By Kyle Fitzsimmons
Review Staff Intern
If you have an old VCR lying around collecting dust or a messy desk cluttered with paper, Premier Self Storage wants to help you and the environment by ‘going green.?
Premier, located at 100 Premier Drive in Orion Township, is sponsoring a ‘Green Meet? for the community Aug. 28 and is encouraging all residents to come out and help the environment.
‘We were just sitting in our office one day thinking how nice it would be for us to get the community together and help the environment,? said Mary Sayegh, manager at Premier.
‘So we started researching different things about going green and we decided to do electronic recycling and paper shredding to help people to get rid of their stuff instead of having it sit in landfills forever.?
What began as an event dependent on sponsorships from local businesses has become a free event open to the community.
In a letter to the Orion Township Board of Trustees, Premier cited difficulty in obtaining sponsorships for making the event free and open to the public.
To offset the costs of holding the event, Premier changed recycling vendors to a certified recycler that does not charge a fee, but rather recoups costs via the recycling business generated on the event date.
‘It’s been a struggle,? Sayegh said. ‘Actually it’s been really hard for us to find sponsors because of the economy right now.?
‘A lot of companies are hurting and unable to donate or help sponsor,? Sayegh added.
Although the format of the event has been changed, it is not-for-profit and Sayegh said they are still urging local companies to donate as much as they can to offset the costs of the event, which includes electronics recycling and paper shredding, along with a barbecue and an indoor paper airplane contest.
Sayegh added they are optimistic for a strong turnout after hearing from the recycling company that past events have drawn crowds of hundreds.
She added the township has confirmed a strong interest from community members in Orion.
‘If people can read that Orion is an environmentally conscious city, I think that will put a positive image on us,? Sayegh said. ‘I encourage everyone to come out and bring at least one thing with them to recycle so we can definitely prove to everybody that we really are a good community that helps each other in a time of need.?