Lakeview High School Sophomore Douglas Gurdak is swimming against the tide by being a leader among his fellow peers. As he truly embraces the holiday spirit, Gurdak has created a program that positively contributes to the environment.

Described as a “jump-start program for next year,” Gurdak spoke of how he is creating a program with recycling bins that are not only going to be utilized, but studied in a “project impact report” to show the importance of recycling.

Gurdak explained how he obtained grants from YSA, or Youth Service America for his “general service project for Beta club.” Both Sr. Beta at the high school and Jr. Beta at the middle are participating in the launching of the program this year and the continuation of recycling efforts in years to come.

Beta members from both club levels met recently to assemble boxes and bins that are now located in classrooms and hallways throughout the high school building, and the hope is that the program will be expanded to the new K-8 program next year.

Gurdak has truly taken the initiative as a Lakeview student in making conscious steps to lessen our collective carbon footprint.