1 Million Pounds Of Trash Removed!

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On 05/18/20, we hit a huge milestone! We have removed over 1 million pounds of trash from Arizona’s outdoor recreation & wilderness areas! It’s a bittersweet milestone because we wish all of that trash had never been dumped on public lands in the first place, but we are grateful we’ve been able to remove it and make a huge impact on Arizona!

We cannot wait until we can come together with everyone for a big celebration! This was not how we intended to announce and celebrate this huge milestone but we go with the flow and keep moving forward.

Thank you to everyone who helped make this possible! Huge shout out to our Dedicated Restoration Team, our volunteers, our Sponsors, and our Supporters!

2019 - Year End Review

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2019 was a busy year for Natural Restorations! Between our Dedicated Restoration Team Projects and our volunteer events, we removed 335,860 pounds of trash from outdoor recreation and wilderness areas across Arizona in 2019! That's 167.93 tons of trash no longer littering our beautiful state!

Here's the breakdown for our 2019 projects & events: 

Our veteran-based Dedicated Restoration Team removed 228,820 pounds of trash (114.41 tons), 174 tires, and 24,351 square feet of graffiti. 

Volunteers helped us remove 107,040 pounds of trash (53.52 tons) and 51 tires. 

Here are our overall totals since our first official cleanup in 2015:

We have removed 854,000 pounds of trash (427 tons) and removed and recycled 650 tires. 

Our Dedicated Restoration Team has removed 371,180 pounds of trash (185.59 tons) of trash since we launched the team in January 2017. Our Dedicated Restoration Team has also removed 31,575 square feet of graffiti from rocks and boulders across the state. 

Cloth & Flame Community Dinner & Donation

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In October 2019, we had the pleasure of being guests at an amazing community dinner benefitting Natural Restorations in the Superstition Mountains hosted by Cloth & Flame. Through this community dinner, Cloth & Flame donated $732.00 to our program!

The setting was perfect, the sunset magical, and it was such a treat to dine under the stars, chatting with friends, and meeting new people. And the food...we are still talking about how amazing the food was that night!

It was such a treat to be a part of this special evening! We would like to give a shout out to our friends at Visit Mesa for introducing Cloth & Flame to our organization!

If you aren’t familiar with Cloth & Flame, they host unique dinner experiences in unconventional spaces, primarily desert and wilderness locations. The bulk of their business is private & corporate events, and weddings. They also host community dinners at which they invite the public to join them at the table and experience a wonderful dinner amidst the natural beauty of our state. For their community dinners, they donate the proceeds to a local nonprofit that supports their mission of being stewards to the land.

Thanks again to everyone at Cloth & Flame for supporting our nonprofit organization and our mission! We hope to be able to offer supporters of Natural Restorations a chance to dine with Cloth & Flame again!⁠⠀

The following photo gallery is courtesy of Cloth & Flame and Elizabeth Nelson from Nelson Cinematic. We would also like to thank Noble Bread & Paul Joseph Waxman of Belly Phx for an amazing Welcome Cocktail made with Shurbwell.

Click photo for enlarged image.

Exciting News! We are Wilderness First Responders!

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We have some exciting news! We were recently in Flagstaff getting our Wilderness First Responder (WFR) Certification through NOLS. This 10-day course is essential if you work or recreate in the outdoors or in other austere environments where access to medical care is delayed or communication is unreliable, which pretty much describes the areas we work in with our Dedicated Restoration Team and volunteers.

We would like to thank everyone at Salt River Project for awarding us with a capacity building grant earlier this year that made this wonderful opportunity to get our WFR certification possible! Thank you, SRP, for your continued support of Natural Restorations and our mission!

The NOLS WFR certification is an absolutely amazing program! We can't express how valuable and life changing the skills and knowledge we gained over the last 10 days are. At some point in our ives, we will come across someone who is injured and needs help, whether it is ourselves, a friend, family member, or a stranger. It's empowering to know that we have the knowledge and confidence needed to help save lives, diffuse extremely stressful situations and make better decisions on how to go about our daily routines.

I wish we could share more pictures from class, but we were sworn to secrecy and asked to keep the pictures from our night mock rescue off social media so that upcoming students get the same experience we had. This picture was taken right after Justin and I passed our written and practical exams.

