AMY SZPARA

LAPLACE – Anyone born before the late 60s remembers billboards and advertisements featuring a Native American crying at the site of a littered America. He has one tear leaving an eye, and his wrinkled face frowns in disappointment. The image was part of Keep America Beautiful’s campaign to bring awareness to the American public. KAB, a national non-profit, public education organization, strives to preserve the environment of the country by improving waste handling and litter prevention. It has over 500 affiliate programs in 41 states which help educate their communities, run recycling centers and show businesses how to reduce waste. One of those official affiliates is Keep St. John Beautiful, a new program in St. John the Baptist Parish designed to clean up the community. The program plans to focus on beautifying the parish and recognizing those who make extra efforts in getting St. John clean. “We’ve always had cleanup committees,” said Lt. Greg “Za” Maurin of the sheriff’s office community relations department. “We had the Clean and Green Committee to keep the areas clean.” He said the program had been around 10-12 years. “Then we received a grant from the Department of Environmental Quality, which allowed for the cost of us joining the organization. Now we’re part of Keep America Beautiful, the leading organization for beautification,” said Maurin. Maurin said representatives from KAB have come to the parish for strategic planning meetings, helping the committee understand what needs to be done. They received training and resources, and they were told how to apply for future grants. One thing Maurin hopes to do is recognize local businesses that are making extra efforts to keep St. John clean. “We’re always harping on businesses that are dirty,” said Maurin. “We really want to start recognizing businesses that help out, those that have pretty flower beds and nice landscaping.” Maurin plans to recognize the businesses with a small, tasteful, sign that says the business has been recognized by St. John Parish as a business that is keeping the area beautiful. He is also hoping to come up with other rewards, some things that might motivate the businesses to keep their areas clean. “It’s all preliminary right now,” said Maurin. “It’s getting underway, though.” He plans to come up with a criteria list for eligibility and decide on rewards for those recognized very soon. If a business wishes to learn more about the new program, Maurin can be contacted at 652-7058. For more information on KAB, visit its website at www.kab.org.