Keep America Beautiful Recognizes National Leaders and Community Organizations with Awards at 2019 National Conference

STAMFORD, Conn., February 7, 2019 /3BL Media/ – More than 80 individuals, including community leaders from national nonprofit Keep America Beautiful’s community-based affiliate network and other partner organizations, are being recognized today at Keep America Beautiful’s National Awards Ceremony, which is taking place during Keep America Beautiful’s National Conference in Baltimore, Maryland, Feb. 6-8.

Keep America Beautiful’s National Awards celebrate the work of its more than 600 community-based affiliates, millions of volunteers, and corporate and community partners for their commitment and passion to end littering, improve recycling, and beautify America’s communities.

“Keep America Beautiful’s National Award winners demonstrate how we change lives for the better by transforming our public spaces into more beautiful places, by educating the community stewards of tomorrow, and by activating millions of volunteers to move our mission forward,” said Keep America Beautiful President and CEO Helen Lowman.

Among the individuals recognized with Keep America Beautiful’s highest honors were:

Joanne Weik, who is the recipient of the Lady Bird Johnson Award, named after the former first lady for engaging our nation in recognizing that aesthetic beauty is directly related to a better quality of life. Weik, of San Saba, Texas, has volunteered with several local affiliates in Texas, including Keep Lake Jackson Beautiful, Keep Brazoria County Beautiful, Keep Angleton Beautiful and Keep San Saba Beautiful, as well as the state affiliate Keep Texas Beautiful, where she serves as Board Member Emeritus.

Alan Donn, of Tampa Bay, Florida, received the Iron Eyes Cody Award, which was created in honor of Keep America Beautiful’s landmark public awareness campaign of the 1970s. Donn has volunteered with Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful for over 25 years and currently sits on its Board of Trustees. Donn helped transform an illegal dumping site into what is now known as Cypress Point Park. He has also organized more than 15,000 volunteers for programs such as the Great American Cleanup and the Hillsborough River & Coastal Cleanup in Tampa Bay.

Cynde Martin Dickey, of Musella, Georgia, is the recipient of the Carolyn Crayton Award, which was created in honor of the longtime Keep America Beautiful board member who is credited with advancing Keep America Beautiful’s community-based affiliate network, having started the Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful Commission in Macon, Georgia, in 1974. Dickey has been a member of the Keep Roberta-Crawford Beautiful's board of directors, as its treasurer, for the past 30 years. During her tenure, she has assisted in writing in grants, which led to several community improvement initiatives, including the creation of a city park with a walking trail, pavilion, and fountain where an abandoned railroad exchange track existed, and the revitalization of an abandoned church into the Roberta/Crawford Civic Center.

Keep America Beautiful also presented its annual Young Professional Award to Dr. Brett Rushing, research professor with the Mississippi State University Extension Service. The Sue Smith Professional Leadership Award, named in honor of Keep America Beautiful’s former director of education, was given to Jeannine May, executive director of Keep the Rez Beautiful in Brandon, Mississippi, and Karen West, now retired executive director of Keep Genesee County Beautiful in Flint, Michigan.

For a complete list of Keep America Beautiful National Awards recipients, click here.

Keep America Beautiful’s National Conference kicked off on Tuesday, Feb. 6, at which time, Baltimore Mayor Catherine E. Pugh presented a certificate to Keep America Beautiful President and CEO Helen Lowman, welcoming Keep America Beautiful to Baltimore City:

“The Keep America Beautiful Conference is the premier annual educational, training and networking forum that empowers local and state municipalities to strengthen and grow more successful programs and offers a unique opportunity for participants to expand their knowledge base, share their challenges and successes, as well as network with their peers from across the country. On behalf of the citizens of Baltimore, welcome to our city - we hope this year’s conference is a huge success!”

The 2019 Keep America Beautiful National Conference is made possible through the support of some of America’s leading companies, including: Leadership Sponsors – Altria Group, Keep Maryland Beautiful, Lowe’s, Reynolds American Incorporated, Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company; Stewardship Sponsor – Anheuser-Busch; Strategic Sponsors – Keurig Dr Pepper, PepsiCo and Steel Recycling Institute. Conference scholarships are provided by Altria Group.

About Keep America Beautiful
Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s iconic community improvement nonprofit organization, inspires and educates people to take action every day to improve and beautify their community environment. Established in 1953, Keep America Beautiful strives to End Littering, Improve Recycling and Beautify America’s Communities. We believe everyone has a right to live in a clean, green and beautiful community, and shares a responsibility to contribute to that vision.

Behavior change – steeped in education, research and behavioral science – is the cornerstone of Keep America Beautiful. We empower generations of community and environmental stewards with volunteer programs, hands-on experiences, educational curricula, practical advice and other resources. The organization is driven by the work and passion of more than 600 Keep America Beautiful affiliates, millions of volunteers, and the collaborative support of corporate partners, social and civic service organizations, academia, municipalities, elected officials, and individuals. Join us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. Donate and take action at kab.org.

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