Anne Marie Kornelis says recycling was such a routine part of her life growing up in the Pacific Northwest that it was almost like brushing her teeth.
Now that she is the new recycling coordinator at Greenwood-Leflore Recycling, she sees an interest building in this community, too.
“They get all excited about it,” she said. “It’s exciting to see the process.”
Kornelis, 25, formerly of Portland, Ore., replaces Hart Henson, who left at the end of September.
Kornelis said she learned of the position a while back from a childhood friend, Sarah Jackson, a former Teach for America teacher, who now calls Greenwood home.
Greenwood Mayor Carolyn McAdams said Jackson told her that Kornelis had experience with sustainability issues. So the mayor contacted Kornelis and asked her to apply for the job. “While we did have quite a few applications, the problem was that many of them didn’t have any experience in recycling,” McAdams said.
A native of Portland, Kornelis grew up in Lake Oswego, Ore. She attended Oregon State University and graduated with a degree in nutrition science in 2010.
Upon graduation, Kornelis worked with Trackers PDX of Portland, a “survivalist/sustainability class” for youngsters. She also worked at an outdoor school with sixth-graders, she said.
She also has taught children about recycling, and she is already planning to take the message to Davis Elementary School. Davis soon will begin a pilot recycling program, and it is hoped that students there will spread the message to their parents.
Kornelis said the effort will involve placing recycling bins at the school, which is an expensive undertaking.
In addition, she’d like to get more businesses and churches involved in recycling cardboard.
Kornelis’ job also requires her to write grant proposals to help get the recycling program fully implemented.
“I wear many hats. …Sometimes I wear a hard hat,” she said.
Kornelis said she likes Greenwood, calling it “a cute Southern town.”
She said she isn’t sure when curbside pickup of paper, cardboard, plastic bottles and metal can recyclables will be implemented on a countywide basis.
McAdams said Kornelis is a natural for the job.
“Hart got us off the ground. Anne Marie is going to make us soar,” she said.
Kornelis made the move to Greenwood fairly quickly, flying with just a couple of bags in tow. Asked if she can live out of a suitcase for a while, she said it won’t be long before she settles in; all that survivalist training will help.
“When I go home for breaks, I’ll probably bring some more stuff back with me,” she said.
Kornelis can be reached at 455-7197.
• Contact Bob Darden at 581-7239 or bdarden@gwcommonwealth.com.
