Meet the Village People of Port Royal
Ten years ago, Kathleen Bray walked into St. Mark's Episcopal Church during Coffee with Joe (the then-current councilman, Joe Lee) and asked if there would be anyone interested in helping clean up Port Royal... and they were.
Kathleen, better known around town as "Kat," remembered there being a lot of trash and dumping at the time, so she created the Village People of Port Royal as part of the Adopt-A-Highway Program in Beaufort. Adopt-A-Highway was added to South Carolina's PalmettoPride as part of its mission to eradicate litter and promote beautification in the state of South Carolina.
“Clean communities are safe communities. Clean communities are good for tourism and economic development. Clean communities are a source of pride for all of us who call South Carolina home.” -palmettopride.org
Kat served by way of clean up in her previous neighborhood on Lady’s Island. She brought her past efforts and experience to Port Royal and immediately began going to work to clean up this uniquely charming and cool, coastal, far-from-ordinary town.
Litter is an ugly sight for all to see, and since we live in such a uniquely beautiful town, it is hard to believe that there are struggles to keep it clean. According to PalmettoPride's stats, 81% of littering is intentional. One of the strongest contributors to litter ... existing litter! So, that means one of the best ways to stop litter is to clean it up.
Kat has enlisted local churches, schools, and firemen in the past to be a part of Port Royal litter pickups. She has also worked with Port Royal Elementary School to do litter pick-ups in the Cypress Wetlands where she also volunteers. Kat welcomes community groups to participate in the pick-ups or to coordinate a special clean-up event.
Together, with Port Royal's Public Works, consistent, monthly efforts by the residential volunteers have helped to keep the Old Village streets clean of litter and dumping for 10 years! Regardless of the weather, her team shows up to help keep Port Royal a picturesque place to live and visit. Because of their efforts, the town has begun to build a reputation as a scenic destination.
Cleaning up litter is one of the cheapest and easiest ways for locals to improve their community. Cleaning up litter, graffiti, junk cars and illegal dumpsites actually deters criminal activity. Some areas are more difficult to pick up at and are not safe for residential volunteers (heavy intersections, bridges, etc) and this is where other local organizations or groups such as local firemen step in to help.
It has long been known that clean, litter-free neighborhoods make residents feel safer, friendlier, and healthier. Cleaner neighborhoods strengthen communities & improve the quality of everyday life. It has also been shown that cleaner communities improve real estate values and increase economic development.
Port Royal is naturally beautiful and an attractive place to live, but did you know that 36% of business development representatives say that the presence of litter impacts a company's decision to locate to a community? And, according to the National Association of Home Builders pricing model, a community with litter will see property value decreases by over 7%.
Kat says she simply loves the group of volunteers that are enthusiastically committed to keeping Port Royal pristine. She has seen the group grow and appreciates the many that have been with the group since the very beginning.
“They make a difference in Port Royal and they continue to want to see their town be beautiful.” - Kathleen Bray
Kat hopes to see the group continue to grow in numbers and to see the residents become better educated about Port Royal's trash and bulk services available. She also hopes to see Port Royal's youth become involved and take up the mantle for future generations.
Kat has facilitated the cleanups since the beginning and never fails to reward her dedicated crew with some incredibly yummy home-baked goodies after cleanup. (If you have volunteered with the group, you know this to be true!) The Village People meet every first Saturday at 8:30 a.m. on Paris Ave. at St. Mark’s Center across from Maynard’s Ice Cream Shop. If you want to help keep Port Royal the cool place it is, just show up, all litter pick-up material is supplied.
We're grateful for Kat's vision of a cleaner, safer, & more beautiful town! Her community-wide efforts not only keep Port Royal attractive but is also good for the land, tourism, businesses, and of course, for our future Port Royalians (is that a word, yet?).
Learn more and get involved at:
Port Royal Public Works: https://www.portroyal.org/169/Public-Works
Keep America Beautiful: https://www.youtube.com/@KeepAmericaBeautiful
PalmettoPride: https://www.palmettopride.org
WastePro Brochure: https://www.portroyal.org/DocumentCenter/View/308/Waste-Pro-Brochure
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