Service Spotlight: Donation Distribution
I often say that it is not my job to help people get rid of things - it is my job to help people understand what they want, what they have, and how to access it. But through that process, pretty much everyone gets rid of things. Especially after the holiday season, we want to remind all of our readers about donation options!
It is not my style as an organizer to pressure clients to let go if that is not their goal. As someone who loves stuff, I totally understand wanting to hold on to things that are meaningful to you. But for some folks, the primary barrier to letting things go is not knowing where it will end up. Helping clients get rid of their unwanted stuff includes both physically hauling away the items and finding the right homes for those items.
Hauling away donations is a big part of why all of our team members all drive in separate cars. We come to every client's home with an empty car in preparation for possible huge loads of items leaving the home. We never know how much we might end up taking!
New clients usually react in one of two ways when we offer to take donations away – they are either thrilled and jump at the opportunity, or they immediately dismiss it as an unnecessary use of our time. Either way, all of those purged items need a place to go. The secondhand industry is booming in the United States and around the world. We all have too much stuff firsthand, and it continues to be too much in the secondhand market. A huge part of our team's work is taking away donations and finding good homes for the items that are no longer needed in our client's spaces.
With how many items we take away from homes every day, we have all developed a good working knowledge of the local donation options and what their limitations might be. Most people know about Goodwill, the Salvation Army, and Savers as options for donations. We have a robust resources page on our website that includes those and a variety of other options for both donations and disposal, but I wanted to highlight a few of our favorites below.
DONATIONS
Our number one suggestion for donating in smaller amounts is to find someone who needs what you’re letting go of and give it to them directly. This can be a lot easier than it sounds! Local Everything is Free pages (often on Facebook) and the Buy Nothing project both exist to facilitate the exchange of material items without any payment required. We will often use Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist to post large items for free - someone gets what they need, and you get some space back! Another great resource for finding places to donate is the Mutual Aid Hub - this allows you to browse different Mutual Aid groups in your area that may be accepting different kinds of items depending on the season. Most donation sites do not accept children’s toys, but any of the previously mentioned options are great for giving toys a second life!
Clothing & Unopened Toiletries
Craft or Office Supplies
Books
Sporting Goods
Food
Somerville Homeless Coalition Project SOUP
Building Materials
DISPOSAL
Beyond the Bin is a resource that allows you to find where to send items that can’t be recycled in household bins.
Electronics Recycling
Textile Recyling
Do you need help getting those donations in order? We would love to work with you to make it happen. Schedule a complimentary phone consultation with us here.
