Holiday Helpfulness That's Free
In which I share some ways you can get rid of stuff while benefiting someone else..
If your house is anything like mine, you’ve got all sorts of things lying around that you know are useful but no longer useful to use. Shoes too small for your kid. Ten umbrellas. Two boxes of tile that’s no longer in your basement. I want to share with you ways you can use these things to help others, this holiday season and beyond.
Why now? Well, plenty of folks are looking for their holiday gifts or food staples or that one random building supply now, not weeks from now when you’re home during that weird week between Christmas and New Years.
Some general recommendations before we get into specific things you may be trying to get rid of.
Is something like new? You can re-gift it, sell it online and donate the proceeds to your favorite charity, or see if a friend could use it.
Not new but has life left? Put it up on your local Buy Nothing Facebook group (search for your town or neighborhood and Buy Nothing to find one), or sell it online. My local group helped me get rid of a bunch of non-alcoholic drinks I wasn’t a fan of in less than 24 hours which is not something I wouldn’t have thought of if I hadn’t seen similar posts
Have extra food to donate?
Look for a food bank near you or even a little free pantry. Easy as as Google for your town and donate food or food bank.
Keep in mind they usually have a list of things they really need that folks don’t think of - jams and jellies, shelf-stable milk, baking supplies, and coffee are usually needed at ECHO, a charity really close to me.
If you’ve got single-servings snacks or drinks, you can always set them out for your postal workers and delivery drivers; just make sure you put a sign on them so they know they can partake.
Teachers often feed kids who don’t get enough food at home and may be looking for shelf-stable snacks and meal replacement foods like protein bars.
Donate to a non-profit thrift store: Many hospice, human society, religious charities run their own thrift shops here in the US.
Hold a Everything is Free yard sale: Make sure you check with your apartment complex or HOA first, but you can always set up a free yard sale. You can just put out a tarp with the items you have and a “FREE!” sign and watch much of it disappear. One tip: If you put out a table and don’t want it to go missing, too, you’ll want to hang outside with it.
Green Drop: While not a non-profit, they take a giant list of things so you can make a single trip. They donate a portion of what they make selling your things to great organizations like the Red Cross. Find locations here.
Donate to an organization that picks up from you: Purple Heart will come to you for clothing or even a vehicle.
Now, let’s get to some of those harder to get rid of things!
Books: Look online for a Little Free Library near you or check with your local library to see if they take donations. You can always email a school librarian, too. Do make sure the books you donate are in good condition and aren’t horribly outdated - like that Windows 98 guide you still have for some reason.
Building supplies and decor items: Some thrift stores will take these, but your best bet is to see if there’s a Habitat Re:Store near you. All proceeds go to support Habitat for Humanity. Our local shop has tools, tiles, boxes of nails, vases, and a hundred other things for sale. For a list of what they do and don’t take, go to their site. They also do pickup!
Clothing/Textile that are worn out: Your area may have a textile recycling center or drop boxes. My county is part of a pilot right now. You can also order a bag from an organization like Retold.
Craft supplies and board/card games: Reach out to a teach or scout leader you know, as they may want those four bags of cotton balls or game of Candy Land you really wish you got rid of years ago. Senior centers sometimes also use craft supplies, look on their websites for information for someone with a title like Activities Director. Your local library or even bar may accept donations. I know the brewery we like could really use some new games.
Hard-to-recycle plastics: This is more of a “do good for the planet” than individuals deal. We use Ridwell for plastic films, multi-layer plastics, pill bottles, and caps. You pay a fee but it’s worth it, to me. Terracycle is a good source for where you can recycle those things you never knew where to recycle.
Anything I missed or have another idea of where to donate something I listed here?
(H/T to my little chat group at work who helped me with this idea. Especially to Elizabeth and Taylor!)