Every year Keep Oklahoma Beautiful recognizes the good works of Oklahomans for their exceptional efforts in the areas of environmental improvement, beautification/landscaping, and environmental education/promotion. 2010 represented our 20th Annual Awards Competition, if you would like to learn about past winners, please visit the KOB Hall of Fame.
Pride In McAlester For creating an impressive body of educational and beautification projects in a relatively short time. The projects included a massive springtime cleanup campaign, new monuments at three major entrances to the city, the removal of 70 junker cars from neighborhood yards, a local awards program, and an extensive environmental education effort aimed at students and various residential groups.
Accepting for Operation Clean House (L to R): Bob Hasbrook, Nancy Wade - City of Bartlesville Assistant City Planner and Scott Maddox - Chief Environmental Engineer ConocoPhillips Operation Clean House, a free, county-wide recycling and household hazardous waste disposal event held simultaneously in Bartlesville and Dewey and co-managed by the City of Bartlesville, ConocoPhillips and the Washington County Commissioners. Funded through donations and grants, Operation Clean House and its ever-expanding list of accepted items has greatly increased the year-round awareness of safe disposal options for hazardous and electronic wastes in Washington County.
Accepting for the Broken Arrow Beautification Committee (L to R): Dr. Art Spomer, Deidre Ellis - Committee Chair. Roger Finn - Beauty Patrol Chair, Peggy Striegel - Development Coordinator and Dawn Seing Broken Arrow Beautification Committee for its innovative Beauty Patrol - a program created by a committee member that asks volunteers to conduct monthly neighborhood surveys grading, on a scale of 1 to 5, items that need attention. A consolidated report of the surveys is then distributed to City officials and others for action and public awareness.
A young man on his way up showing extraordinary leadership and a genuine commitment to enhancing community life in his district and in Oklahoma. Recently passed legislation by Scott: HB 3015: “Healthy Corner Stores” providing economic incentives to individuals to open neighborhood stores that sell fresh fruits, vegetables and nutritious foods and for which the sale of beer and tobacco comprise less than 10% of gross sales (excluding gas and non-grocery items). This legislation affects sustainable agriculture. Scott serves on several committees: Natural Resources Regulatory Services, Government Modernization, and Public Health. His district is one of the more underserved districts in Tulsa County and he and his young family recently moved farther into the District in order to serve the people better. Other relevant legislation authored by Scott includes Senate Bill 421, authored jointly by Scott and Sen. Gary Stanislawski will give school districts the right to sell advertising space on the school bus exteriors. “This gives school districts a chance to generate some extra money that will help offset cuts caused by the budget downturn this year,“Scott said. “If a few ads can save a teacherʼs job, I am all for it.”HB 3021 requires landlords to disclose to the prospective tenant if the rental property was used to aid in or manufacture methamphetamine in the past.
A young man on his way up showing extraordinary leadership and a genuine commitment to enhancing community life in his district and in Oklahoma. Recently passed legislation by Scott: HB 3015: “Healthy Corner Stores” providing economic incentives to individuals to open neighborhood stores that sell fresh fruits, vegetables and nutritious foods and for which the sale of beer and tobacco comprise less than 10% of gross sales (excluding gas and non-grocery items). This legislation affects sustainable agriculture.
Scott serves on several committees: Natural Resources Regulatory Services, Government Modernization, and Public Health. His district is one of the more underserved districts in Tulsa County and he and his young family recently moved farther into the District in order to serve the people better.
Educational Institution Winners
Accepting for McAlester Public Schools (L to R): Mark Wilkett - Pride In McAlester President, Debbie Watkins and Carol Biship For artfully combining environmentally-sound actions with a diverse educational component to produce a phenomenal impact on the city and its students. The activities included various recycling drives, tree plantings and area cleanups as the students made the most out of partnerships with Pride In McAlester and the United Way.
Accepting for CORE (L to R): Becky Burke - Student at NWOSU, Lauren Young - Student at NWOSU, Janet Valencia - CORE Co-Sponsor and Dr. Steven Mackie - CORE Co-Sponsor For its annual Big Event, encompassing 3 campuses (Alva, Enid and Woodward) and 14-hundred hours of service by 350 volunteers. With a goal of improving the relationship between the university and its communities, the Big Event included significant landscaping, cleanup, planting, and recycling activities, all expertly coordinated by CORE – Conserving Our Ranger Environment.
Accepting for the OU Green Roof Project (L to R): Dr. Kelvin Droegemeier - OU Vice President - Research, Dr. Reid Coffman and Curt Jennings - Student at the University of Oklahoma The vegetative roof reduces stormwater runoff by more than 50 percent while reducing warm season energy demand loads on the building. This living, growing roof is cost-effective, energy-efficient and can be replicated throughout Oklahoma.
Towering Spirit Award
Fairview Jr 4H Club For its multiple projects in April and May to educate groups about “going green” and cleaning trash and debris from public and private areas. These ambitious kids created a PowerPoint presentation to inform and inspire local groups, distributed car litter bags, conducted a gently-used clothing drive, and planted 145 trees, shrubs and flowers in front of the local medical clinic.
