Central Contra Costa Residents Vote Online through November 30th to Determine Winner

DANVILLE, Calif. – November 15, 2017 – Residents in Central Contra Costa have an opportunity to reduce environmental waste in their community and support a local Danville, Calif., non-profit organization in the process. The Crayon Initiative, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that remanufactures used crayons and donates them to art therapy programs in children’s hospitals, has been selected as one of 12 finalists to be eligible to receive a $1,500 Waste Reduction Grant to be awarded by Republic Services as part of their Recycle Smart program.

Residents in the Central Contra Costa Solid Waste Authority service area (Alamo, Diablo, Danville, Lafayette, Orinda, Moraga and Walnut Creek) are eligible to vote for the winner through an online voting process. Each resident may vote once for the organization that is most deserving of the grant through November 30, 2017.

The Crayon Initiative reduces environmental waste and enriches the lives of hospitalized children through art and imagination and has collected more than 11.5 million used crayons from restaurants, schools and homes. The organization has provided a creative outlet for more than 50,000 kids in 90 hospitals across 25 states all while protecting the Earth. Locally, remanufactured crayons are donated to Children’s Hospital in Oakland, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford, UCSF Benioff Children’s and John Muir Medical in Walnut Creek.

“Most people do not realize that crayons are not biodegradable and never break down,” says Bryan Ware, founder and executive director of The Crayon Initiative. “We’ve been able to prevent more than 100,000 pounds of used crayons from going into landfills by remanufacturing them. This grant will help with the costs to remanufacture, package and ship fresh new crayons to reach more children to help them heal through creative expression.”

To vote for The Crayon Initiative to receive the $1,500 Waste Reduction Grant, Central Contra Costa residents may vote online at https://contracostarecycles.com/grant_vote.cfm through November 30, 2017. Additionally, residents may take a recycling pledge to reduce waste in their home this winter by recycling bathroom items such as plastic bottles and cardboard packaging.