From January to June of this year, the Gulfport Lions Club worked at raising 500 pounds of plastic waste in an effort to win a challenge hosted by Trex Company, a national recycled materials manufacturer.
The challenge, a six-month project that aimed to keep Gulfport and small towns like it “green,” had the prize of a donated bench – a bench that the Lions Club decided to donate to the city.
The bench, provided completely by Trex, is made of an eco-friendly wood alternative and will be installed by the city within the next few months.
The hundreds of pounds of plastic that streamed in over the last six months was picked up by the company, and will be repurposed into environmentally responsible outdoor products.
According to City Manager Jim O’Reilly, the bench is set to be placed outside the Gulfport Public Library.
“When I talked to the city, they were really happy about all this. It’s up to them where they are going to place the bench though,” said Lions Club member Ron Coyne.
Members collected plastic from local businesses, from bins located around the city, and sometimes personal ventures.
“I even went dumpster diving a few times,” Coyne said. “We’ve already started a second challenge and plan to do this as long as we can.”
The Lions Club has already raised 200 pounds of plastic for their upcoming project, so get ready to see some more seating around town.