AMITE—Tangipahoa Parish’s “Keep Tangipahoa Beautiful” program has been recognized as the best in the state.

On Wedneday, Oct. 11, Keep Louisiana Beautiful recognized KTB as the state’s Outstanding Community Affiliate for 2023 at the 2023 Everyday Hero Awards ceremony in Baton Rouge.

“We always say we live in the best parish in the state. This award is just one example of how our team goes above and beyond to take Tangipahoa Parish to the next level,” Tangipahoa Parish President Robby Miller said. “This is a great recognition for our parish and especially for the men and women who work hard every day to make our parish shine.”

KTB was recognized for making “significant strides in creating a cleaner, brighter Tangipahoa Parish. This group, which began with just five grabbers and a few reflective vests seven years ago, has grown to a board of directors representing every part of this 50 mile long parish and a host of volunteers who in the last year picked up 17,794 bags of trash and 333 tires.”

Keep Louisiana Beautiful also recognized Tangipahoa Parish’s three-pronged litter attack (via education, beautification, and enforcement) which is ongoing five days a week, 52 weeks a year, plus many weekends. Over the last year, the parish identified 175 illegal dump sites and made efforts not only to clean those sites up but also to identify the culprits involved and take action to prevent future dumping by those individuals.

Keep Louisiana Beautiful commended Tangipahoa for making this a collaborative effort and working with a host of local partners like the Osprey Initiative and Southeastern Louisiana University to expand the reach of their educational programming. “Their collaborative spirt and innovative efforts serve to promote a culture of cleanliness throughout their community,” officials said in making the award presentation.

The Outstanding Community Affiliate Award is presented to a Keep Louisiana Beautiful Affiliate that has made significant strides in the past year in making their community a cleaner, greener place to live. The recipient organization demonstrates strength in leadership by engaging key stakeholders and volunteers in collaborative initiatives with a measurable impact. The community served by the Affiliate is a better place to live thanks to the ongoing efforts of the organization.

This marks the second time in two years that Tangipahoa Parish has been recognized by Keep Louisiana Beautiful with an Everyday Hero Award. In 2022, Keep Tangipahoa Beautiful Director Ginger Tastet was named outstanding affiliate director.