Leaders in Litter Prevention Honored at 2024 South Carolina Litter Summit
Columbia, SC (September 26, 2024) – PalmettoPride, in partnership with the South Carolina Litter Control Association, hosts an annual Litter Summit every September for Keep South Carolina Beautiful affiliates, litter prevention professionals, and law enforcement officers to gather and receive program updates and professional development trainings.
As South Carolina’s anti-litter organization, PalmettoPride manages the Keep South Carolina Beautiful (KSCB) program and provides technical and financial support to local affiliates of Keep America Beautiful® (KAB). This support allows affiliates across South Carolina to create and maintain successful litter reduction and beautification programs. In addition to networking opportunities, the annual Litter Summit features an awards luncheon to honor leaders in litter prevention across the Palmetto State.
2024 Litter Summit Award Recipients:
Program of the Year | Clara’s Kids Club, Keep Charleston Beautiful: A free youth litter cleanup program offered to children and families located in Charleston, Clara’s Kids Club provides an opportunity to encourage local youth to become passionate about environmental stewardship and take pride in our public spaces. Keep Charleston Beautiful’s litter prevention mascot, Clara the Pelican, attends each event as the club rotates to different Charleston City Parks throughout the year. Since the program began in April of 2023, Clara’s Kids Club has hosted 23 events with 370 volunteers to remove nearly 600 pounds of litter from city parks.
Board Member of the Year | Donna Lynes, Keep Berkeley Beautiful: Serving as the Keep Berkeley Beautiful chairperson since 2023, Donna Lynes has been active on the board since 2022 and an active participant in local litter cleanup efforts since 2014. Lynes is a Berkeley County School District teacher and strongly believes in the role education plays in litter prevention, frequently attending community events and encouraging the public to become more involved in their mission. Her dedication and involvement have directly led to Berkeley County becoming a more beautiful and cleaner place.
Educator of the Year | Leslie Hatchell, Keep York County Beautiful: Serving as the recycling educator/coordinator for York County Collection & Recycling for over 14 years, Leslie Hatchell was instrumental in the development of Keep York County Beautiful (KYCB). She continues to assist KYCB with its litter education and mini-grant programs. Hatchell creates opportunities to educate the public about waste reduction and partners with the York County Material Recovery Center to host educational tours and special events. Hatchell has always been passionate about litter abatement, having developed the York County Litter Proposal and served on the Fort Mill Litter Task Force. Her dedication and expertise afforded KYCB with community connections and partnerships that may not have otherwise been possible.
Volunteer of the Year | Michael San Francisco, Keep Greenville County Beautiful: In 2022, Keep Greenville County Beautiful partnered with Michael San Francisco to create a tennis ball recycling program. San Francisco volunteers his time to source and manage the collection of tennis balls around the county. As a tennis player and advocate of sustainability, he recognized the opportunity to divert tennis balls from the landfill by creating a recycling program. Rather than becoming waste, tennis balls can be recycled into dog toys, playground surfaces, and even tennis court resurfacing materials. This program now provides convenient court-side recycling bins to nearly 8,700 tennis players a year in Greenville County.
Senator Thomas Award | Jamie Nelson, Spartanburg County Environmental Enforcement: This year, the South Carolina Litter Control Association (SCLCA) honored Jamie Nelson, the director of Spartanburg County Environmental Enforcement, with the Senator David Thomas Award. Named for PalmettoPride’s founder and a former South Carolina state Senator, this award honors an enforcement officer with outstanding achievements in the enforcement of our state’s litter laws. “Jamie was instrumental in establishing litter control efforts in Spartanburg County,” said SCLCA president Donna Thomas. “He has been involved with SCLCA for many years, offering support and guidance to enforcement agencies looking to expand litter control efforts in their communities.”
SCDOT Partner of the Year | Kim Bobo, Greenville County: A dedicated advisor to and member of the Keep Greenville County Beautiful (KGCB) board, Kim Bobo serves as the county coordinator for the Adopt-a-Highway (AAH) program in Greenville County. While PalmettoPride operates the statewide AAH program, the SCDOT designates county coordinators to provide logistical support for AAH groups within their respective counties. Bobo coordinates over 100 AAH groups in Greenville County; the success of the program is a testament to Bobo’s ability to mobilize volunteers to make a tangible difference in their communities.
Between August of 2023 and February of 2024, Greenville County AAH volunteers removed nearly 31,000 pounds of litter from state roads under Bobo’s supervision. “The connection between our local affiliates and the Adopt-A-Highway program is strong and thriving because of county SCDOT representatives like Kim Bobo. She has helped to maintain one of the most active county networks in the state because she believes in the mission of the program,” said Sarah Lyles, executive director of PalmettoPride.
Representatives from KAB attended the Summit to honor the recipients of the 2023 President’s Circle Awards. The award recognizes exemplary performance by certified affiliates of Keep America Beautiful in creating clean, green, and beautiful communities. Affiliates recognized with this award have met standards of merit of KAB by conducting an annual Community Appearance Index; administering initiatives to end littering, improve recycling, and beautify the community; and other standards related to the mission and vision of KAB.
2023 President’s Circle Award KSCB Recipients:
| Keep Aiken County Beautiful | Keep Lancaster County Beautiful |
| Keep Allendale County Beautiful | Keep Laurens County Beautiful |
| Keep Anderson County Beautiful | Keep the Midlands Beautiful |
| Keep Berkeley Beautiful | Keep Myrtle Beach Beautiful |
| Keep Charleston Beautiful | Keep North Charleston Beautiful |
| Keep Conway Beautiful | Keep Newberry Beautiful |
| Keep Florence Beautiful | Keep Orangeburg Beautiful |
| Keep Greenville County Beautiful | Keep OneSpartanburg Beautiful |
| Keep Greenwood County Beautiful | Rock Hill Clean & Green |
| Keep Hampton County Beautiful | Keep Wadmalaw Beautiful |
| Keep Horry County Beautiful | Keep Walterboro Beautiful |
| Keep Jasper County Beautiful | Keep Williamsburg Beautiful |
| Keep York County Beautiful | |
Currently, there are 38 certified and two pre-certified affiliates in South Carolina applying for certification with the KAB network. For more information, contact info@palmettopride.org.
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PalmettoPride is working towards a litter-free South Carolina. Created as a legislative initiative to fight litter and help beautify South Carolina by engaging citizens to take action in their communities through education, enforcement, awareness, and pickup.