WATCH: Why some local business owners left the office for a beach day

• Two businesses collaborated on an outdoor clean up
• They’re challenging residents to clean their nearest outdoor space

Shaun Bos and Aimee Banack decided to leave the office Wednesday for a beach day.

But instead of soaking up the sun, the pair were armed with rubber gloves, tongs, and garbage bags.

“We love where we live, and we just want to keep the beach clean, keep it safe for everybody in our beautiful community,” Bos, owner and medical esthetician at Ethos Clinic, told Kelowna10.

The team, which targeted Hot Sands Beach, hoped to inspire others to pick up litter for Earth Month, which runs throughout April.

“There’s nothing worse than coming down to a dirty beach or dirty park.”

She and Aimee Banack, owner and operator at Shine Hair Co., met through a business referral group and both place great importance on running their businesses as environmentally conscious as possible.

They decided to collaborate on a beach clean up day, encouraging people to join.

While the turnout was small but mighty, the two hope it encourages people around Kelowna, all April long, to challenge themselves to clean the nearest park or beach access.

“I think everybody, no matter where we go, we should have a bag with us and not only take out what we bring in, but take out what anybody else has left behind,” Bos said.

Much of the garbage they collected was cigarette butts, Styrofoam, plastic cups, and bottles. They were glad to collect it before it could wash out into the lake.

While they were pleasantly surprised how well-kept Hot Sands Beach already was, they recognized other areas around Kelowna may have it worse.

“We wanted to start getting people to think about it and to start taking a look around and realizing that there is opportunities for all of us to help,” Banack said.

To incentivize more outdoor clean ups, both business owners are putting together a prize pack for participants who clean up an outdoor area anytime this month, share it to social media, and tag them.

Banack hopes events like this will change the way people think for longer than just Earth Month.

“If we all do just that little bit more every time we are cleaning up after ourselves, then I think we'll see those noticeable results,” she said.

“I really believe that change happens in our own backyard and so if we start here, hopefully we’ll create that ripple in the world.”