A Little Help

Nine years ago, the Bentonville Garden Club gave me a redbud sapling that grew to be my favorite tree--they didn't know they were planting a seed that would one day become A Little Hope.

My goal is to give 3,000 homes a new tree to love in 2011. A little hope needs a little help to make it happen. This year, the trees will be coming from Oklahoma Forestry Commission and 3,000 trees cost a little more than the numbers I have purchased in previous years.

If you or someone you know would like to give a little help, please click here to contact me. When a lot of people are willing to give just a little, it can make a lot happen for A Little Hope! Please take two minutes to view my promotion video on the left.

Thanks so much!

Anna

I can hear the bells...

Join me on Saturday, December 4th to ring the bell for Salvation Army!! Volunteers need only commit to work a one hour shift!

I am organizing volunteers who would like to work a shift ringing the bell at the Bentonville Walmart (grocery door). Any age can ring--children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult.

Please email me to sign up for your time!

Stream Trash Pickup!!

A Little Hope invites you to a 4-H community service trash pickup!!

WHERE: the stream that runs alongside the Bentonville Dog Park
WHEN: Saturday, October 30th at 1:00 pm
WHY: Because it's a nice thing to do!!

Please let me know if you will be attending! Bring your own gloves-trash bags will be provided.

Recycling for kids :)

Please take a few moments to check your closet for gently used winter coats! Bentonville Chamber of Commerce in connection with First Security Bank are having a coat drive to benefit the Boys & Girls Club of Benton County. If you have a coat you would like to donate, please let me know and I'll get it to the correct place!

Nationwide Prescription Drug Take-back Event September 25, 2010

On Saturday, September 25th, Arkansas will participate in a nationwide prescription drug "take-back" event. This is a perfect opportunity to get rid of all your unwanted pills or other medications--both prescription and those you bought over-the-counter. Over 120 collection sites are currently planned, with more being added every day. Federal, state, or local law envorcement officers will be on hand at each site to ensure that all pills are collected and destroyed in a safe, legal and environmentally friendly manner.

You participation in this event will help reduce the supply of prescription drugs available to those who might otherwise try to steal, abuse or seel them. It will also prevent those who these drugs from ever being flushed down the toilet and damaging our water supply. Most importantly, it will keep them out of the hands of our children, grandchildren and teens.

Are you tired of your medicine cabinet being cluttered with old, half-full pill bottles you no longer need? Is your pill drawer so full that it won't open? Do you want to properly dispose of your old drugs but aren't sure what to do with them? Bring your pills to a site on September 25th and they will be disposed of in a secure and safe manner.

Please visit http://www.artakeback.org/ to learn more about this initiative in Arkansas. If you have additional questions please contact the Region 1 Prevention Resource Center at (479)927-2655.

The sites in Benton County are:

• Bella Vista Police Department
• Centerton Police Department
• Decatur City Hall
• Gravette Police Department
• Siloam Springs Fire Department Station 1

For a list of the other sixteen sites in Region one, please click HERE.

TerraCycle

TerraCycle makes affordable, eco-friendly products from a wide range of different non-recyclable waste materials. TerraCycle is one of the fastest growing eco-friendly manufacturers in the world.

TerraCycle runs a free national collection program that pays non-profit organizations and schools. They partner with companies such Frito Lay, Mars, Colgate and more! A few weeks ago, A Little Hope signed up with TerraCycle to be a collection brigade for several items that many of us use. Below is a list of items you can collect to benefit the Benton County 4-H Foundation:

• Lays Potato Chip bags-any size-including but not limited to: Lays, Fritos, Cheetos, Doritos
• Capri Sun or Honest Kids drink pouches
• Colgate toothpaste tubes, toothpaste boxes or toothbrushes-please place toothbrushes in a separate baggie :)
• Mars candy bar wrappers-including but not limited to Skittles, M&Ms, Snickers, Twix, Starburst
• Starbucks coffee bags-TerraCycle just announced on Facebook that they will accept and give the donation for ALL brands of coffee bags!
• Stoneyfield Yogurt Cups-any size or flavor
• Lunch Kit-think Lunchables-kits such as Basics, Fun Packs, Completes and Value Twin Packs

If you are collecting items for A Little Hope, please contact Anna for information on how to get the items to her so they can be sent to TerraCycle. Additional information about collection brigades can be found at www.terracycle.net

Tree giveaways!

Hey everyone! I have 4 tree giveaways scheduled!

