Keep Suffolk Beautiful is bringing back its challenge for churches to help make the city a cleaner and greener place to live, work and play this fall.

The Church Cleanup Challenge will last from Sept. 15 to Nov. 18, according to the press release, during which Keep Suffolk Beautiful will write to churches asking congregations to choose a public space to clean, such as a street or local park.

Keep Suffolk Beautiful will provide litter-handling equipment such as grabbers, gloves, bags and safety vests, and all bags and debris will be collected by the Suffolk Department of Public Works. Church members only need to do their part, then challenge another local church to do the same.

“We started this fall challenge last year, and we had 10 churches participate,” Keep Suffolk Beautiful spokeswoman Kathy Russell stated in the press release. “We hope more will take part this year. Churches are leaders in the community, so we thought they would make a strong partner for environmental stewardship in the fight against litter.”

Keep Suffolk Beautiful will recognize churches that participate in the challenge and provide updates on the amount of litter that’s removed, according to the press release. The challenge is also an opportunity for high school students to earn the community service hours they need for graduation.

“It’s just a great way to make an instant impact on the community,” said Wayne Jones of Suffolk Litter Control and Keep Suffolk Beautiful.

Citizens can follow the challenge on the Keep Suffolk Beautiful Facebook and Instagram pages. There will also be printed updates in the Suffolk News-Herald.

Call 514-7604 or email littercontrol@suffolkva.us for more information on conducting a community cleanup.