Submitted by Lopez Solid Waste Disposal District

Lopez Solid Waste Disposal District (LSWDD) would like to offer our thanks to the amazing cast of dump volunteers that support our island’s recycling systems throughout the year. Our team of roughly 50 regular dump volunteers donate over 2,000 hours of their time each year – that’s 40 hours per week of volunteering! Spread out across a small army of individuals, that 40 hours per week allows many people to be in many places at the same time. Dump operations could not actually endure without our committed volunteers.

We ask the whole community to join us in appreciating our volunteers during Thank-a-Volunteer Week this Thanksgiving holiday. Look for friendly dump volunteers all around town (hint: they may be wearing a dump logo button!). When you see them, please stop and say, “thank you!”

Dump volunteers contribute to a social atmosphere that is safe, relaxing, fun and rewarding for the whole community. They mostly work outdoors in a hands-on environment that is productive and full of learning – but also sometimes rugged. Dump volunteerism has become a dynamic activity for many – a steady push of support toward the ongoing evolution of Lopez Solid Waste.

Our volunteers maintain the cleanest (and LEANest) recycling plaza around, as well as one of the most popular malls in the nation, Take It or Leave It, where locals can always find exclusive deals. Volunteers work behind the scenes: managing IT systems; inventing new recycling solutions; constructing profound works of art – the list goes on. Kids, businesses, retirees, teachers, travelers, workers, and islanders of all shapes and sizes have joined as volunteers of the dump.

LSWDD and our non-profit partner Solid Waste Alternatives Programs (SWAP) are committed to sustaining happy, healthy volunteers throughout the community. In thanking our current volunteers who give so much of their time and energy, we also invite new volunteers to sign up and help out – it’s as easy as 1-2-3: Sign up. Get trained. Pick a shift! Many hands make for light work and we can always use extra hands.

So, if you recognize a volunteer or ten around town this Thanksgiving holiday, please give them thanks for their contributions to solving a problem we all must inherit and work on together. And when you say “thank you,” consider going the extra mile by going online to www.lopezsolidwaste.org/volunteer and becoming a volunteer today!