Tennessee church uses recycling to give back to the community
"I look at it like we were given these gifts by God - the environment, the animals, all the things that are here for us," Tish McQueen, the parishioner leading the recycling program, told the news source. "And we consume so much. When you look at all the waste that we produce everyday, to give some of that back - to me that means a lot."
Gloria Dei has partnered with local waste disposal company SP Recycling, and is reimbursed by the pounds of paper and cardboard that is recycled per month. From June 15 to September 15 of this year, Gloria Dei has recycled 8,068 pounds of paper and an estimated 13.31 cubic yards of landfill space.
The extra money that the church has been paid this year has gone to purchase grocery gift cards for needy parishioners and to fund other social outreach programs. Of the 50 area churches that are participating, Gloria Dei ranks seventh overall in the amount of paper that has been recycled thus far. It's these kind of small-scale initiatives that can make a huge difference in encouraging people to live sustainable lifestyles and remove tons of waste from local landfills.