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Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) recently was recognized by the State of Texas Alliance for Recycling (STAR) North Texas Chapter with Honorable Mention in the “Outstanding Public Outreach Program” category. A virtual awards ceremony was held Aug. 13 to honor the award winners in all categories, which represented corporate, government and nonprofit groups as well as individual achievements.

KIB was cited for the organization’s efforts in supporting STAR’s mission to advance recycling through partnerships, collaboration, education and media outreach, as well as its innovative and unique program elements. 

“It is always an honor for Keep Irving Beautiful to be recognized for its accomplishments, but it is the people who support and donate their time to the organization that make its success possible,” said KIB board treasurer Jim Scrivner. “KIB volunteers, sponsors and partners are vital to its programs, and the organization appreciates everything they contribute. On behalf of the entire Board of Directors, KIB would like to thank STAR North Texas for all it does to promote recycling, and for recognizing our organization and the other honorees.”

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/284/Keep-Irving-Beautiful or call (972) 721-2175.

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The Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) annual Mayor and KIB Awards event was held virtually and streamed on YouTube Premiere Aug. 3. Irving Community Television Network (ICTN) edited videos of all the winners and presented a finished product, which was as close to the live event as possible. 

Mayor Stopfer opened the ceremony by welcoming and congratulating all of the award winners. Cathy Whiteman of ICTN served as master of ceremonies for her ninth consecutive year, introducing each honoree prior to their videos. KIB Board President Scott Wilson concluded the event by expressing his appreciation to the honorees. The award winners included:

  • Youth Leadership Award: Girl Scout Troop 6458
  • Educator Award: Bernardo Frias, Jr., Infinity Preparatory School
  • Educator Award: Amanda Mello, North Lake College
  • Faith Group Award: BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir
  • Business and Industry Award: Pernod Ricard USA
  • Civic Organization: Irving Elks Lodge 2334
  • Nonprofit Organization: All Things Made New
  • Lifetime Achievement Award: Anna Walther
  • Government Award: Irving Public Libraries
  • Civil Servant Award: Irving Fire Department Station 2
  • KIB Hometown Award: Jo Ann Goin
  • KIB Hometown Award: Kyle Taylor 

“This is one of KIB’s favorite events of the year, and we were disappointed that we could not hold it in person,” said KIB Board Member and Volunteer Recognition Chair Margie Stipes. “However, we are so grateful of the volunteers and friends of KIB, who are always ready to help.”

KIB would like to thank the following volunteers who were scheduled to help with the event: Sandy Franco, Chuck Kirk, Elouise McMillian, Chandler Ude, Becky Scherschell, T.J. Friedel, Nancy Ard, Pat Riddle Boy Scout Troop 508 and volunteers from First Baptist Church.

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, KIB 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/284/Keep-Irving-Beautiful or call (972) 721-2175.

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Summers for Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) are usually filled with projects where they work with a variety of volunteers from corporate, faith, civic or youth groups.  This year the KIB staff has stayed busy by adjusting their schedules to a new parameter and working with City of Irving staff instead of large volunteer groups. 

 

Since the closing of the city’s pool facilities, KIB has teamed with members of the Parks and Recreation Aquatics Department. Three Aquatics staff members who would typically be working as lifeguards were matched with KIB to help with projects. They have turned their attention to a beautification project at Senter Park, adding a fresh splash of paint to the safety fencing surrounding the pool.  The group will continue to work through the summer to complete the painting at the Senter Pool, as well as working on projects at the KIB office.

 

“It’s a pleasure to welcome these Aquatics staff members to be part of the Keep Irving Beautiful team,” said KIB Board Member Chuck Kirk. “During this time when we can’t have our usual large volunteer group activities, we are still able to make a positive impact at Irving Parks facilities with their help.  We look forward to seeing how much we can accomplish together.”

 

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.

