QUENTIN ROUX / Staff

Yesica Nino displays some of the empty beauty care bottles collected at Rick's Island Salon & Day Spa as part of a "green" initiative that will effectively turn them into cash to buy and plant trees.

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Trees grow on money

Going green might be a buzz phrase that is already spelled b-a-n-d-w-a-g-o-n, but nobody can point fingers when good intentions are tangible.

Such is the case with Rick’s Island Salon & Day Spa at the Esplanade, which is collecting empty beauty care product bottles they will effectively turn into cash to plant trees.

Rick’s is one of a few top-performing salons in the area that has been invited to participate in a program that will eventually lead to a host of new trees being planted at the Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge Preserve on nearby Sanibel Island.

The Matrix company, suppliers of the Biolage brand, will pay $3 for every empty bottle of that particular line, and $1 for any other kind of beauty product bottle.

Salon owner Rick Popoff said the drive has been in effect for the past couple of weeks, and has realized at least 4,000 empty bottles.

In a grand finale of sorts, the salon will collect bottles Thursday, Aug. 7 at the Marco’s Thursday after work gathering at the Esplanade.

There’s something in it for everyone, too.

One of the sponsors is the Marco Eagle, which will allow donors to spin its giant wheel to win prizes from the newspaper as well as from co-sponsors M&I Bank, Bayview Restaurant, StarBar and also the salon.

Popoff said the more money raised through Matrix, the more trees will be able to be planted at the wildlife refuge.

The actual planting is scheduled for Aug. 18.

Popoff said an additional plus to the whole concept is that he no longer simply throws away empty beauty care bottles because of the lack of a business recycling program on the island.

Stellar recognition

Local Realtor Natalie Kirstein has been recognized by a local council of Realtors.

She recently received a “Shining Star” award from the Women’s Council of Realtors, Naples-on-the-Gulf chapter, for promoting a local Marco Realtor membership drive, and for her efforts on a fashion show hosted at the International Design Center.

In April 2008, Kirstein was awarded the 2007 Top Producer Award for Excellent Sales by the council.

She has been an active member of that council since 2005, and is the Marco Island representative for the Board of Directors.

EXIT man excels

Good things might come in threes, but double that up for local Realtor Bill Filbin.

The EXIT Charde broker/Realtor has just picked up top June agent honors in six separate categories.

Filbin received the Platinum Sales Volume Award, beating out 3,124 other EXIT salesmen in the state of Florida.

On top of that he also picked up five additional first place Platinum awards, which helped push EXIT Charde Realty’s Marco Island office to take top awards in three separate categories, beating out over 180 EXIT Florida offices.

Hard talk on software rescheduled

A postponed seminar on QuickBooks by Island accountant Al Wagner has been rescheduled for 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, at Orion Bank.

At the seminar, Wagner will walk attendees through the ins and outs of the business software package, touching on aspects such as how to use inventory, recording vendor bills, tracking payment checks, entering customer payments, recording bounced checks and entering petty cash receipts and expenses.

For more information, call 403-5169.

Club selection: Georgia

Former Island Country Club GM Lonnie Eberhard has joined Currahee Club in Georgia as its general manager.

The club services a lake and mountain community about 90 minutes from Atlanta.

Eberhard will oversee all club and property owners association operations.

His resume includes service as the 2004 president of the Florida Club Managers Association (CMA) and various executive roles with the Florida Restaurant Association (FRA).

He also held positions with Audubon Country Club in Naples, Fla., before being named the club’s general manager.

Eberhard began his career at Island Country Club at age 28 and remained there for 13 years.