follows ADA compliances.

Pulaski County High School will use their grant funds to add native plants, with a focus on pollinator-friendly perennials. They will set up poles and ropes to mark the Sensory Trail, and add educational exhibits along the pathway. The trail will serve as a much-needed outdoor space for students and community members.

Today we also recognize Charterhouse School – Edinburg, a school dedicated to supporting high-risk children and families, collaborating with communities to help them reach their full potential.

They will receive $500 for their Flower Box Beautification project to restore flower boxes at the front entrance of their school building. Students will plant new flowers that are native to Virginia and pollinator-friendly. This will be an opportunity for students to learn about gardening and the value of pollinators, as well as practicing counting skills and measuring plant growth.

Every year, government, non-profit, civic and service organizations in Virginia were invited to apply for grants for $500 to $1,000 describing how they plan to tackle an environmental concern in their community regarding Litter Prevention, Recycling, Cigarette Litter Prevention, or Community Beautification. Since 2011, Keep Virginia Beautiful has provided $254,500 for 320 different environmental programs and projects all across the Commonwealth, due to the generosity of their partnership with Altria, as well as additional support from Coca-Cola, WestRock and Keep America Beautiful.

June 22 2021

$1,000 Grant Goes to Lynchburg Grows

Beckey Watson Uncategorized award, awards, Beautification, Bees, garden, Grant, Grants, Green Grants, grow, Lynchburg, native plants, Pollinators

We are all abuzz about today’s Green Grant award! Congratulations to Lynchburg Grows, who will receive a grant award of $1000 to implement its Community Beautification project to install a pollinator garden! We’ll continue announcing one grant award each day during the month of June.

Lynchburg Grows is a non-profit urban farm in the heart of Lynchburg, Virginia. The city received the designation of Bee City USA, in 2019. Lynchburg Grows donates the produce they grow to local organizations that feed the hungry, and to participants in their cooking and nutrition program.

Lynchburg Grows will use their grant award to create a pollinator garden. Pollinators are critical to the functioning of the food-producing ecosystem on the farm. They will plant a large variety of native plants to attract and feed native pollinators, who will in turn pollinate the crops that are growing on the farm.

June 20 2021

Buena Vista is Awarded $1,000 Grant

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized award, awards, Beautification, Community, Grant, Grants, Green Grants, landscaping

The City of Beuna Vista is today’s award of our 2021 Green Grants, and will receive $1000 for its Community Beautification project. We’ll be announcing one each day during the month of June.

The City of Buena Vista, located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, is working hard to beautify and revitalize the community. The Community Beautification project they plan to implement is for new landscaping on one corner of the most trafficked intersection in the City. The intersection of State Route 60 and State Route 501 has the highest vehicle count of any in the City. But it has languished for decades with sparse grass and unkempt trees, without enough budget or City personnel to attend to it.

The City of Buena Vista will use funds from their Green Grant award to purchase and install new landscaping. The City will be able to plant shrubs and flowers that draw attention to the beauty of Buena Vista, and give residents a sense of pride in their town.

June 18 2021

16 Frogs Awarded Green Grant!

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized award, ghost streams, Grant, green, Green Grants, plastic bags, recycle, reduce, reuse, waterways

It’s easy being green, says the 16 Frogs Citizens Panel, in Blacksburg, who will receive a grant award of $1000 for its Recycling program!

The 16 Frogs Citizen Panel is a public arts project with an environmental conscience. Sixteen bronze frog statues are placed strategically through the Town of Blacksburg to call attention to the freshwater under and around the streets and buildings. Most are resting above “ghost streams,” and each has a story to tell.

Reusing, reducing and recycling are at the heart of the 16 Frogs message because every single person, group or business can take part in protecting shared water resources. The Panel will use grant funds for design work, screen printing, and packaging of branded, reusable flatware packs, and reusable produce bags to promote environmentally healthy habits by reducing the use of disposable products.

June 9 2021

Two $1,000 Green Grants are Awarded!

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized Beautification, community garden, garden, Grant, Grants, Green Grants, Norfolk, Teens

A special focus of our Green Grants this year is to support diverse groups and underserved populations by adding five additional grant awards, for a total of thirty-five awards.

