On Saturday October 20th, 2012, Project N.I.C.E. took place in Brookfield.
“Project N.I.C.E. (Neighbors Involved in a Clean Environment) is an annual day of service that began in 1993 under the direction of the Brookfield Recycling Commission.” said Nicole Gilhooley, who is a member of the Brookfield Beautification Committee (BBC).
New this year, the Fall date for Project N.I.C.E. replaces what used to be “Make a Difference Day” or “Day of Service.” The event had piggy-backed on RB’s Day of Service. Last year, RB’s Day of Service was relabeled as a Month of Service, incorporating a wider range of events, and this year the event was cancelled altogether due to staffing and budget cutbacks.
“Our numbers for Fall have been down, but this year we did have an increase over last year. We had about 55 volunteers last year. [This year] we had over 80 volunteers,” Gilhooley said. “We had a nice turnout from the RB girl’s tennis team and some other teenagers from RB and Gross.”
Project N.I.C.E also involved a local brownie troop (girl scouts), several families with young children, and other adult residents who live in Brookfield. Adult organizations that were involved included the Brookfield Garden Club, the Women’s Club, BBC commissioners, Village trustees and the Village President.
The Spring Project N.I.C.E normally has a bigger turnout than the Fall.
“In the Spring we generally have about 300+ volunteers. The Beautification Commission has been in contact with Principal Pam Bylsma, who is working with staff and the PTO to reinstitute the ‘Day of Service’ in 2013, which will certainly help [balance] our Fall numbers and allow us to accomplish more,” Gilhooley said.
“We will be confirming the date at our next meeting, but [the Spring event is] usually the last Saturday in April. The date is tentatively set for Saturday, April 27th,” Gilhooley said.