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Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) welcomed its first group of volunteers in several weeks to participate in a beautification project on May 27 and June 19. Members of Girl Scout Troop 6458 became the first volunteers to join KIB in a service project since the COVID-19 disaster mandates. 

 

In the first project, scouts and their parents applied a coat of bright safety yellow paint to the bollards surrounding the Parks and Recreation building at 3000 Rock Island Road.  The same group returned on June 19 with parents to complete painting of the bollards, as well as metal safety railings.  The combined effort of these two projects resulted in a total of nine volunteers, 27 hours of service, and a more visually appealing look to the building.

 

“We have really missed working with our outstanding volunteers over the past two months,” said KIB Board Member Kelly Horn. “Volunteers drive our organization, so it was great to start projects on a small scale as we ease back into a more regular routine of events.  Troop 6458 has been a partner of ours for several years by participating in activities like cleanups and the no-sew blanket project, and we look forward to more projects with them soon.”

 

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.

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Members of Irving-based Girl Scout Troops 6458, 2871 and a University of Dallas (UD) student participated in the Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) “No-Sew Blanket Project.”

 

Following social distance guidelines, KIB provided blanket kits for the volunteers to take home and complete. As an extra precaution, volunteers washed and bagged the blankets prior to returning them to KIB. During the project, volunteers completed 14 service hours and finished six blankets to be donated to local organizations.

 

In addition to making a blanket, the UD student completed an additional eight service hours and collected 15 pounds of litter.

 

“As a nonprofit community-focused organization, KIB relies on our volunteers to achieve our service goals,” said KIB Board President Scott Wilson. “We are happy to be able to provide them with opportunities to help during this time when we can’t gather in groups.  This project has also raised awareness of organizations in the Irving area who can benefit from these blanket donations.”

 

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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/284/Keep-Irving-Beautiful or call (972) 721-2175.

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Keep Texas Beautiful (KTB) recently named Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) a Gold Star Affiliate, a designation granted to 57 affiliates of KTB’s nearly 300 affiliates.

 

Since 2004, KTB’s Gold Star Affiliate recognition rewards communities who have gone above and beyond the non-profit’s established requirements:

  • Affiliates must share information on their mission and goals
  • Answer questions about their economic development and diversity and inclusion practices
  • Participate in KTB Awards
  • Governor’s Community Achievement Awards programs
  • Provide a letter of support from their community. 

 

Irving will formally be recognized for its Gold Star Affiliation during KTB’s 53rd Annual Conference in Houston September 28-30.

 

“Our affiliates are the backbone of our organization,” says Suzanne Kho, Executive Director of Keep Texas Beautiful. “Our Gold Star Affiliates are educating and engaging community members, actively recruiting volunteers, hosting cleanup and beautification events throughout their community.”

 

In 2019, Irving had 6,659 volunteers out of 71,586 in the state and who contributed a total of 351,953 service hours in Texas. Last year, volunteers collected 4 million pounds of waste and recyclables, and cleaned 16,212 miles of Texas roadway, trails and waterways.

 

In the past year, the Irving community projects of cleanups, tree plantings, paint projects, environmental education, canned food drives and making no-sew blankets to donate KIB volunteer work completed equates to more than $237,000, said KIB President Scott Wilson.

 

“Keep Irving Beautiful is proud to be a part of such a dynamic state organization,” said Wilson. “Our volunteers are the reason behind the success of this affiliate.  We can’t thank them enough for what they do to make Irving a more beautiful place to live, work and play.”

 

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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/284/Keep-Irving-Beautiful or call (972) 721-2175.

 

Keep Texas Beautiful
Keep Texas Beautiful is a network of dedicated Texans working together to make our state the best place to live, work and play. We equip local partners and affiliates with the tools they need to build vibrant, engaged communities. Founded in 1967, Keep Texas Beautiful has over 50 years of experience deploying resources for local clean-up, recycling, and youth engagement efforts. Everything we do is focused on mobilizing volunteers to take action across the state. As a 501(c)3 nonprofit, we lead nearly 300 affiliates and reach 17 million Texans annually. We are proudly based in Austin, Texas. For more information, visit www.ktb.org, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @keeptxbeautiful.

