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Friends use beach trash to create holiday parade float

Posted at 6:29 PM, Nov 29, 2021
and last updated 2021-11-29 18:32:33-05

Two friends are using their creativity to decorate their holiday float for a Christmas parade.

The theme is "A Reflection of Christmas Classics."

Instead of Rudolph and the Island of Misfit Toys, their float is called "The Island of Misplaced Toys."

Cristina Maldonado with TC (Treasure Coast) Trash Art, said, "So the creature's body is made from big water jugs, his head is a water jug as well. His coat is towels people leave behind, his pants are a pair of actually painter's overalls."

Maldonado and Rebecca Fatzinger walk on the beach every day picking up trash.

They met several years ago having a common cause.

"There's too much plastic pollution on our beaches, the wildlife are dying from it. We actually saw a sperm whale die in front of our faces this year from a rope in his throat," said Cristina.

In 2019 Cristina and Rebecca won a trophy for using trash to decorate their parade float. Last year they also got the community's attention.

"Actually it's all different types of rope that we find, and I took this apart and glued this strand by strand. You just find all different kinds," Rebecca said.

"In the end, it's a message to care about the environment," Cristina said. "We go out there and try to make it a little bit safer for the wildlife." Every piece of trash is treasured.

"Rebecca used two buoys, piece of a wheel, some bottle caps and this was a fabric found from a towel," Cristina said.

Follow TC Trash Art on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/tctrashart.