As reported in the Port St. Joe Star

By Special to The Star

Published: Thursday, April 30, 2015 at 09:33 AM.

Grayson Price has been obsessed with everything garbage since he was old enough to walk. At age 1 he began dragging out his family’s trash from the kitchen to the large trash can outside, where he waits for his parents to open the lid and for them to pick him up so that he can reach to fling the bag into the Waste Pro garbage can that is taller than him! By 2, Grayson could “read” Waste

Pro and Waste Management on the side of a dumpster. Today, Grayson still LOVES garbage trucks and aspires to be a garbage man when he grows up! He watches garbage truck videos and plays garbage truck games on his iPad. He also has toy garbage trucks and dresses up in safety yellow and pretends he is a garbage man! Grayson aspires to be a garbage man when he grows up! Grayson attends Oak Grove Daycare and many of his friends share his obsession with garbage trucks. Grayson’s teacher Mrs. Debbie stops class each week to let the children go outside to observe the garbage truck picking up the dumpster. Many of the Waste Pro workers go out of their way each week to wave at the kids as they do their work. Greg Julius a local Waste Pro employee found out about Grayson’s love for garbage trucks and brought him a Waste Pro dumpster and trash can!

As Grayson’s parents began planning his 4^El birthday party it was important to choose a theme that represented Grayson’s current interests. A garbage-themed party was the obvious choice. At the annual Sportsman’s Banquet Stephen and Stacey met Lee Kinner, the Waste Pro Public Relations Manager and told him Grayson and his love for garbage trucks and his upcoming birthday! Lee arranged for Waste Pro driver, Bruce Pou and manager Norm Girardin to make a special appearance at Grayson’s 4^El birthday party on April 25. When Grayson and his friends heard the garbage truck honk its horn and turn into the park, they all screamed with excitement.

“You should have seen the sheer joy and excitement in Grayson’s eyes when he got to shake the hand of his hero, Mr. Bruce, our garbage man,” said Stacey. Each child had a chance to get into the garbage truck and check it out and they even got to blow the horn. Many of the adults at the party had tears in their eyes watching this dream unfold for Grayson. Norm brought Waste Pro gear for the birthday boy and all of his friends!

“It was truly amazing to see a company like Waste Pro go out of their way to surprise and delight these children,” said Stacey. “The local drivers, local management and the management at the corporate office in Panama City Beach went above and beyond to make Grayson’s birthday extra special. This shows me that Waste Pro stands behind their slogans ‘Caring for Our Communities, Proudly Serving Our Community’.

“We are so thankful for Waste Pro and its employees for giving our son this special gift! Grayson’s 4^El birthday party will forever be treasured and remembered.