Celebrating Six Years of Taking Care of Our Earth
The Junior Earthkeepers was started in the fall of 2013 shortly after the sudden death of 11-year-old, Lily Gail Jacob, by a group of her young peers. Lily was a passionate advocate for the environment and they began the club in her honor.
Jr. Earthkeepers has grown to a group of about 30 kids dedicated to inspiring young people to take action and protect our planet.
They are a co-op that allows each member to take initiative and be a leader in the movement. They believe in the big difference that little changes can make in protecting our Earth.
All of their members have committed to living by the values of the Junior Earthkeepers and leading their lives in a way that loves and protects the Earth and all of its inhabitants. Each Jr. Earthkeeper takes a pledge to live by these values and be conscientious of the Earth in their everyday lives.
Their Pledge, “As a Junior Earthkeeper, I promise to take care of our Earth by seeing, respecting, and sharing the beauty of this planet. I will remember all the little things I can do to help our environment. I will treat all the inhabitants of our world equally and kindly and do all I can to make our Earth a clean safe place for all.”
Lily Gail Jacob
The Jr. Earthkeepers hold numerous events each year to put their pledge into action. Though the focus of the organization is to encourage people to live their daily lives with the protection of the Earth in mind, holding events is a fun way to take action.
Since the organization is a co-op, any member of the group can organize an event when they choose. This empowers all members and allows for each individual to be creative and become a leader in the environmental movement.
Jr. Earthkeepers have had many beach cleanup‘s, made food to distribute to the currently homeless members of our community, re-purposed cloths, created art with recycled paper, beautified Lily‘s memorial garden, painted stones with eco-friendly messages and left them around the community, and participated in a summer long plastic pickup campaign.
Every year, to celebrate Lily‘s birthday, they hold a cookie exchange and each participant brings a container of homemade cookies to someone who could use some additional holiday cheer.
This December 14th would be Lily’s 18th birthday, and the group will be gathering in her honor to remember the amazing inspiration she was to their club.
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For more info: www.jrearthkeepers.com