In less than one year, Kerry McCray has donated $4,250.06 worth of labor to Hands On Charlotte. Do the math. That’s $354.17 per month, $82.67 per week or $11.81 every day. Yet, the recent transplant from Los Angeles, California, thinks she needs to thank us.“L.A. is such a different world. But I feel at home here,” she said. “Hands On Charlotte has really helped me make Charlotte my home.”
But on a day when we are celebrating our volunteers’ service to the environment, we can’t think of anyone to thank before Kerry McCray. As the volunteer leader of the Panthers Recycling program and a regular at the McGill Rose Garden, she has bolstered some of Hands On Charlotte’s most popular environment-focused projects.
As the leader of the Panthers Recycling program – where volunteers collect cans and trash from fans tailgating at Carolina Panthers games – Kerry led Hands On Charlotte volunteers in helping to recycle 23.4 tons of garbage. To give some context, that’s nearly 29 percent of all the trash produced at Panthers games.
“What I really love about [Panthers Recycling] is that I hate trash. I hate trash,” she said. “Trash makes me cringe. And the fans just love it. They always yell ‘Hey! We’ve been waiting for you!’ It’s tough not to enjoy.”
In addition to helping Hands On Charlotte volunteers enjoy their experience, she’s also helped us continue our great relationship with the City of Charlotte.
“Working for the city has been a big part of why that program is so much fun. They think we’re the greatest thing, and because of that, they go out of their way to help us out,” she said.
Kerry admits that environment-focused projects can easily become preachy, but it’s her enthusiasm that makes Hands On Charlotte environment projects so much fun.
“The impact of what we’re doing there is great. The statistics demonstrate that,” she said. “But what’s really great is that it’s a non-lecture-y way to educate people about the importance of recycling and taking care of the environment.”
--Tanner Kroeger
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