The city of Monroe and Ouachita Green announces, "Love the Boot Week," a series of clean-up activities in the community. An initiative organized by Keep Louisiana Beautiful; the statewide clean-up will aim to engage residents in beautifying their local neighborhoods.
The clean-up events will begin on April 5 and will wrap up on April 11. Ouachita Green is featuring 77 clean-up events in Ouachita Parish throughout the week. Events will take place at settings like the Monroe Chamber of Commerce, Wossman High School, New Hope Pentecostal Church, and so many more.
Clean-up events are not the only way to keep the local area looking beautiful. People can visit any branch of an Ouachita Parish Public Library at any time and pick up a litter pickup kit.
Individuals must have an adult card to check out a litter pickup kit which features a vest, gloves, grabbers, and trash bags. If residents are not available for an event, it is the ideal way for them to help the community continue to thrive.
Sheila Kay Downhour, the executive director of Ouachita Green, talks about why they educate people to not litter. When talking about what litter produces, she says "it can cause rodents to come and diseases."
Downhour also weighed in on the financial and economic impact it can have. "Litter clogs drains and ditches, and that causes our businesses, homes, and our streets to flood."
The state of Louisiana has spent over $90 million on litter this year. This initiative is designed to help alleviate the litter issue and lay the foundation for businesses to develop in northeast Louisiana and other areas of the state.
Kimberly Essex, the special projects coordinator for the city of Monroe, talks about the need of volunteers for the clean-up events. When asked if she still needed people to volunteer, her response was, "Absolutely, absolutely."
"If you don't get to sign up online, you can just show up and say, 'Hey I want to help'... and then you can grab a bag, grabber, gloves and help pickup," Essex mentions.
More information about "Love the Boot Week" clean-up events, and how to sign-up to be a volunteer can be found at https://ouachitagreen.org/events/.
To learn more about the city of Monroe and its upcoming events you can visit Monroe City's Facebook page or https://monroela.us/.
