Bethesda, Wis., School Wins Recycled Playground Challenge

Bethesda Elementary School, located in Waukehsa, Wis., won a recycled playground made from oral care waste through this year’s Recycled Playground Challenge, courtesy of Colgate-Palmolive, Meijer and TerraCycle.

The school earned a total of 28,959 playground credits, by recycling waste and via online voting, to win the challenge. The playground, which will be built using recycled oral care waste collected through the Colgate Oral Care Recycling Program, will be unveiled at a ceremony scheduled for September 21 at Bethesda Elementary School.

“We are so proud of our Bethesda Community and very grateful to TerraCycle, Colgate-Palmolive and Meijer for this opportunity,” said Bethesda Principal Jeremy Martin in a statement.

The Recycled Playground Challenge launched in April in schools throughout Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and Wisconsin that participate in the Colgate Oral Care Recycling Program, a free, national program operated by Colgate and TerraCycle. During the contest window, participating schools earned one playground credit for each unit (defined as 0.02 pounds of used, post-consumer oral care products and packaging) of oral care waste—such as toothbrushes, floss containers and empty toothpaste tubes—sent to TerraCycle for recycling. Schools earned additional credits by encouraging their community, parents and teachers to vote online.

“On behalf of Colgate, I am pleased to congratulate the students, parents and faculty of Bethesda Elementary School on winning first place in the 2018 Recycled Playground Challenge,” said Juan Pablo Zamorano, president of North America at Colgate-Palmolive, in a statement. “The energy and enthusiasm they put into protecting the environment has truly made an impact in their community, and we hope the new playground will bring smiles to children in Waukesha for years to come.”

“Meijer was built on a fundamental philosophy of supporting the communities we serve. We are excited to award the grand prize playground to a local school in our community,” said Meijer Spokeswoman Christina Fecher in a statement. “This playground will be a great addition to the community and serve as a reminder to the students, parents and faculty of Bethesda Elementary School of all their hard work and efforts in recycling.”

The Colgate Oral Care Recycling Program is an ongoing activity, open to any individual, family, school or community group. For each piece of waste sent in using a prepaid shipping label, participants earn money toward donations to the school or charity of their choice.