Girl Scout Troop 2871 has enjoyed working with Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) for several years, especially at cleanup events like the “Trinity Trash Bash” and the “Don’t Mess With Texas Trash-Off,” and in maintaining their Adopt-a-Spot on O’Connor Boulevard. On Sunday, May 5, they partnered with KIB for a different type of event, a paint project at Running Bear Park. The 11 girls, along with three adult sponsors, painted the metal safety handrails along the trails on the south side of the park. They first prepped the area by wiping down all the rails and taping off the areas near the sidewalk. The group was so efficient that they completed the job earlier than expected, so they finished the day by doing a sweep of the park to pick up any litter they could find.

The highly-motivated and energetic troop, led by Nancy Medina and assisted by Cheryl Lidberg and Kathleen Ludlum, completed a total of 35 volunteer hours in making the park safer and more inviting. In fact, several visitors to the park that day noticed and commented on the quality of the work. The Girl Scouts and KIB also partnered with the City of Irving Parks Department’s Troy Crawford, who helped with the planning and logistics of the project.  

“Teaching children about the value of volunteering at an early age is so important,” said KIB Board Member Margie Stipes. “We have seen many of these girls in Troop 2871 grow up before our eyes, and now they are mentoring the younger ones to be responsible members of the community.”

Keep Irving Beautiful is a non-profit, grassroots, leadership organization dedicated to educating our community about litter abatement, recycling, and beautification in order to help preserve the health and promote the social and economic prosperity of our city. As an award winning affiliate of Keep America Beautiful and Keep Texas Beautiful, Keep Irving Beautiful reaches out to and partners with all sectors of our City including government, business, church, cultural, educational, neighborhood and civic organizations.  If you would like to participate in a service project similar to this one, please go to the KIB website, or call the KIB office at 972-721-2175.