As Ottawa County residents move into the last few months of the year, they can see the holiday festivities begin to pick up. One thing to consider adding to your holiday traditions may be to make your own ornaments with friends and family!

The Ottawa Sandusky Seneca Solid Waste District is encouraging everyone to participate in their annual Upcycled Ornament Contest. Open to all residents of Ottawa, Sandusky and Seneca counties, the Waste District encourages people to make a holiday ornament out of upcycled/natural materials and share it with them for a chance to win a $25 gift card.

This will be the third year of the Upcycled Ornament contest and the Waste District is expecting the highest participation rate yet. All entries will be added to the virtual holiday tree on their website for the entire month of December. Entries will be accepted now through Friday, Dec. 9. To enter, visit RecycleOSS.org and follow the instructions on the homepage.

Winners will be chosen among these categories:

• Adult/Youth—Mixed Material: Make an ornament with more than one repurposed item.
• Adult/Youth—Natural Items: Make an ornament made from organic materials found in nature.

The contest is a valuable reminder that materials you use every day have much more value to them than at first glance. The OSS Solid Waste District encourages you to reuse and reduce to limit our waste through the holidays and after.