If you need an incentive to show your civic pride by cleaning and beautifying your neighborhood, you are in luck, thanks to Keep Slidell Beautiful, an organization that aims to improve the quality of life in Slidell by focusing on litter prevention, beautification, community improvement and waste prevention.

“Keep Slidell Beautiful has successfully reduced litter on the city’s main thoroughfares during its two annual citywide cleanups, Adopt-A-Street program and community service involvement,” said Slidell City Councilman and former Keep Slidell Beautiful Chairman Ray Canada.

The organization is now expanding its efforts by reaching out to homeowner associations, neighborhood groups and residents with what initially started with a $2,000 mini-grant from the Keep Louisiana Beautiful organization. “We are inviting your subdivision to start a Neighborhood Green Team,” said Bill Mauser, Executive Director of Keep Slidell Beautiful. “We will work with you to plan a cleanup day and provide equipment for the cleanup, including gloves, trash bags, pick up poles and safety vests.”

A $100 matching grant is available to each participating subdivision to use in a beautification project to enhance the entrance into the neighborhood.

 “We ask for a receipt showing the items purchased and then reimburse a maximum of $100 or half the project cost,” added Mauser. “Also, we ask that you please take before and after pictures to submit with your receipts.”

 According to Mayor Ben Morris, “I encourage everyone to participate in this grant program.

It provides a wonderful incentive to citizens to clean up their neighborhoods. Cleaner neighborhoods lead to cleaner streets, which lead to a cleaner city.”

 If you would like more information about Keep Slidell Beautiful or to learn more about becoming a volunteer, call 646-4307.