Accepting for Hobart Jr Main Street (L to R): Roger Hill - Superintendent Hobart Public Schools, Cathy Hunt, Denise Worley and Stephen Boyd - Director, Hobart Main Street For devoting its annual Big Bang Day to planting nearly 300 trees in just one morning to replace trees decimated by ice storms, age and disease. The 75 Junior Main Street students worked with local landscape architects, the Beautification Commission and school officials, concentrating the trees on the middle and high school campuses.
Great American Cleanup - Best Rookie Effort Winner
First National Bank & Trust - Okmulgee
Accepting for First National Bank & Trust (L to R): Nevyle Cable and Sharla Stephenson For organizing a one-day clean-up of U.S. Highway 75 from one end of Okmulgee County to the other. More than a thousand bags of trash were collected by 300 volunteers who worked in teams for each two-mile stretch along the 30-mile highway. One judge exclaimed, “Thirty miles in a day? – are you kidding me?”
For organizing a one-day clean-up of U.S. Highway 75 from one end of Okmulgee County to the other. More than a thousand bags of trash were collected by 300 volunteers who worked in teams for each two-mile stretch along the 30-mile highway. One judge exclaimed, “Thirty miles in a day? – are you kidding me?”
Vanguard Award Winner
This colaboration between the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality and the OK Tourism and Recreation Department has existed for just ore than one year - and itʼs already making headlines and beginning to accomplish its goals of increasing conservation in Oklahoma and raising awareness in the traveling public and the travel industry about sustainable practices. Through the use of an interactive website, the latest communication and social media techniques and strategic partnerships, the program has already begun to certify Oklahoma hotels, resorts, restaurants as having been trained, tested and approved as a Sustainable Travel Property. The United Nations Foundation on Sustainable Travel recognized Oklahoma ECO as a leader in the industry and invited participation at a national summit in Washington DC. Accepting for ECO (L to R): Dianne Wilkins - OKDEQ, Jessica Blackstock - ECO and Barbie Elder - OK Tourism and Rec. Department.
This colaboration between the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality and the OK Tourism and Recreation Department has existed for just ore than one year - and itʼs already making headlines and beginning to accomplish its goals of increasing conservation in Oklahoma and raising awareness in the traveling public and the travel industry about sustainable practices.
Through the use of an interactive website, the latest communication and social media techniques and strategic partnerships, the program has already begun to certify Oklahoma hotels, resorts, restaurants as having been trained, tested and approved as a Sustainable Travel Property.
The United Nations Foundation on Sustainable Travel recognized Oklahoma ECO as a leader in the industry and invited participation at a national summit in Washington DC.
Government Programs Winners
Accepting for the City of Normanare Debbie Smith - Environmental Services Coordinator and Ken Komiske - Director of Utilities For leading by example with its ongoing resource conservation efforts that also are economically responsible. Norman has turned to alternatives to reduce dependence on petroleum-based fuels, made improvements to the water and wastewater treatment facilities saving energy, water and chemical costs, and has initiated water re-use for irrigation purposes.
Since opening in January, it has averaged 826 pounds of materials diverted each day from the Ada landfill which is near capacity and scheduled to close. The demand for the items turned in often exceeds the supply and the center’s success has other tribes in a four-state region considering their own re-use programs.
Accepting for First Nation Bank & Trust (L to R): Dana Sigmon, Nolan Crowely - Manager of Okmulgee Main Street, Neyvle Cable, Sharla Stephenson, Donna Martin and Jim Martin For its massive effort, described earlier, to collect more than a thousand bags of trash from the sides of U.S. 75 highway as it runs through Okmulgee County. First National recruited, motivated and rewarded 300 volunteers for the 30-mile-long highway clean-up, making a clearly visible difference by day’s end.
(L to R): Linda Horn - Total Environment Inc, Bob Ross - Inasmuch Foundation President and Lisa Synar - Executive Director of OKC Beautiful Oklahoma City Beautiful, the Inasmuch Foundation and Total Environment, Inc. teamed up this past year to completely transform the large median in front of the Oklahoma City Educare center for disadvantaged children on South Grand Boulevard. OKC Beautiful oversaw the installation of the landscape project with funds provided by the Inasmuch Foundation. Total Environment not only donated a landscape plan, but also their time, labor and expertise. The result was stunning, with nearly a hundred new trees and shrubs along with 50 knockout roses, seven large boulders and about eight tons of pine mulch.
Accepting for Devon Energy Corporation are Glenn Gresham and Monty Bruce For completing four major projects in two days as part of the United Way of Southeastern Oklahoma’s Day of Caring. Forty company volunteers planted trees, renewed flower beds, restored two baseball fields, and cleaned up the overgrown yard of a disabled woman, taking away a truckload of items in the process.
