This year, Gainesville's Solid Waste Management division is fighting breast cancer - with pretty, pink trash carts.
Gainesville's Roll Breast Cancer to the Curb team for the American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk is raising money for the event by selling the carts.
About 45 households that ordered the pink carts will receive them over the next few weeks, said Terri Raimer, a customer service representative for City of Gainesville Solid Waste.
The campaign is sponsored by Waste Corporation of America, which sells and delivers the carts.
Pink carts are available through the solid waste division for $50. The cost of the cart is separate from monthly waste collection fees. All of the money from the sale of the carts goes directly to Making Strides Against Breast Cancer.
Raimer said she will take more orders for pink carts through October, but about 50 more households will have to order them to justify another delivery.
"Unless we get a big participation, we may not be able to order another bunch," she said.
The carts are part of a larger campaign leading up to the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk Oct. 22.
JoAnn Alarid, a four-year survivor of breast cancer and community involvement chair for the event, purchased her own pink cart last year while fundraising for her walk team, the Twinkling Ta-Tas.
"We've got to bring our trash out, so why not make it look pretty?" she said.
Alarid said Gainesville will be the first city in Florida to offer the pink carts.
Other municipalities across the United States have their own pink cart campaigns as well as online programs such as thepinkcart.com, which works in collaboration with the American Cancer Society to distribute carts to individual households that request them.
Gainesville residents who want to order a pink trash cart can call the city solid waste division at 352-334-2330.
There is no provision for non-municipal pink cart pickup, but county residents can call Alachua County Waste Management at 352-338-3233 to request pickup.
JoAnn Alarid poses with a pink trash cart bought to support the 2010 Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk.