This is not sponsored, NOLS did not give us a discount.

Natural Restorations Awarded Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative Grant

Thank you to everyone at Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative for awarding us with a grant to greatly improve our FJ Cruiser's capabilities as well as making some long overdue repairs. We run the FJ extremely hard in our mission to clean up outdoor recreation/OHV and wilderness areas across Arizona. Yamaha Outdoors really stepped up to help us continue to accomplish our goals and help guarantee responsible access to our Arizona trails for OHV use. ⁠Listen to the video to hear all of the details.

We also received partnership discounts from Icon Vehicle Dynamics, Metal Tech 4X4, and Sierra Expeditions to help us complete the FJ rebuild.

Thank you so much to everyone at Yamaha Outdoors, Icon Vehicle Dynamics, Metal Tech 4X4, and Sierra Expeditions for your support of this project and our mission! We would also like to thank Mike Pfab from RideNow Powersports in Chandler for writing a letter of endorsement for our Yamaha grant.⁠

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Extreme Terrain's Clean Trail Grant Program

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Check out this amazing opportunity through ExtremeTerrain.com's Clean Trail Grant Program that encourages the responsible recreational use of off-road trails. Get $250 for a trail improvement project!

More information about the grant can be found here: https://www.extremeterrain.com/clean-trail-initiative-program.html. Groups of 5 or more are welcome to apply! 

We recently applied for the Clean Trail Grant to fund the purchase of rakes for volunteers to use at our Doce Pit Cleanup in Prescott on Saturday, June 8th, 2019, our 3rd Annual Lower Sycamore OHV Area Cleanup on Saturday, October 19th, 2019 and at all future cleanups. Click HERE to register for upcoming events.

Don't miss out on this opportunity! More information about the grant can be found here: https://www.extremeterrain.com/clean-trail-initiative-program.html.

We Won the American Rivers 2018 National River Cleanup Photo Contest!

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We won! This amazing picture taken by Justin’s Dad, Tom Corey Images, at Coon Bluff Recreation Area during our 2nd Annual Lower Salt River Land & Water Cleanup at Coon Bluff on 2/17/18 won the American Rivers 2018 National River Cleanup Photo Contest! Thank you to everyone who voted for us and thank you to all of the volunteers who come out to our river cleanups and help us make a huge impact on Arizona!

We were also named “Cleanup to Watch” for their 2018 Cleanup Champions because of all of the river and creek cleanups we hosted in 2018, click HERE to check it out. You can also see another picture from Tom Corey Images at the top of that webpage from our 2nd Annual Green Friday Lower Salt River Cleanup. 

You can check out additional pictures from this cleanup HERE.

Natural Restorations Awarded ON Semiconductor Grant

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In late 2018, we were awarded a grant from ON Semiconductor to put our Dedicated Restoration Team in the field for a trash and graffiti removal project.

We removed 3,704 square feet of graffiti and 3,620 pounds of trash from the Tonto National Forest - Mesa Ranger District along the Lower Salt River and at Saguaro Lake. Click HERE to view the entire restoration project.

We would like to thank everyone at ON Semiconductor for making this project possible!

If your organization is interested in sponsoring our Dedicated Restoration Team, please contact Nicole at contact@naturalrestorations.org

Thank You to Everyone at REI!

We would like to thank everyone from the REI community in Chandler, AZ for donating $600 to Natural Restorations from the Used Gear Swap seller registration fees at the Chandler REI. We also received a wonderful surprise when they told us we were also invited by the REI Chandler store to receive a $1,000 REI co-op brand gear donation for our program!

Thank you so much to everyone at REI, including the Chandler REI, Phoenix REI, and the Goodyear Distribution Center for continuing to make a huge impact on our program! We are grateful for your support and cannot wait for our next cleanup event together on 02/23/19 at the Base & Meridian Wildlife Area Cleanup. Click HERE to learn more and to register.

Thank You, American Family Insurance!

Thank you,

American Family Insurance Dreams Foundation

and Lori Laswick Agency, LLC!

We would like to thank everyone at the American Family Insurance Dreams Foundation for donating $1,000 to Natural Restorations. Over 11,000 nonprofit organizations were nominated by American Family Insurance customers and Natural Restorations was one of 250 recipients. We are grateful for their support of our programs!

