Trash to Treasure 

Upcycled Bottle Caps Become Beautiful Creation



A group of OMers (Odyssey of the Mind problem solvers) and one of their team's coaches took advantage of an opportunity to collect bottle caps which they needed for a vital part in solving this year's selected problem. After a basketball game at their high school, they took it upon themselves to pick up trash, all while collecting any and all bottles and caps that they found in the bleachers and any places surrounding the gym. 
The team members had already contacted many family members and friends that they knew and asked them to save their bottle caps. The students had bigger plans for the tops. As the five students came to the last bleacher in the gymnasium, they were greeted by the custodian on duty. He was graciously thanking the students for helping him by picking up the trash left behind by the spectators who crowded the gym for the annual Coming Home basketball game.  The students explained to him what they were doing and why. They, then told him they would take the 6 trash bags of bottles they collected home to discard. 

Recycling takes a little effort on your part but makes a BIG DIFFERENCE to the world. 

Students from team #3 prepare to move their props at the start of their competition time. 
All bottles were cleaned and recycled. As for the bottle tops, they were cleaned also, but the Odyssey of the Mind team members had bigger plans. They used these tops, all shapes, sizes, and colors to create a beautiful mosaic team sign to earn extra style points for their competition in Spartanburg, South Carolina on March 4, 2023. 

The beautifully crafted membership sign, created from bottle caps the students collected. It depicts a vase that would be typical to the ones used in ancient times. As the saying goes, "One man's trash is another person's treasure". What a treasure these students have created!  


Recycling turns things into other things, which is like magic. 

Creativity is making marvelous out of DISCARDED. 

About the Authors: MacKenzie Glover is an aspiring engineer selected as a 2022 member of Million Girls Moonshot Flight Crew. She is involved in numerous activities that support her goals such as Girl Scouts, National Math Honor Society and Coding Comets Robotics Team. Jaeden Middleton is an aspiring engineer who is a coder and technician for Team 9315 Coding Comets Robotics Team.  He is a member of numerous afterschool activities and has been selected as a 2023 Delegate to the Congress of Future Medical Leaders.