Recycling for Impact

With a new year and a new teaching semester upon me, I felt the need for a less cluttered home. A lot of stuff accumulated over the past few months, and I needed to clear it out. But I also wanted to dispose of items in a way that would benefit others or at least have the least effect on the local landfill. Here’s what I discovered.

Used Bibles and Christian literature. I contacted the Bible League about donating my teen’s kiddie Bibles, and they sent me to Love Packages (lovepackages dot org). This ministry has a wonderful video posted on YouTube that takes viewers on a tour of the warehouse where they recycle Bibles, Sunday school materials, VBS literature, and tracts. Each year they send millions of pounds of literature overseas. And they even have a dormitory where groups can stay as they volunteer. You can ship your used materials to: Love Packages, 220 Union Street, Butler, IL 62015. But you also might want to take a team to Illinois.

Cotton fabric. Last spring I mentioned to my sister, who loves to sew, that a homeless shelter in our city lists “pillowcases” as one of their top needs. My comment was all the incentive necessary for her to clean out her stash of cotton fabrics and whip them into something useful. Her stack of new pillowcases was delivered to a grateful women’s shelter manager. (My sis also made some baby blankets for the Pregnancy Resource Center.) At the start of a new elementary school semester, she pulled down fabric she had on one of her bulletin boards, washed it, and transformed it into more pillowcases. If you have fabric or gently worn pillowcases you’re no longer using, why not put them to good use? Or maybe you should host a craft night for sewing some. They’re about the easiest thing possible to make.

Technology. I took a bunch of books and DVDs to my local Half Price store (my church doesn’t have a library), and I walked out with cash. When I told this to a friend, she mentioned that some electronics stores also pay for used phones and iPods. So I did an internet search and found such a store near me. We took a stash of old cassette players, phone rechargers and a VCR to a store that promised to dispose of these items in a way that won’t trash landfills. We made no money on these, but we have the satisfaction that we’re being better stewards of the world God created. We did, however, receive cash for a used phone, and if we’d had a used iPod, they would have paid us for that, too. They pay more for items that come with their cords and aren’t personalized. Maybe you could collect used phones as a fund raiser for your ministry team?

Eyeglasses. I had three pairs of drug-store reading glasses and a few pairs of cheap non-prescription sunglasses cluttering my purse and nightstand. As it turns out, people living near the equator need sunglasses to shield their eyes, and the glasses don’t have to be prescription. I grabbed a padded envelope and send my contribution to New Eyes for the Needy. They’re at 549 Millburn Avenue, Short Hills, NJ 07078. While not claiming to be a ministry organization, New Eyes does donate glasses they receive to medical missions. The shades and specks you send can help kids succeed in school, enable a senior to read medical labels, or help an adult land a job. How hard would it be to put an announcement in your church bulletin and stick a box in the foyer for the collection of used glasses?

Doing these things can cost nothing and clear out space while benefiting others. What stuff do you have lying around that could make a difference in someone’s life?