Our friends at the Lori Laswick Agency, LLC are offering a $25.00 donation to Natural Restorations for every household insurance quotation. No obligation for purchase! Please mention Natural Restorations when contacting. Contact them for a free quote!

 

Contact Link: https://agent.amfam.com/lori-laswick/az/scottsdale/5425-e-bell-rd/contact-us/#contact-form  

Join Us for Our 1st Volunteer Event of 2019!

Join Natural Restorations & Footprints Matter to Us for the 10th Annual Environmental Stewardship Event at Hewitt Station. Click HERE to view pictures from this past January’s 9th Annual Cleanup.

Register for participation and FREE lunch from our friends at Red Bear Outfitters. Click the link in our profile and click the green button below the flyer for registration. Participating volunteers will also receive a code for 1/2 price admission to Boyce Thompson Arboretum to be used after the cleanup (valid only on 01/19/19 after 12pm). ⠀

Directions to the staging area: click the link below for directions (use Satellite view): https://goo.gl/maps/mUB8JDdufxu

US60 East Towards Superior, Turn left on Queen Valley Road, 1.7 miles to Hewitt Station Road, 1.5 miles to the Sign-in Table.

2.44 Tons of Trash Removed on Green Friday!

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2.44 tons of trash removed at our 2nd Annual Green Friday Lower Salt River Cleanup! That's 4,880 pounds of trash volunteers helped us remove from the river and riverbanks! 346 volunteers chose to #optoutside and attend our Green Friday Lower Salt River Cleanup at Phon D Sutton Recreation Area the day after Thanksgiving. Thank you to all of the volunteers who helped us make a huge impact on the Lower Salt River!

In 2 years, our Green Friday Cleanups have brought out 606 volunteers, including 153 youth volunteers, for a morning of stewardship and exploring the Lower Salt River. Volunteers have helped us remove 9,680 pounds of trash from the river between the 2017 & 2018 Green Friday Events.

Mark your calendar for the 3rd Annual Green Friday Cleanup on Friday, November 29th, 2019.

Photo of Justin Corey, Director of Field Operations & Co-Founder of Natural Restorations. Photo by Tom Corey Images, Justin's Dad.

BackCountry SuperFoods Donating 100% of Profits on 11/23!

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We want to thank and give a huge shout out to Nick and Lili from Backcountry Superfoods for donating 100% of their proceeds from Green Friday Sales on 11/23 to Natural Restorations!

Nick is a Military Veteran and was a member of our 2017 Dedicated Restoration Team. He and his wife, Lili, run BackCountry SuperFoods and make awesome videos of their adventures and the different backpacking foods they try along the way. They stock a great selection of various backpacking foods, much of which is Paleo friendly and sustainably packaged. 

If you are stocking up for an upcoming trip, please shop with Backcountry Superfoods on Green Friday and beyond. Click HERE to visit their website.

Lower Salt River Cleanup with People's Mortgage Company

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On Monday, November 12th, we took a group of volunteers from People’s Mortgage Company in Tempe to the Lower Salt River for a cleanup at Phon D Sutton Recreation Area. Volunteers helped us remove 149 pounds of trash including a lot of micro-trash, fishing line, cigarette butts, a towel, clothing, shoes, glass & plastic bottles, aluminum cans, broken glass, red solo cups, chip bags, hair ties, pieces of plastic, Capri Sun straws and the plastic wrapper they come in, and much more. ⠀

Thank you to everyone at People’s Mortgage for your support of Natural Restorations and for spending your morning with us making an impact on the Lower Salt River!⠀

Click HERE to view the entire project.

Thank You REI Goodyear Distribution Center!

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We would like to thank our friends at the REI Goodyear Distribution Center for donating $1,000 to our trash and graffiti removal program! We are grateful for their continued support and look forward to many more opportunities to work together in the future.

Check out a few pictures from past cleanup events we have worked together on and join us on Saturday, December 1st when we team up with REI and Arizona Game & Fish for the inaugural Base & Meridian Wildlife Area Cleanup along the Gila River. For additional details and to register, visit our Events Calendar.