Today we recognize two organizations that are serving those in need. The first, Culpepper Garden, is Arlington’s largest affordable senior community and the first low-income senior community in the U.S. to provide assisted living. Culpepper Garden provides affordable housing for the area’s lowest income residents over the age of 62. Residents include veterans, former teachers, artists, librarians, professors, retail and sales staff, curators, writers, and stay-at-home mothers.

Culpepper Garden will receive a $1,000 Green Grants Award for their Community Beautification project. They will use their grant funds to plant a perennial community garden on the grounds of their assisted living center. They will utilize colorful perennials, mature trees, and shrubs to turn the property into an accessible, year-round green-space oasis for residents, their loved ones, and the greater Arlington community to enjoy.

We’re also shining a spotlight on Teens With a Purpose (TWP), in Norfolk, who will also receive a $1,000 for their Community Beautification project. TWP is a nonprofit working to empower young people through the arts, peer-led programs and events. Their goal is to help young people become inspired and develop a life-long motivation to learn.

TWP will use their grant funds to expand Purpose Park, a safe community space run by TWP. They will plant 23 trees, vegetables, flowers and fruit to share with the community and residents of nearby public housing. This project will provide beautification for the community, and will foster gardening skills, provide healthy food for people in need, while building leadership skills for program participants.

Congratulations Cullpepper Garden and Teens with a Purpose! We’re looking forward to seeing your results in the Fall!

June 8 2021

Green Grants Award Salutes Tech for Troops!

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized e-waste, Grant, Grants, laptops, recycle, recycling, reduce, reuse, veterans

Congratulations to today’s award of our 2021 Green Grants: Tech for Troops in Richmond will receive $1000 for its Recycling program. We’ll be announcing one each day during the month of June.

Today, recognition is given to Tech for Troops (T4T), a veteran-focused non-profit whose mission is to prevent homelessness and poverty among veterans and transitioning active-duty military personnel by providing those in need with the technology, career, and life skills needed to successfully join the civilian workforce.

T4T’s e-waste recycling program hosts community e-waste drives throughout the year. The public is invited to drop off their unused tech equipment at partnering companies in several different communities for safe and sustainable recycling. Funds will be used to pay for truck rentals and gas needed to collect and transport donated technology during two e-waste drives this year.

June 4 2021

Don’t Leave Your Butts Behind

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized 30 IN 30, cigarette butts, Cigarette Litter, CLPP, Grant, Grants, Green Grants, Tazewell

We’re excited to announce today’s award of our 2021 Green Grants goes to the Tazewell County Sheriff’s Office in Tazewell County, who will receive a grant award of $1000 for its Cigarette Litter Prevention project. We’ll be announcing one each day during the month of June.

Every year, government, non-profit, civic and service organizations in Virginia were invited to apply for grants for $500 to $1,000 describing how they plan to tackle an environmental concern in their community regarding Litter Prevention, Recycling, Cigarette Litter Prevention, or Community Beautification.

The Tazewell County Sheriff’s Office is a full service law enforcement agency that has developed a strong initiative to clean up Tazewell County. They have partnered with several Tazewell County civic organizations to create and support cleanup events. Their “Don’t Leave Your Butts Behind” campaign will tackle the issue of cigarette butt litter.

The Sheriff’s Office will use their grant funds to purchase six cigarette butt receptacles to place at strategic points at county buildings. By providing people with a place to properly dispose of cigarette butts, it will reduce the amount of cigarette butts being thrown on the ground.

The mission at Keep Virginia Beautiful is to engage and unite Virginians to improve the natural and scenic environment. Since 2011, Keep Virginia Beautiful has provided $254,500 for 320 different environmental programs and projects all across the Commonwealth, due to the generosity of their partnership with Altria, as well as additional support from Coca-Cola, WestRock and Keep America Beautiful.

June 3 2021

$1,000 Grant Goes to Chancellor Elementary PTA

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized awards, environment, Grant, Grants, green, Green Grants, recycle, recycling, reduce, reuse, School

We’re excited to announce that today’s award of our 2021 Green Grants goes to the Chancellor Elementary Parent-Teacher Association in Spotsylvania County, who will receive $1000 for its Recycling project. We’ll be announcing one each day during the month of June.

The Chancellor Elementary PTA will use their grant funds to install water bottle refill stations. This will encourage students to use refillable water bottles to safely meet their hydration needs because the school’s water fountains were closed due to COVID restrictions. Currently, single-use plastic bottles are the only way for children to access drinking water. The plastic bottles are being thrown away, and if even a fourth of the students fill their water bottle once each school day, a refill station will prevent over 2,400 plastic water bottles from being sent to the landfill every month!

