WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — If you live in Luzerne County, don't be surprised if an anti-littering yard sign pops up in a neighborhood near you.
They are the end result of a contest that started in January, where school students were asked to design an anti-littering yard signs.
The contest was put on by the Luzerne County Visitors Bureau.
"It's very impressive, right? I mean, I think it's a great commentary on the kids in the schools that help put them together pre-pandemic. You know, they're going to see them, there's going to be some pride in their community. There's pride obviously that we're taking on this littering battle," explained Theodore Wampole, the executive director of the Luzerne County Visitors Bureau.
Four winners were chosen, and then it was time to find a sponsor to help produce the signs.
"Thanks to the sponsors that really stepped forward, New Roots Recover and A Plus Hauling, we were able to get the signs into production, and we have 300 signs now and are distributing throughout the county," said Wampole.
It turns out, the sponsors were a perfect fit.
New Roots Recovery and A+ Enterprises Junk Removal & Demolition have been leading their own charge in the anti-littering battle spearheaded by Gregory Griffin.
He's been coordinating illegal dumpsite clean-ups with the help of both sponsors.
He says one sign design is particularly spot-on.
"It looks like an illegal dump site, so the children the kids at school got it just right, and people will see immediately that it's litter, and they should not do it," said Griffin.
"I think they're awesome I think it is a great idea I cannot believe that these were made by students that really care and show the concern in their community," added Patty Shenefield with New Roots Recovery.
Griffin says the signs are a big help.
"They're very important. Every time we clean up an illegal dumpsite, we put a sign up where we just cleaned up, and we've been going back to patrol it, and there's less littering," said Griffin.
Visit Luzerne County has given the signs to municipalities all over Luzerne County that will now distribute them.
If you work for a municipality in Luzerne County that doesn't have any of the signs, there's still time for you to reach out and get a few for your community.
You can get in touch with the bureau here.