Accepting for Chesapeake Energy (L to R): Rachel Shortt - Community Relations Coordinator, Kathy Goodwin - Garden Coordinator and Teresa Rose - Director, Community Relations For its Employee Garden which is grown and sustained by 350 employees divided into teams. Sustainable practices are such as not using chemical pesticides or synthetic fertilizers and the excess is donated to a community food pantry. Our judges praised the work for using a garden to educate not only employees, but the community at large.
Accepting for Oklahoma Today Magazine is Joan Henderson For its tremendously informative special May issue on Sustainability. Not content to focus on just the metropolitan areas, the editors presented a big picture view of sustainability and conservation in all 77 counties. Also, Oklahoma’s conservation roots were tied to the futuristic endeavors of energy giants and packaged in an easily digestible format for readers. The judges said it’s no wonder the Sustainability issue sold out at numerous retailers
Accepting for We Love Hollis (L to R): Betty Motley, Carter Stewart and Cora Miranda For it's impressive and creative makeover of a bulding in Hollis using 20 gallons of paint donated by H.I.S. Coatings of Oklahoma City and a $75 stipend funded by Public Service Co. of Oklahoma during Fresh Paint Days in Oklahoma.
In 1989, Regina was a volunteer with the Ardmore Chamber, serving as the Chair of its Beautification Committee. Norma Lynne Paschall was the Chamber VicePresident who assisted and supported Chamber committees. A longtime Ardmore resident whose passion was the beautification of Ardmore, bequeathed a carefully crafted endowment to the Chamber for the express purpose of creating a nonprofit organization that would perpetually improve and enhance his beloved city. "A natural to lead the development of such an organization was Regina Turrentine, who also held a very strong passion for improving the cityʼs aesthetic. She and the Chamber asked Norma Lynne to become the organizationʼs first and only employee and a successful, driven twosome began in 1995 to make magic in Ardmore. For many years, the Ardmore Beautification Council was not Reginaʼs only passion, but over the years, it has become her paramount focus in her voluntary life.
its Beautification Committee. Norma Lynne Paschall was the Chamber VicePresident who assisted and supported Chamber committees. A longtime Ardmore resident whose passion was the beautification of Ardmore, bequeathed a carefully crafted endowment to the Chamber for the express purpose of creating a nonprofit organization that would perpetually improve and enhance his beloved city.
Accepting for Team Up to Clean Up is Patty Daniel - Coordinator for Team Up to Clean Up For continuing to grow in both size and results over the past year through strategic partnerships and lots of hard work. Major projects included cleanups of 25 miles of roadway and around the Lake Eufaula dam and beaches, a free dump day, an EE-co art contest, the placing of containers for litter and recyclables, and various educational efforts including a highly successful anti-litter video shown to area schools..
Accepting for the M.e.t. (L to R): Shelley Umezawa, Michael Patton - Executive Director, Daniel Jeffries and Lauren Lunsford For its multi-faceted composting campaign which featured education components, sales of more than 500 compost bins, workshops, presentations and informational booths. The campaign included print ads, spots on radio and TV, website information, and a handsome “Why Compost?” brochure, all aimed at reducing the amount of organic materials going to the landfills.
AMcAlester high schooler, for his creativity and determination in creating “Buffs are WOW” – that’s Wiping Out Waste – to recycle paper at all eleven McAlester Public School building sites. Thanks to Patrick, each classroom now collects its paper for recycling and teachers are stressing the importance of recycling on many levels. Our judges praised the young man’s work and said it will have a positive impact on the attitudes of thousands of students in the years ahead
For her commitment, involvement and energy as chairperson of the Broken Arrow Beautification Committee. The judges applauded her efforts to bring diverse parties together, increase committee membership, expand projects, promote activities, increase fund raising, and help in establishing the group as one of KOB’s first affiliates.
Director of Waste Systems Planning for the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality. He has served as a senior manager in the regulatory programs for solid waste management and hazardous waste management. He helped develop the Superfund program in Oklahoma to clean up abandoned hazardous waste facilities. Additionally he has a long history of activism with the Sierra Club. He earned a B.A. in Geography and a M.P.H. in Environmental Health, both from the University of Oklahoma. He is also an adjunct faculty member in OUʼs Department of Geography, Civil Engineering and Environmental Science. He is a Lead Faculty member of the University of Phoenix.
Director of Waste Systems Planning for the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality. He has served as a senior manager in the regulatory programs for solid waste management and hazardous waste management. He helped develop the Superfund program in Oklahoma to clean up abandoned hazardous waste facilities.
From among all category winners in each year's competition, the judges select the one project out of all others that stands out as the best of the environmental best for the year. This is a very well kept secret until the final presentation of the evening! Surprised with the 2010 Outstanding Achievement Award was Broken Arrow Beautification Committee for establishing the Beauty Patrol.
2010 Award Recipients
To view photos from the Banquet, visit our Flickr page:
To view all finalist videos from the 2010 Environmental Excellence Competition, visit our YouTube page:
To view only the winners videos from the competition, visit our Hall of Fame:
