The Record Newspapers - Hometown News For Orange County, Texas

Keep Orange County Beautiful (KOCB,) presented the 4th Quarter Beautification Award to Dr. Thomas Johnson, President of Lamar State College Orange (LSC-O). Members of his staff, together with board members of KOCB attended the presentation.

Deborah Bednar, president of the county’s beautification organization, said she has long admired the campus landscaping. “It’s inspiring to the community to see that the Future is Bright Orange,” Bednar said, referencing the LSCO slogan.

Dr. Johnson said he appreciates the award because of the pride our campus takes in maintaining a clean and pleasant campus environment. “I often hear from people who are visiting our campus for the first time that they had no idea our campus was so beautiful,” he said. LSC-O will be celebrating their 50th Birthday Bash on Tuesday, October 29th. Dr. Johnson hopes that the community will come out and visit the campus that day.

Sandra Hoke, a KOCB member, commented that she hopes that others in the community will follow suit to the way Lamar State College Orange maintains the campus.

KOCB has been giving quarterly beautification awards in Orange County for over a decade. KOCB is affiliated with Keep Texas Beautiful and Keep American Beautiful. KOCB has been active in Orange County since 1997. Previous Beautification Award recipients include Salvation Army, Sabine Federal Credit Union, and Industrial Thermal Services.

A major focus for KOCB in 2019 has been to organize and implement Tire Recycle and Scrap Metal Collection events in Orange County. During 2019 two events were held, one in March and the second in July. Over 1,000 tires were collected and recycled and over 10,000 pounds of scrap metal were removed from the backyards, vacant lots, and drainage ditches in Orange County. These projects align with all three of KOCB values of trash abatement, recycling, and beautification.

Pictured from left to right are Patty Collins, LCCO; Deborah Bednar, KOCB, Chair; Dr. Johnson, LSCO President; Sandra Hoke, KOCB; David Derosier, KOCB.