KANSAS
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & ENVIRONMENT
BILL GRAVES, GOVERNOR
Gary R. Mitchell, Secretary
For Immediate Release
Contact: Mike Heideman, 785-296-1529
Bethphage Clients Work Toward a Goal at Second Chance Recycling
KANOPOLIS -- Six years ago, recycling in the Ellsworth area began with drop-off sites at two old grain bins. Today, Second Chance Recycling collects and sorts 450 tons of recyclable materials a year from 81 drop-off sites in Ellsworth, Barton and Rice counties.
Betty Pruitt, manager of Second Chance Recycling, has plans to expand efforts to nearby counties -- as soon as she can find a spare moment. Pruitt is also vocational coordinator of Bethphage Mission, a regional facility for the developmentally disabled in Ellsworth. Bethphage residents do 90 percent of the work at the 4,800-square-foot Second Chance Recycling facility in nearby Kanopolis.
"It's a way for us to give back to the community," Pruitt said.
Bethphage clients sort, bale and load recyclable material for transport. Second Chance Recycling generally employs nine Bethphage clients each day, but more may come to their aid when the work load peaks. The work is important to the clients who have limited employment opportunities.
"Being in a small town like we are, there is no place for them to get jobs," Pruitt said. "I wanted to have so much for them to do that they would beg me for a break," she said.
Although the work has not been that taxing, it has been plentiful.
"We process six times as much recyclable material as when we began," Pruitt said.
Paper products accounted for nearly 390 tons recycled materials delivered to Second Chance Recycling in 1997. Glass accounted for 32.5 tons; aluminum cans for 3.5 tons; steel cans for 13 tons. Recycled plastic added another 10.5 tons to the facility's collection total.
Virtually all materials Second Chance Recycling collects are shipped to Howie's Recycling in Manhattan, a statewide consolidator of recyclable materials.
"We couldn't have made it without him," Pruitt said of Howard Wilson, owner of Howie's Recycling. "When we started, we didn't have Gaylord boxes, balers, wire or anything. He helped us with most of that. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment's two grants have also made a world of difference."
KDHE grants of $99,200 in 1996 and $5,000 last year helped purchase a baler and other equipment and funded substantial improvements to the building, including floor repairs. The state grants are funded by a $1 per ton tipping fee assessed on all trash brought to Kansas landfills.-30-