“Data and Numbers”
I hope that each of you have had a wonderful Christmas and Holiday season and are looking forward to an exciting and productive 2024! 2023 brought another blessed year for Alabama PALS, and the staff and Board of Directors are looking forward to what we feel will be the best chapter in the history of your organization. Thank you for affording Alabama PALS the blessing and opportunity to serve you and your cities, counties, and communities.
In today’s world there is an abundance of importance placed on “data and numbers,” whether it is within an organization, business or our daily lives. It’s a fact that certainly has merit and verifies the work and successes that we all strive for in every area of our lives. “Data and numbers” are also important when we explore how we can make improvements to better accomplish the goals and standards that we set and to determine how we can adjust to make successful programs even more effective for the future. “Data and numbers” certainly have their place!
YOUR organization has grown to include:
- 889 current Statewide Adopted miles.
- Over 500 tons of litter picked up and reported each year during the “Don’t Drop It On Alabama” Spring Cleanup.
- 108,078 volunteers cleaning up 6,688 miles of coastline and picking up 1,757,902 pounds of trash during the history of the Alabama Coastal Cleanup.
- Thousands of students hearing the message of how they can become a part of a cleaner and more beautiful Alabama through the Alabama PALS Clean Campus Program.
These facts are amazing and have been accomplished due to your hard work and dedication to the goal of making Alabama truly “Alabama the Beautiful.”
However, as I look at the important and impressive “data and numbers,” I am more impressed at HOW Alabama PALS achieved those numbers. It is humbling and evident that these achievements are due to people, relationships, and leaders that have been nurtured and developed over the years through Alabama PALS.
I look back at a Board of Directors through the years that have remained devoted, supportive and 100% committed to leading PALS in a direction that has stayed true to its mission statement through both good and hard times. No organization has been more blessed to have had a more genuine group of board members. I also look at the relationships that have been formed with ADCNR, ADECA, ALDOT, and other agencies and associations that continue to encourage and support the PALS mission. We could not do what we do without their continuing genuine support.
I also have to consider our most important PALS Corporate Sponsors, as well as the Alabama Coastal Cleanup Sponsors. Again, I don’t know of another organization that has been more blessed to have a more loyal or supportive group of businesses that not only support the programs of PALS, but also are willing to become actively involved at every level. Thank each of you for your support, personal loyalty and friendship, and for giving PALS the opportunity to continue to serve all Alabama communities. To me, the relationships and the people that make the “numbers and data” possible are the MOST important factor of your organization!
In this article, I have included a memorial tribute written by her granddaughter to one of the longest and most dedicated PALS supporters in the history of Alabama PALS. Janice Castleberry gave everything that she had to the mission of a cleaner and more beautiful Alabama and to her “favorite organization,” Alabama PALS. She was one of the most dedicated individuals that I have ever known, and it is my pleasure to honor her service and friendship in this issue. Thank you, Janice, for your dedication and wonderful friendship for so many years. The world is a better place because of you!
In closing, we look forward to working with each of you in 2024. Let’s make the 2024 “Don’t Drop It On Alabama” Spring Cleanup in April the largest and most effective statewide cleanup ever. Let us know how we can best assist your cities, counties, groups and communities in preparing for the 2024 statewide cleanup. Thank you for your continued support in 2024.
— Spencer Ryan