• April 22nd is Earth Day and I will be giving away trees at the Bentonville Square!


• April 24th is the Farmer's Market and it is also at the Bentonville Square! I will be there from a 7:00 am-1:00 pm (or until the trees are gone)!


• May 1st is the NWA Green Expo and my tree giveaway will be at the John Q. Hammon's Center! 9:00 am - 3:00 pm (or until the trees are gone)!


• May 7th is First Friday at the Bentonville Square and my final tree giveaway of the year! 5:00 pm-9:00 pm!

I will have aproximately 250 pecan trees at each event. I am very excited and I look forward to seeing you all! Please come see me and recieve you very own, 'A little Hope'!!

150,000 Meals for Arkansas!

WeCanEndThis.com is spending 2010 shifting the converstaion about hunger to real, tangible solutions! Thanks to the generosity of Tyson Foods, they have 10 semi-truckloads of protein to deliver to the top 10 states across the country. You can help!

Before 5:00 on March 18th,

donate a digital can of food by visiting:

• http://wecanendthis.com/
• Select ARKANSAS from the drop down menu as the state you wish to receive the digital can of food
• Enter your name and email address (one vote per email address-it won't be shared)
• Click SUBMIT

Most importantly--share this with your friends and together we can get Arkansas into the top 10 so we can receive 150,000 meals!!

15 days. 1.5 million meals. 10 states.

10 Ways to Use Less and Recycle More

1. Pack Lunches to cut down on takeout packaging. Bringing lunch rather than buying takeout at work will save your family money, too!


2. Pack your lunch in reusable containers to cut down on the amount of waste created by using disposable containers.


3. Avoid using disposable cups by bringing your own reusable cup to the cafe.


4. Buy locally grown food when possible to reduce the carbon emissions produced by long-distance transport.


5. Buy dry goods in bulk to reduce the amount of packaging that goes to landfills. This is also a more economical choice.


6. Install water filters on your tap water faucet. This reduces plastic bottle waste and will save you money in the long run.


7. Use rechargeable batteries and recycle your disposable ones to keep them out of landfills.


8. Recycle e-waste such as used computers and cell phones and refill printer cartridges to reduce the amount of waste going to landfills. Visit http://www.bcswd.com/ to learn about recycling in Benton county.


9. Create a backyard compost pile; reuse vegetable and fruit refuse to nurture a healthy garden.


10. Recycle your old eyeglasses instead of tossing them out or adding to a junk drawer. Your eye doctor may accept used glasses or you can donate to a charity.

These tips were found at www.walmart.com/earth Wal-Mart recently announced their goal to reduce 20 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from the global supply chain in the next five years!

All things green...

GreenZine Northwest Arkansas is all new and is now online! GreenZine is a quarterly, carbon-neutral online magazine! It is your go-to web resource for all things green and sustainable from or concerning our region! The GreenZine is the official publication for the NWA Green Expo.

Speaking of the NWA Green Expo, mark your calendars for April 30th and May 1st! There are national sponsors, more than 90 exhibits, seminars & workshops. They expect more than 3,000 to attend! The NWA Green Expo will be held at the John Q. Hammons Convention Center in Rogers. You can visit NWA Green Expo for more information!

Stay tuned for updates, A Little Hope is planning on giving away Pecan Trees this spring-I will be announcing locations where you can get yours soon!

Local Seed Swap

A seed planted three years ago at the Ozark folk Center in Mountain View, where Arkansas' first seed swap took place, is taking root in Fayetteville. What sweeter way to spend Valentine's Day than swapping seeds and learning about the practice from area gardeners and farmers. This swap is a good educational tool for learning more about seed saving and preserving rare plants native to our region. Some of the advantages include saving the diversity of plants, maintaining species, adapting plants to the local climate and being less dependent on seed companies.

Sponsors of the Fayetteville seed swap are: the Fayetteville Community Gardening Coalition, the University of Central Arkansas' Conserving Arkansas' Agricultural heritage project, Washington County Cooperative Extension service, the national Center for Appropriate Technology and Ozark Natural Foods.

WHEN: 1:30-4:30 on Sunday, February 14

WHERE: Fayetteville Public Library

"If you have no seeds to swap but want to learn more, come along to mingle with gardeners and farmers who can provide great insight about heirloom seeds"

For more information call Katy Deaton at 479-409-4431 or Dr. Brian Campbell at 501-450-3178