Wednesday, November 13, 2024

​Heroic spring cleaning

You probably don't even notice donation boxes anymore.  They stand, like silent sentinels, in the parking lots of  mega-marts, gyms, department stores, and strip malls.  

Different from making donations at places with human attendants, these boxes seem too quiet, too anonymous and too generic to really make a difference. Yet, with no operating hours, and conveniently located in almost every strip mall or grocery parking lot, they are an excellent way of getting rid of that garbage-bag of clothes sitting in the corner of your closet, or trunk of your car.

Since their information is provided only via website, donation drops can also seem risky.  Yet, these boxes have real and helpful organizations behind them.  The missions they serve are charitable, necessary, and form a network of nonprofits that are trying, one late-night donation at a time, to change the world.  Here is a roundup of local donation boxes.

Planet Aid

Box color: Yellow

Accepts: Used clothing, shoes

Planet Aid started in 1997 in the Boston area with a simple mission:  Do something good for the planet and the poor. The idea was to use the convenience of drop-off boxes to collect shoes and clothing to fund their mission.  Now in their 18th year, the worldwide organization collects and recycles used clothing and shoes in support of sustainable progress in development environmental and social programs throughout the world. Their local office is located in Romulus, MI. Planet Aid has a “find a bin” section on their website for the nearest drop location.

Better World Books

Box color: Green

Accepts: Used books, all kinds

Started in South Bend, IN by college friends—and ultimate Frisbee teammates—Xavier and Kreece, Better World Books began as a way to recycle used college texts.  It quickly grew into an innovative way of providing used books online as well as a way to support literacy throughout the country and the world.  Beside their online presence, the charity also has a brick-and-mortar store in Goshen, IN.  Charities include Room to Read, Books for Africa, and the National Center for Families Learning. Better World Books has a dropbox finder, complete with interactive map and driving instruction generation.

 

Special Olympics, Ohio

Box color: White

Accepts: Clothing, shoes

The mission of Special Olympics is to provide year-round sports training and competition opportunities for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.  They work with over 200 local member organizations and serve over 23000 athletes throughout the state.  The state office is located in Columbus.

Easter Seals

Box color: White or red

Accepts: Clothing, shoes

Easter Seals has been working with individuals with disabilities and special needs for over 100 years.  Physical development and rehabilitation, job training and family services for people with disabilities has been the central focus of their programs.  As their programs continue to grow Easter Seals has expanded to help more than a million children and adults living with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).  They are supported locally by over 550 sites in the U.S. 

 

You probably don't even notice donation boxes anymore.  They stand, like silent sentinels, in the parking lots of  mega-marts, gyms, department stores, and strip malls.  

Different from making donations at places with human attendants, these boxes seem too quiet, too anonymous and too generic to really make a difference. Yet, with no operating hours, and conveniently located in almost every strip mall or grocery parking lot, they are an excellent way of getting rid of that garbage-bag of clothes sitting in the corner of your closet, or trunk of your car.

Since their information is provided only via website, donation drops can also seem risky.  Yet, these boxes have real and helpful organizations behind them.  The missions they serve are charitable, necessary, and form a network of nonprofits that are trying, one late-night donation at a time, to change the world.  Here is a roundup of local donation boxes.

Planet Aid

Box color: Yellow

Accepts: Used clothing, shoes

Planet Aid started in 1997 in the Boston area with a simple mission:  Do something good for the planet and the poor. The idea was to use the convenience of drop-off boxes to collect shoes and clothing to fund their mission.  Now in their 18th year, the worldwide organization collects and recycles used clothing and shoes in support of sustainable progress in development environmental and social programs throughout the world. Their local office is located in Romulus, MI. Planet Aid has a “find a bin” section on their website for the nearest drop location.

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Better World Books

Box color: Green

Accepts: Used books, all kinds

Started in South Bend, IN by college friends—and ultimate Frisbee teammates—Xavier and Kreece, Better World Books began as a way to recycle used college texts.  It quickly grew into an innovative way of providing used books online as well as a way to support literacy throughout the country and the world.  Beside their online presence, the charity also has a brick-and-mortar store in Goshen, IN.  Charities include Room to Read, Books for Africa, and the National Center for Families Learning. Better World Books has a dropbox finder, complete with interactive map and driving instruction generation.

 

Special Olympics, Ohio

Box color: White

Accepts: Clothing, shoes

The mission of Special Olympics is to provide year-round sports training and competition opportunities for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.  They work with over 200 local member organizations and serve over 23000 athletes throughout the state.  The state office is located in Columbus.

Easter Seals

Box color: White or red

Accepts: Clothing, shoes

Easter Seals has been working with individuals with disabilities and special needs for over 100 years.  Physical development and rehabilitation, job training and family services for people with disabilities has been the central focus of their programs.  As their programs continue to grow Easter Seals has expanded to help more than a million children and adults living with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).  They are supported locally by over 550 sites in the U.S. 

 

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