First Night Hartford Teams Up with CLYNK to Launch Bottle and Can Fundraiser for the Arts
Image courtesy of CLYNK
Hartford, CT – Dec. 16, 2024 – First Night Hartford, the capital city’s festive annual New Year's Eve celebration with live music, art, food, and two fireworks shows, today announced an innovative fundraising partnership with CLYNK that turns redeemable bottles and cans into cash for the arts. Organizers of the ambitious effort hope to raise $10,000 through this community-driven fundraising campaign. With the state’s new 10 cent redemption law First Night Hartford will need to collect 100,000 bottles. Every bottle and can redeemed through this initiative will directly contribute to funding the local arts and culture organization’s two annual community festivals, First Night Hartford and Hartford Bonanza, a newer Independence Day tradition held in Bushnell Park.
The partnership with CLYNK is part of the recycler's expansion into Connecticut this year. The business is on a mission to replace today's tired, old recycling chores with a modern, clean approach. CLYNK's redemption system lets you drop off bags of clean, unsorted beverage cans and bottles. Then you collect your refunds in a personal account. In 15 seconds or less, you have done your part to help keep Connecticut free from litter. And you ensure your bottles and cans return as, well...bottles and cans. CLYNK, which has been operating for years in Maine and New York, has recently opened a processing facility in Bristol, Conn.
Image courtesy of CLYNK
“It is an honor to partner with First Night Hartford to make this popular event more sustainable. Connecticut is one of ten states in the country that has enacted a Bottle Bill, and recently, the state increased the deposit to 10 cents. Please join us and the thousands of First Night Hartford participants in donating your redeemable beverage containers in support of the Arts in Connecticut,” says Bridget O'Brien, COO, CLYNK.
With the simple act of donating recyclables, individuals can make a meaningful impact on Hartford’s vibrant arts landscape. First Night Hartford and CLYNK are inviting schools, businesses, community organizations, families, and individuals to rally behind this cause, organize their own mini-drive, and challenge their neighbors to participate too.
For more information about the fundraiser or how to participate, organize a drop off or pick up ahead of the New Year please email firstnight.hartford@gmail.com.
Redeemable cans and bottles can also be dropped off at collection points during First Night Hartford at these locations: Corner of Trinity and Elm, Union Station, and the Soldier and Sailors Memorial Arch. For beverage container collection after First Night Hartford, please contact CLYNK Customer Support at 1-866-883-4171 or info@clynk.com.
This partnership with CLYNK gives everyone a chance to support the arts in a simple yet impactful way. Every bottle and can counts! Stay connected for announcements on First Night Hartford’s Facebook, Instagram, and website.
About First Night Hartford
Since 1989, First Night Hartford has been the Hartford region's New Year's Eve party; a friends and family-friendly, multicultural, artistically unique New Year's celebration with countless professional musicians, artists, performance groups and exhibits that inspire thousands of people of all ages to attend each year. The First Night tradition marks the passage from the old year to the New Year with art, ritual, and festivity. First Night Hartford’s mission is to broaden and deepen the public's appreciation of the visual and performing arts through an innovative, diverse and high-quality program that offers the community a shared cultural experience that is accessible and affordable to all. First Night Hartford, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, also produces Hartford Bonanza, a newer music and fireworks tradition held each Independence Day Weekend in Bushnell Park.
About CLYNK
CLYNK is the pioneering technology company that revolutionized bottle and can redemption with its innovative "Bag Drop" system. CLYNK's tech-enabled solution provides a seamless redemption experience for consumers, allowing them to quickly drop off bottles and cans at conveniently located solar-powered stations. With over 500,000 consumer/fundraising accounts and having processed over 2.5 billion containers, CLYNK is changing the way consumers, retailers, and the beverage industry approach sustainability and circularity for beverage containers. For more information, visit www.ct.clynk.com.