The school system’s county maintenance will install the retrofit kit to the water fountain therefore eliminating installation costs.

April 26 2021

Get Green Money!

Beckey Watson Uncategorized 30 IN 30, Beautification, cigarette butts, Cigarette Litter, environment, Grant, Grants, green, Green Grants, litter, Litter Prevention, plastic bags, recycle, recycling, reduce, reuse

This is the last week that we’re accepting applications for our 30 in 30 Green Grants Program, so what are you waiting for? Get your online application form submitted before midnight, April 30^th!

Do you have a business or organization that is tired of cigarette butts on the ground? One of the categories for grant funds is Cigarette Litter Prevention. Cigarette Butts are the most littered item in the world! They do not biodegrade and fade away harmlessly; cigarette butts are made of cellulose acetate, which is a form of plastic that does not go away, and they contain toxic chemicals. Although small, they move with the rain across streets and parking lots, into storm drains, and into our beautiful waterways. Did you know that cigarette butts can be recycled? Learn more about Keep America Beautiful’s Cigarette Litter Prevention Program, and how Terracycle turns cigarette waste products into usable products. Then apply for a Cigarette Litter Prevention Green Grant if it’s a good fit for your business or organization!

Do you belong to a Scouting group, faith organization, or school PTO? Another category we’re awarding grant funds for is Recycling. The first thought that comes to mind is the blue bins with the chasing arrows recycling symbol on the side – and those are very useful! But there is much more to recycling these days, it’s not just about cardboard and paper. Plastic produce and checkout bags, dry cleaning bags, package wrap, bread wrappers and more can all be kept out of the landscape and landfill by recycling them. Many stores across the state, such as Giant, Food Lion, Kroger, Target, and Staples will accept the bags you bring to them. Repurposing is another form of Recycling. Could your group host a “Fix-it Fair” where handymen and women repair items that may otherwise be added to the landfill? Or repurposing items for art, if you know a group that would have that talent and ability!

The two other categories for Green Grant awards is Community Beautification and Litter Prevention. Check out our webpage to learn more, and get your applications submitted before the April 30^thdeadline!

April 12 2021

What Would You Do With $1,000?

Beckey Watson Uncategorized 30 IN 30, awards, cigarette butts, Cigarette Litter, Clean Fairfax, Grant, Grants, Green Grants, recycle, recycling, Richmond, Southwest Virginia

That’s the question we ask this time of year as we launch our 30 in 30 Green Grants Program. What would you do with a grant of $500, $750, or $1,000 to improve the natural and scenic environment in your community? To give you some inspiration, here are the results of three of the Green Grants awards the judges chose for 2020.

The City of Norton in Southwest Virginia applied for a grant in the Cigarette Litter Prevention (CLPP) category. They targeted an area in Downtown Norton where there was an abundance of cigarette butts littered on the ground. They did a scan of the area and picked up 1,365 butts in August. They installed 12 cigarette butt receptacles in the area, and did a second scan about a month later. They only found 16 cigarette butts after the installation of the receptacles! They also handed out 50 pocket ashtrays to citizens at a farmer’s market, city hall, and their community center.

The Friends of Bryan Park in Richmond saw a need to reduce the number of recyclable bottles and cans that were being thrown in the trash cans near a public athletic field. A team of volunteers routinely sorted out the bottles and cans from the trash, estimating that approximately 340 cans and bottles were being thrown away each week. They applied for a Green Grant to purchase five recycling bins to be placed at the most active locations at Parker Field. After a 5-week pilot project, 1,700 cans and bottles were collected in the recycle bins – success!

In a “think outside the box” way, Keep Prince William Beautiful in Woodbridge hosted a Fix It Fair last Summer. Their grant application in the Recycling category wanted to offer community members an opportunity to bring broken items to determine if they could be repaired instead of being thrown out and added to the landfill. With the help of nine skilled “fixers” and several volunteers, they were able to successfully repair items brought to the Fix It Fair, including wooden and metal furniture, bicycles, jewelry, clothing, televisions, computers, and even a beloved stuffed octopus who was in need of repair. By holding their fair outdoors, they were able to offer the event within COVID guidelines, and were very happy with the results.

So, what would you do in your community with a Green Grant? Applications are now being accepted!