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The Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’i Faith of Irving is the most recent group to participate in the Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) “No-Sew Blanket Project.” Eight Baha’i Faith volunteers worked in different locations to make eighteen blankets, for a combined 40 hours of service. This included cutting, assembling, washing and packaging the blankets for donation to Irving Cares, the Family Advocacy Center and the Irving ISD Teenage Pregnant and Parenting Students (TAPPS) program.

 

The Baha’i Community of Irving is one of many groups throughout North Texas that engage in community-building activities. Through the KIB blanket project, volunteers have connected with many worthwhile charitable organizations that serve the Irving community. Over the past three years, the volunteers have made a lasting positive impact by making and donating more than 125 blankets.

 

“Irving is home to a great variety of faith groups and Keep Irving Beautiful is happy to be able to offer volunteer opportunities to them,” said KIB board member and Faith Groups co-chair Brain Bunch. “We would like to thank the Baha’i members for donating their time.”

 

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/284/Keep-Irving-Beautiful or call (972) 721-2175.

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On March 7, Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) mascots Kirby the Toucan, Buddy the Blue Bag and Litterbug visited Irving’s Heritage Senior Center, 200 S. Jefferson St. The mascot trio performed an educational skit about the benefits of recycling and taking care of our environment. 


The Heritage Senior Center staff wore the mascot costumes of Kirby and Buddy in the skit to showcase how Litterbug changes into the “Recyclebug” from recycled materials. Afterwards the mascots had a dance-off to “R-E-C-Y-C-L-E,” a parody of Aretha Franklin’s song “Respect.”


After the performance, KIB staff distributed a variety of items to help promote a sustainable lifestyle, including reusable shopping bags and drink pouches, blue recycling bags and recycled books donated by the Friends of the Irving Public Library.

 

“KIB has presented this mascot skit to schools, recreation centers and libraries, but this is the first time that we have presented to an all-adult audience,” said KIB board member Jim Scrivner. “The seniors enjoyed the skit and were very interested in learning about how new products are made from recycled materials.”

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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/284/Keep-Irving-Beautiful or call (972) 721-2175.

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Employees from the United Parcel Service (UPS) Red River District partnered with Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) to add a fresh coat of paint inside the Senter Park Recreation Center, 901 S. Senter Road.

 

The group of nine volunteers spent a total of 31.5 service hours painting columns, a wall in the common room of the center, the back stairwell and the front entry near the elevator. The Parks and Recreation Department supplied the paint and provided technical guidance during the project.

 

“The UPS volunteers accomplished more painting than originally anticipated, and told us they’re excited about coming back to plant trees in the park,” said KIB President Scott Wilson. “The Senter Park Recreation Center looks beautiful after the recent renovation, and this group added the finishing touches to the building.”

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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/284/Keep-Irving-Beautiful or call (972) 721-2175.

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Employee volunteers from the Irving Whole Foods Market joined Keep Irving Beautiful (KIB) for a beautification project Feb. 20. Joined by a student from the North Lake College Service Learning program, the group painted the hallway and kitchen of the Senter East Community Building, giving sixteen hours of service in the effort.

 

KIB held its first volunteer project at the Senter East Community Building in fall 2019. Whole Foods is the fourth group to assist with painting a section of the building. The City of Irving Parks and Recreation Department provided painting supplies and technical guidance for the project.

 

“KIB appreciates the different groups who have helped with this ongoing project,” said KIB board member Margie Stipes. “This facility is used by many groups throughout the year, and the coat of paint has given it a fresh new look. KIB hopes to work with Whole Foods on more activities like this in the future. The organization is happy to have Whole Foods in Irving, and grateful for their community involvement.”

 

 

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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/284/Keep-Irving-Beautiful or call (972) 721-2175