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ALACHUA COUNTY, FL - If you missed Earth Day, it’s not too late to celebrate with Keep Alachua County Beautiful at Cuscowilla on Saturday. KACB turned 30 this year and, to celebrate, is partnering with the Friends of Cuscowilla, UPS and Alachua County Parks and Open Space to plant 30 Live Oak trees on Saturday, April 23.

Cuscowilla is the new youth camp property located at 210 S.E. 134th Ave Micanopy, FL 32667. The anniversary and Earth Day celebration will run from 9 a.m. until noon and include activities for all ages. Support from a Keep America Beautiful/UPS grant will allow for $500 worth of free trees to be given away to attendees at the event.

A children’s butterfly garden will also be installed and tours of Cuscowilla will be offered. Alachua County is coordinating the installation of the Live Oak trees by KACB volunteers, members and directors, and the Friends of Cuscowilla. Several of the Live Oaks will be planted in memory of KACB directors Florence Cline, Bob Gasche, Fritzi Olson, and Jeanne Rochford who served for more than a decade each.

“The success of KACB is in large part due to the commitment each of these individuals had for preserving the environmental legacy of Alachua County,” according to Gina Hawkins, executive director of KACB. KACB, the local Keep America Beautiful affiliate, has worked to protect the environmental legacy of Alachua County through litter cleanup events, graffiti removal, tree plantings, community gardens, recycling, environmental education and other projects for over thirty years.

KACB has already removed 400 bags of garbage from a single right of way easement this month. The easement was one of 11 illegal dump sites targeted during the year-long Great American Cleanup, the signature event of KACB. KACB volunteers removed over 1,000 bags of trash from roadways since the first of the year and the GAC continues until June 30.

KACB is engaged in planting efforts at six community gardens. Great American Cleanup events were scheduled for each weekend in April and May in nearly all of the municipalities in Alachua County and, through the generous support from sponsors, volunteers were treated to food, prizes, and volunteer recognition awards.

The City of Gainesville and Alachua County are the primary sponsors of the Great American Cleanup and GFLenvironmental and Waste Pro donate thousands of dollars in hauling equipment, staff, services and other support for these events.

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