Hope Communities in Bloom has won a 5-Bloom Street Banner from Community in Bloom (CiB) for their Earth Day Recycling program.
CiB awarded Hope the banner during their Provincial Awards which took place in Victoria on Sept. 29. Part of their annual competition, CiB groups throughout Canada and countries such as Ireland, Belgium, Italy, and Slovenia, celebrated their work towards uplifting their communities. Hope, one of 29 Canadian communities part of CiB, won its award for their Earth Day Recycling program — a clean-up and recycling event, that took place on Earth Day, where people helped to clean up Memorial Park and collected items such as used batteries, paint cans, spray paint cans, cellphones, car batteries, scrap metal, and even eyeglasses for recycling.
“We like to be the poster child of B.C.,” says the in-coming mayor, and the outgoing CiB chair, Victor Smith. “It’s always an honour to win in our size of town. And it’s the volunteers that make it [happen].”
Founded in Canada in 1995 with the help of Britain in Bloom, CiB is a Canadian non-profit volunteer and partnership-driven organization aimed towards fostering “community strength, involvement and continuous improvement.” Friendly competition is fostered between various Canadian, and international, communities to “beautify their civic spaces.” This is accomplished by nurturing environmental sustainability, enhancements of green spaces, and heritage conservation, “in cultural and natural environments encompassing municipal, residential, commercial, and institutional spaces.”
Hope’s branch of CiB began approximately in 2005 and was founded by Crystal Medlock and Bev Smith.
Now an integral part of the city, throughout the years the group has been involved in many community projects including (but not limited to): Earth Day Recycling, Trash to Treasure, Skagit cleanup, FireSmart BC, Chainsaw carving, Hope’s Christmas lights, and taking care of the potted flowers throughout town.
The group, along with the Cascade Lower Canyon Community Forest (CLCCF) have also been working with the Hope Community Garden to build a gazebo.
“We have a lot of gifted people here that are willing to do stuff — like make plants and flowers and try and make it a better place,” says Smith. “And we create an outlet to get seniors involved. And that’s very important. Because the mental wellbeing of people [can improve] by being involved and meeting new people.”
To get involved with Hope Communities in Bloom, be sure to check out their Facebook page, www.facebook.com/HopeCommunitiesInBloom.
READ MORE: Hope Community Garden hosting open house
@KemoneMoodley
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