Yesterday was Mardi Gras in New Orleans. I am sure there was a lot of trash on the street but probably a lot less thanks to the efforts of Katrina Krewe. Becky Zaheri started Katrina Krewe in November 2005 to provide relief along the common thoroughfares of New Orleans from the trash and debris that resulted in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Since Katrina, Becky and her Krewe have mobilized thousands of local and national volunteers to bag and remove over 250,000 tons of Katrina debris from the streets of New Orleans. The Katrina Krewe coordinates anti-litter awareness among residents, schools, and businesses within the New Orleans area through various public service programs and activities.

Before Katrina, Becky was a self described soccer mom who lived a pretty good life. She enjoyed her upper class lifestyle playing tennis frequently, socializing with friends, and regular outings and travel with her family. Becky didn’t subscribe to a newspaper, wasn’t politically involved, and wasn’t a community activist. On August 29, 2005, a nasty woman named Katrina changed all that.

Becky was able to return to New Orleans earlier than most residents because her husband was a doctor. She quickly realized that the New Orleans sanitation department had their hands full. In November, Becky emailed everyone in her address book, and asked them to help clean up New Orleans. Within one hour she began receiving responses (over 75 the first few days including many from people she didn’t even know). Fifteen people gathered to pick up trash the day after Thanksgiving in 2005. Soon that number grew to 30 people, then 50, 100, 250, 300, 500, and even as many as 800 volunteers at one clean up session! As the news of their work continued to spread, thousands of people were coming from all over the world for her bi-weekly trash parties. Becky never imagined her influence would be international. Her initial idea was for “my buddies and me” to clean up a few neighborhoods.

The Katrina Krewe continues to foster anti-litter awareness among residents, schools, and businesses within the New Orleans area through various public service programs and activities. After nearly a year of cleaning up the streets of New Orleans, the group hung up its gloves on August 26, 2006, to begin placing the primary focus on their “Keep it Klean” public awareness campaign. The Katrina Krewe is reaching kids in their pilot “kids against trash” school program.

Becky has some advice for others. “Whatever your gig is, just do it. Pick the thing that works for you. Be diligent about it, until you make it happen. Be patient, be willing to sacrifice and don’t stop until you achieve your goal. Start with your friends, your family, your co-workers and get it going. As long as you feel good about it and are making a difference, you don’t need an army of people. One person can make a difference.” Check out www.cleanno.org.

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Tim Richardson is an inspirational speaker who speaks about how giving increases employee morale, lowers employee turnover, increases customer loyalty and creates higher profits for Fortune 500 companies, associations, and national conventions. He is the founder of the The Worlds Biggest Blog Party an event which will connect bloggers from all over the world to raise money for charity. He is also founder and president of the Bill Walter Melanoma Research Fund. For more information on Tim, go to www.TimRichardson.com