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Keeping Gallup’s act clean

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There are lots of organizations devoted to making Gallup more appealing, but a few people stand out every year for their efforts to clean up the town’s act.

The Keep Gallup Beautiful Community Pride Awards recognize outstanding environmental stewardship and are awarded to businesses, individuals, schools, community organizations or civic groups that make an outstanding commitment to litter control, recycling, beautification or general environmental stewardship.

This year’s winners won recognition for going above and beyond at home and around the community.

Bill Bright received a KGCB Beacon award for ongoing leadership. For the last decade he has been cleaning up West Morgan Avenue. He adopted the block around Dunstan Park, where he picks up trash and recyclables every week.

Anthony Rosales received a KGCB Beacon award for coordinating several Northside cleanup events. He uses social media to spread the message of community pride and coordinate large community cleanup events.

Angela Chavez won the KGCB Recycling Award for elevating recycling to a crusade at Angela’s Café. The restaurant recycles No. 1 and No. 2 plastics, cardboard and aluminum cans and reuses other types of plastic such as buckets and sturdy food containers that can’t be recycled locally. “Angela is an exemplary example of a business owner being a steward of the environment, who mentors her employees to be good stewards of Mother Earth,” Environmental Program Coordinator Elizabeth Barriga said.

City Parks employees Anslen Jake, Kelsey Francisco, Philip Garcia and Jasper Denetclaw won the KGCB Government Award for their ongoing litter pickup on Route 66. “These gentlemen and ladies are on the ground picking up trash most days of the week, and deserve a shout-out for their extensive work,” Barriga said. Their efforts add up to 2.2 miles and 150,000 pounds of trash per year.

John F. Kennedy Middle School teacher Mike “Mighty Mike” Condrey won the KGCB Educator Award for organizing a districtwide Earth Day cleanup challenge in Gallup McKinley County Schools. He led this year’s cleanup with 80 students from the MESA program picking 120 bags of trash downtown and on Boardman Avenue and exit 26.

Recipients got their awards at an impromptu ceremony at the Sept. 27 city council meeting.

By Holly J. Wagner
Sun Correspondent

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