As a part of Keep Fort Smith Beautiful’s mission to maintain a successful and aesthetically pleasing community, we have launched the “Talking Trash” program. This program is designed to teach the youngest members of our community the importance of keeping our spaces clean and protecting the environment. As a part of the program, the youngest participants will become the Waste Warriors, committed to taking the action to improve our environment.
The Waste Warriors’ Action Plan:
– Stop using plastic bags at the store and only use cloth bags
– Make sure your family recycles responsibly
– Build a compost bin
– Reduce, reuse, refuse
– Pick up litter when you see it
If you would like us to facilitate this presentation please reach out to [email protected] .
Fort Smith, Ark. – Keep Fort Smith Beautiful has recently completed a project involving planting nearly 100 trees of 19 varieties along the Greg Smith River Trail in Fort Smith Riverfront.
To complete the project KFSB relied on a $10,000 grant provided by UPS Foundation through 2019 Keep America Beautiful (KAB) Recovery Tree Planting Grant. The grant was approved as a response to last year’s flood which devastated Fort Smith Riverfront.
KFSB’s secretary and board member Megan Raynor was very thankful for the impact that this project will have on the community, “I’m very excited and appreciative KFSB was chosen to receive this grant that will impact generations to come! With this grant, we were able to replace close to 100 trees along the Greg Smith River Trail damaged during last year’s flood. These trees will one day provide much needed shade along the trail, as well as, provide habitat for wildlife, improve quality of place, and beautification!.”
The UPS foundation, which has been a supporter of Keep America Beautiful and its affiliates since 2004, has planted more than 9.8 million trees in over 53 countries. In 2015, the UPS Foundation announced it will fund planting of 15 million trees by the end of 2020.
Recovery Tree Planting Grants are awarded to KAB’s affiliates whose communities have lost significant trees as a result of a natural disaster. These grants will focus on planting trees that have a greater likelihood of withstanding disasters ( e.g., roots hold soil and prevent erosion, lessen runoff to mitigate flooding).
The application for the grant was submitted by KFSB’s long-time executive director Andrea Beckman as one of her final contributions to beautifying the local community. Beckman passed away unexpectedly in January.
Following is the list of all trees planted along the Greg Smith River Trail:
Willow Oak (3)
Lace Bark Elm (5)
Water Oak (3)
Blackgum (8)
Sawtooth Oak (3)
October Glory Maple (6)
Autumn Blaze Maple (6)
Sycamore (7)
Bald Cypress (5)
Burr Oak (6)
Dawn Redwood (5)
Deodara Cedar (6)
Saucer Magnolia (5)
25/30G Shingle Oak (3)
Chinkapin Oak (3)
25/30G Tulip Poplar (6)
25/30G River Birch (3)
25/30G Sweetbay Magnolia (5)
25/30G Swamp White Oak (3)
About Keep Fort Smith Beautiful:
Keep Fort Smith Beautiful is dedicated to keeping Fort Smith clean, vibrant, and beautiful! It is a volunteer-driven group of citizens dedicated to enhancing the image and appearance of Fort Smith, Arkansas! Their goal is to create and maintain a successful and aesthetically pleasing community.
For press inquiries regarding Keep Fort Smith Beautiful and the Recovery Tree Planting Project contact Dusan Stojanovic at [email protected] .
FORT SMITH, AR – the semi-annual litter pickup, “Great Arkansas Cleanup”, hosted by Keep Fort Smith Beautiful has been canceled due to honoring the social distancing community efforts to slow down the spread of COVID-19.
Although the event as such has been canceled, KFSB board members are encouraging members of the community to go out on their own and pick up litter in their neighborhoods while practicing social distancing. Keep Arkansas Beautiful Commissioner, Paula Linder added, “We hope that people won’t let this situation stop them from finding places around town and cleaning them. Remember, if we as member of this community don’t clean up litter in Fort Smith, who will?” Sharing the before-and-after pictures on Keep Fort Smith Beautiful Facebook Page is also encouraged.
The overall purpose of this event is to engage the local community in cleaning up various locations within the city. KFSB is now focusing on the next organized litter pickup which will take place in Fall.
Keep Fort Smith Beautiful is dedicated to keeping Fort Smith clean, vibrant, and beautiful! It is a volunteer-driven group of citizens dedicated to enhancing the image and appearance of Fort Smith, Arkansas! Their goal is to create and maintain a successful and aesthetically pleasing community.
FORT SMITH, AR – the semi-annual litter pickup, “Great Arkansas Cleanup”, will be hosted by Keep Fort Smith Beautiful at the Farmer’s Market Parking Lot in Downtown Fort Smith on Saturday April 18th, from 9AM – 12PM.
The purpose of this event is to engage the local community in cleaning up various locations within the city. Volunteers will be picking up litter from the city streets and parks. Volunteers can either come with a particular location in mind, or they can allow the Keep Fort Smith Beautiful representatives to direct them to an already planned location. All supplies necessary for the cleanup, such as trash bags, gloves, security vests, and t-shirts will be provided on the site by Keep Arkansas Beautiful. Free lunch will be provided for the volunteers by the First National Bank! Long time Fort Smith citizen and “Keep Arkansas Beautiful” commissioner Paula Linder said, “Fort Smith litter problem is everyone’s responsibility. If I don’t pick up trash on the sides of our roads, who will? No one.”
This spring Keep Fort Smith Beautiful is also partnering with the City of Fort Smith to promote the idea of keeping Fort Smith free of litter, “There are some things that I am interested in taking on in our city. And one of those items is the litter in our area, we must do something about it,” said City of Fort Smith Mayor George McGill. “Now, this is one of those complex issues. How do we get people not to litter? What do we do? Keep Fort Smith Beautiful will be hosting a clean-up campaign soon. Let’s get involved, get our city cleaned up and keep it clean,” concluded McGill.
“Great Arkansas Cleanup” by Keep Fort Smith Beautiful is a unique opportunity to make a visible impact on the local community!
DETAILS:
DATE: Saturday, April 18th
TIME: 9AM – 12PM
LOCATION: Farmers Market Parking Lot, Downtown Fort Smith, AR
Beginning in 2018, we presented our litter and recycling education program, Talking Trash, to all the 4th graders in the Fort Smith Public School System. We’ve inspired them to become Waste Warriors!
We gave away 250 trees in honor of the Fort Smith Bicentennial celebration! Our original intent was 200 trees but we exceeded our goal. This project was in partnership with OG&E.
We will be picking up litter off of the Fort Smith city streets. Registration will begin at 9 AM in the Southside high school parking lot. All supplies will be provided. Lunch will be served and a drawing for prizes will be at 11:30. Come join us to make a difference in the appearance of our fine city.
The corner of Phoenix and Old Greenwood Road was a sad and neglected piece of property and KFSB (Beautify Fort Smith at the time) and the property owners transformed it into a beautifully landscaped area.
