WEST MILFORD — The Carroll family has a history of community involvement. While son Tom completed an Eagle Scout project to help out at his church, his father, Ken, has an ongoing project that benefits the entire community.
Every year after the Christmas holiday, when the decorations come down and the new year has started, people are left with their unwanted trees and don’t know what to do with them. West Milford does not collect Christmas trees. Ken Carroll set up a Web site and coordinates a Boy Scout program that’s a win-win proposition for all. The Boy Scouts of Troop 146 will come to your house and pick up your unwanted tree and bring it to the recycling center. They are doing this as a fundraising effort to support Scout activities over the course of a year, including camping activities. In return, they ask for a minimum donation of $5.
“The project has grown about 50 percent a year,” according to Ken Carroll, “Last year we picked up 100 Christmas trees. West Milford is a big town; we’d like to get it up to 1,000 trees.
“People are saying this is great; they’re happy because they’re being picked up,” Carroll added. “People don’t know what to do with them because town does not pick up the Christmas trees. It helps out people looking to dispose of their trees, recycles the material and supports local Scouts.”
Contact the Web site for information at www.xmastreepickup.com, or call 973-853-5680. Pickup dates are scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 5, and Saturday, Jan. 11, 2014.
- Ginny Privitar