Keep Irving Beautiful Recognized as Gold Star Affiliate by Keep Texas Beautiful
70 Texas Communities Honored for their Exceptional Community Improvement Efforts
IRVING, TEXAS - Keep Texas Beautiful (KTB), a statewide grassroots environmental and community improvement nonprofit organization, recently named Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) a Gold Star Affiliate, a designation granted to 70 affiliates of KTB’s nearly 300 affiliates. Gold Star Affliate is the highest membership recognition any community affiliate can achieve.
In 2004, the organization introduced the concept of Gold Star recognition to reward those communities who sought to go above and beyond the established requirements. To remain in good standing with KTB, community affiliates must submit a report, pay dues, attend training and participate in a KTB-endorsed activity annually.
To achieve Gold Star status, affiliates must share information about their mission and goals, answer questions related to their economic development and diversity and inclusion practices, participate in the Beautify Texas Awards or Governor’s Community Achievement Awards programs, and provide a letter of support from their community. KTB will formally recognize Gold Star communities during its 54th Annual Conference in June.
“Our affiliates are the backbone of our organization. We are proud to honor those going above and beyond to keep their communities clean and beautiful,” says Suzanne Kho, Executive Director of Keep Texas Beautiful. “Our Gold Star Affiliates are educating and engaging community members, actively recruiting and managing volunteers, hosting cleanup and beautification events throughout their community and so much more.”
In 2020, KTB affiliates engaged 20,917 volunteers who contributed 37,857 hours to collect 1 million pounds of waste and recyclables from Texas roadways, trails, and waterways. Irvingsuccessfully implemented programs to clean up litter, reduce and recycle waste, educate local residents, as well as beautify and enhance the local community.
“On behalf of the entire Keep Irving Beautiful Board of Directors, I would like to thank Keep Texas Beautiful for this honor,” said KIB Board President Scott Wilson. “This past year was full of challenges, but we exceeded our expectations thanks in part to having such strong leadership at the state level in Keep Texas Beautiful. We would also like to thank our outstanding volunteers and sponsors for everything they do to keep our organization achieve the highest level.”
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About Keep Irving Beautiful
Keep Irving Beautiful is a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating the community about litter abatement, recycling, and beautification to help preserve the health and promote the social and economic prosperity of the city. As an award-winning affiliate of Keep America Beautiful and Keep Texas Beautiful, Keep Irving Beautiful reaches out to all sectors of the community, including government, businesses, churches, as well as cultural, educational, neighborhood and civic organizations. For more information on volunteering with KIB or making an activity a “green event,” visit CityofIrving.org/KIB or call (972) 721-2175.
About Keep Texas Beautiful
Keep Texas Beautiful (KTB) is a non-profit organization dedicated to making Texas the best place to live, work, and play by deploying resources for community improvement projects, clean-ups, and youth engagement efforts across the state. Through our Keep Texas Recycling program, we provide assistance and education to support recycling in rural and underserved communities.
Everything we do is focused on mobilizing volunteers to take action by providing them with tools, resources, and training. Our fieldwork includes research on best practices for litter reduction along with the development of community programs to prevent the flow of litter to the Gulf.
Founded in 1967, Keep Texas Beautiful’s work is driven by its network of nearly 300 affiliate member communities, volunteers, and supporters that reach 17 million Texans annually. For more information and to find your closest affiliate, visit www.ktb.org. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram.