December 20, 2025 Local Stories in and Around St. Joseph, Illinois

Kids’ recycling project leads to three new benches at local parks

The residents of St. Joseph will have three new benches to sit on.


The village has bought three benches for no more than $1,000 from Prince of Peace Community Early Learning Center and the center has already donated two benches to the village which are at Kolb Park.

The three new benches will be at the Sports Complex.

The Prince of Peace students have been collecting bottle cap and lids which are then turned into benches.

Diane Williams, the Director of Prince of Peace Community Early Learning Center, said students learn collecting, sorting, math and facts about recycling by collecting the lids.


“Any age can partake in it,” Williams said.

The kids are participating in the ABC Program which is a program by Green Tree Plastics for school children to learn about caring for the earth and green living. The children are the primary workers on the project and do the majority of the collecting, sorting and tallying of the weight collected.

When the kids have collected enough caps and lids a bench can be ordered.
Caps that can be collected include medicine bottle lids, milk jug ids, detergent caps, hair spray caps, caps from toothpaste, deodorant, applesauce pouches, drink bottles, ketchup, mustard, spray paint, baby food and shampoo and conditioner.

They can also accept lids from cottage cheese containers, mayonnaise jars, yogurt, peanut butter jars and coffee cans.

Williams said the benches last a lifetime.

Mayor Tami Fruhling-Voges said she supported the project.

“It is a great opportunity to work with the early learning center,” she said. “I like the idea that its recyclable and its a good learning opportunity for the village.”

Lids can be dropped off at the village hall lobby or they can be dropped off at the learning center.

“Caps can be brought to our front door, ring the bell, and we can let them in,” Williams said.

in People
Banner
Related Posts

Athletic complex to be dedicated tonight

April 16, 2021

April 16, 2021

 The St. Joseph-Ogden School District will honor Glenn Fisher tonight.The district voted in June 2020 to name the athletic complex...

Bracelets honoring Booker bring attention to Scott’s Law

April 5, 2022

April 5, 2022

Vickie Reese is hoping a bracelet will help people remember to move over when they see flashing lights. Reese, the...

Why is it important to keep your blood pressure under control?

April 9, 2021

April 9, 2021

By: Christie Clinic Department of Family Medicine What are some signs of high blood pressure and why is it important to...

Kids say…

August 26, 2019

August 26, 2019

Every week we ask students at local schools three questions related to farming. This week we spoke to students at...

Ask the doctor: Which internet resources can I trust for medical information?

March 3, 2021

March 3, 2021

By Jeanelle Murphy, DO In this age of technology it is important to know what websites will give you accurate...

Talk of the Town with SJO head football coach Shawn Skinner

September 27, 2019

September 27, 2019

Every week we ask a school official, village trustee or mayor three questions. This week we spoke to St. Joseph-Ogden’s...

10 things you don’t know about me… Toni Barnes

December 12, 2019

December 12, 2019

We recently asked St. Joseph-Ogden Assistant Volleyball coach Toni Barnes to reflect on the season and tell us 10 things...

Parkland announces candidates for commencement

May 6, 2019

May 6, 2019

Parkland College congratulates the candidates for its 52nd Commencement Exercises. The graduation ceremony will be held Thursday, May 16, at...

Bright Beginnings to hold open house

September 18, 2021

September 18, 2021

A long-time dream is finally coming to fruition. Bright Beginnings Learning Center located at 501 Peters Drive in St. Joseph,...

How I get it done: St. Joseph-Ogden Principal GARY PAGE

June 1, 2023

June 1, 2023

We ask local leaders to discuss their views on leadership, how they set goals and what a typical day is...

Senior spotlight.. Bailey Dowling

August 13, 2019

August 13, 2019

Every week we ask an SJO senior five questions. This week we spoke to Bailey Dowling. What do you want...

Haley’s lofty vision with SJO baseball has become reality

April 16, 2019

April 16, 2019

Josh Haley didn’t do anything elaborate after he achieved a coaching milestone earlier this month. For the St. Joseph-Ogden High...

Scholarship honors, remembers Dick Duval: ‘His legend will live on in St. Joe’

October 5, 2021

October 5, 2021

If you want to know who Dick Duval truly was, all you have to do is ask St. Joseph-Ogden Superintendent...

10 things you don’t know about me… Tammie Mabry

May 8, 2019

May 8, 2019

In honor of teacher appreciation week we asked one of our favorite teachers to tell us 10 things we didn’t...

Talk of the Town with SJO Superintendent Brian Brooks

May 9, 2019

May 9, 2019

Every week we ask a village mayor, school superintendent or board member three questions. This week we talked to St....

Comments
Leave a Reply