Troy certified as a ‘Keep America Beautiful’ affiliate

The City of Troy is an officially certified affiliate of Keep America Beautiful.

The certificate was presented to Troy Mayor Jason A. Reeves and Keep Troy Beautiful Executive Director Melissa Sanders Monday afternoon at Troy City Hall.

In making the presentation, Sarah Visser, KAB national trainer and Keep Georgia Beautiful executive director, welcomed the City of Troy into the KAB family and network. She expressed confidence that the City of Troy has made the commitments necessary to be a successful Keep America Beautiful city.

In attendance were the members of the Keep Troy Beautiful committee that had completed their first training session Monday.

“This is a very thoughtful group that has made a commitment to Keep Troy Beautiful,” Visser said.

Reeves said the efforts made to become a Keep America Beautiful affiliate have been a labor of love and expressed appreciation to all those involved.

“It’s all about what is important,” he said. “And, first impressions are important. We look at our city with pride and we want Troy to be the best it can be.”

Reeves said that he is confident of the success of Keep Troy Beautiful because of the commitment and dedication of those who “love Troy, Alabama.”

The certification of Troy as a Keep America Beautiful city is, Reeves said, “only the beginning.”

With the first training session under the belt of the Keep Troy Beautiful committee, Sanders said everyone is excited and primed to be off and running.

“The main goal for our first year is education,” Sanders said. “We want to educate students in grades K through 12 on the importance of recycling and of having a litter-free city.

“Recycling saves the city money and it’s also a major provided for local industries. Being litter-free shows that we care about Troy.”

Sanders said that, when visitors come to Troy, it is a Keep Troy Beautiful goal to make sure that their first impression is a positive one.

“We don’t want visitors to come to Troy and see a littered city,” she said. “We want to make a good first impression.”

Sanders said there are reasons, other than positive first impressions, for Troy to be litter-free.

“Being a litter-free city is important for economic development,” she said. “And, it has been found that there is less crime in cities where litter is not a problem.”

Sanders said the Keep Troy Beautiful committee is committed to “going green” and that initiative is already on the committee’s front burner.

“We want Troy to be an extra-ordinarily beautiful place for our citizens and for those who visit our city,” Sanders said. “We want Troy be a great place to come and a great place to come and stay.”