Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore and Baltimore-based Pompeian, Inc., America’s largest national brand of olive oil on a mission to help people eat, live and feel better, announced today the extension of its Healthy Harbor partnership, a commitment to the health of the Baltimore Harbor and surrounding communities through the adoption of Mr. Trash Wheel and Professor Trash Wheel and $30,000 in support of the Community Cleanup and Beautification Grants Program.
“Pompeian is honored to partner with Healthy Harbor for the third year. Although we aspire to have a trash-free harbor and retire the trash wheels in the future, we are inspired by the environmental awareness they have created,” said Mouna Aissaoui, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Pompeian, Inc. “We are passionate about living and working in Baltimore, and we’re excited to be a part of something that keeps our Baltimore community healthy and beautiful for all to enjoy.”
To celebrate the third year of the partnership, Waterfront Partnership visited Pompeian’s headquarters in Baltimore to make pancakes in the shape of Mr. Trash Wheel. Together, the organizations are encouraging the public to make their own version of Trash Wheel-themed pancakes using the Pompeian Olive Oil recipe shared on the Mr. Trash Wheel social media accounts today. Those who share their pancake creations and tag @mrtrashwheel and @pompeian may be featured on Mr. Trash Wheel’s social media accounts.
With Pompeian’s renewed commitment, Waterfront Partnership will once again be able to award grants of $1,000 to $5,000 totaling $30,000 through its Community Cleanup and Beautification grants program. The grants program goes beyond financial awards and engages environmental stewards in the Baltimore community through assistance with the implementation of greening projects, grant workshops and boating tours of Baltimore’s waterfront courtesy of Waterfront Partnership. Applications are now being accepted from communities with ideas for projects that will clean and beautify public spaces and reduce the amount of trash and other pollution ending up in the harbor. To complete a grant interest form, visit https://www.
Through the adoption of the trash wheels, Pompeian continues to support the collection and removal of tons of trash and debris from Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. Since Pompeian adopted Mr. Trash Wheel and Professor Trash Wheel in 2021, the two wheels have removed 440 tons or 880,000 lbs. of litter and debris from the Baltimore Harbor, which includes 391,630 plastic bottles, 617,900 cigarette butts, 248,165 wrappers, and 60,000 foam containers.
“We are really excited to continue this partnership with Pompeian in 2023 and to see the continued improvements in neighborhoods across Baltimore through the grants program,” said Adam Lindquist, vice president of Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore’s Healthy Harbor Initiative. “It’s clear Pompeian is committed to making a positive mark in Baltimore, and we’re grateful to be a part of it.”
Also, since the partnership launched in the spring of 2021, Waterfront Partnership has distributed $55,000 in Pompeian-funded grants to traditionally underserved communities that helped to clean, beautify and strengthen neighborhoods. Last year’s funds supported bringing youth and adults together for cleanups in Sharp-Leadenhall; the painting of a block-long butterfly mural in Milton Montford across from a community green space; a block beautification project around Patterson Park to add enhance curb appeal and promote community engagement amongst new and old homeowners; the Tandea Youth Internship program, which paid youth to clean the McElderry Park neighborhood each Sunday and experience Inner Harbor boat rides to learn about the water health; and several more.
Waterfront Partnership’s Healthy Harbor Initiative works to restore and protect Baltimore City’s most valuable asset, the harbor. Through its growing list of projects, programs, and partnerships, the Healthy Harbor Initiative is educating the public about what lives beneath the surface and how we can all fight for the urban ecosystem through actions we take. For more information, visit healthyharbor.org.
Waterfront Partnership, in collaboration with our government, business, and community partners, creates a clean, green, safe, sustainable and thriving urban waterfront for all to enjoy. We’re lean, nimble and effective; the only organization that wakes up every day, rolls its sleeves up and gets to work on new ways we can make Baltimore’s Waterfront even more active, attractive and appealing. We’re the hosts who greet visitors, the creators of programs and promotions and managers of our beautiful parks. We encourage investment in Baltimore’s most celebrated asset so it can continue to grow, to serve as a place of pride and the place where Baltimoreans come together to recreate and to celebrate. For more information, visit waterfrontpartnership.org.
Pompeian, Inc. – The Olive Oil People – is America’s largest national brand of olive oil, bestselling vinegars and a variety of cooking sprays. Farmer owned and Baltimore based since 1906, Pompeian is a family of olive farmers and olive oil craftsmen whose passion, expertise and dedication bring the best-tasting, highest-quality olive oils to kitchens everywhere. Upholding the highest quality standards, Pompeian conducts daily testing through their in-house quality assurance team in the state-of-the-art Pompeian Quality Control and Research & Development Center ensuring each bottle is always at peak freshness. Inspired by heritage and tradition, Pompeian products are rooted in authenticity and crafted for quality and great taste. For more information, visit www.pompeian.com.
