Posts tagged How to give
Day 351: Reuse for Good: Books for Charity
Sep 28th
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGNtmBkgi9g&feature
“Reading is a joy and a gift that you are offering our children.
Your gift cannot be truly measured in dollars and cents but will be counted in the lives that you have touched.” Bob Smith
Day 351: Give 351
How many books do you have sitting collecting dust on your bookshelves?
How many could be donated for good?
Fall clean up has begun at our house and yesterday (Day 350) I found great ways to reuse for good by donating our cloths and household items. Today I had one more donation to make that is so important. Books.
We all like to save them for a rainy day with the thought we may pick them up and read them yet again. In my case it is children’s books that are overflowing at our house. Does my son really need a small library of books that are sitting downstairs when instead they could be put to good use by children that don’t have the luxury of books at home or in their school libraries?
It was time to take the books off the shelves and put the into the hands of children that truly need them. The Reading Tree was my charity of choice to get these books into the right little hands.
- Did you know that readiness levels for kids entering school can be directly tied to income levels?
- Did you know that 61% of low income families have no children’s books in the home?
- The books are out there. Thousands upon thousands end up in landfills each year.
The Reading Tree has drop boxes and will also come to your home for a pick up. They have locations across Canada and the US so we can all do our part to keep our books out of landfills and into the hands of people that will truly enjoy them. It will take just a few minutes of your time to do a lifetime of good.
Time Commitment: 15 minutes search drop location and drive to drop
Cost: 0
Day 350: 8 Ways to Reuse for Good!
Sep 27th
As the fall season arrives it’s time to clean out the closet. The shorts and t-shirts get put away as the warmer cloths come out.
What do you do with those items that you no longer have use for?
Day 350: Give 350
My husband and I have been spending the last couple of weekends cleaning out our closest preparing for the cooler days and evenings. When all was said and done we had 2 garbage bags filled with cloths we no longer had use for. After recently volunteering at Mission Possible here in Vancouver I knew exactly where the cloths would be put to best use. To people that don’t have the luxury of extra money to purchase the cloths that they need. 
We had one additional bag that had household items that we dropped in a local Clothsline drop box. (in support of the Canadian Diabetes Association)
It’s easy to search in any city you live in. Why not give to those in need as well as help save the planet by keeping cloths out of the landfills. Reuse for good instead.
Here are the 365give top 8 ways to donate your cloths / household items here in Canada.
1) Mission Possible (Vancouver specific)
2) Goodwill
3) Local Fire Stations (clothing drop box)
4) Covenant House (street youth)
5) Salvation Army Thrift Stores
6) Professional Organizers (links to a list of many charity donation spots across Canada)
7) Clothsline (supporting Canadian Diabetes Foundation)
8) Big Brothers (pick up or bin drop)
Taking the time to donate what you no longer need does so much to give. It gives to the planet and it gives to organizations that are changing the world every day.
Do you have a favourite organization you donate your items to we could add to our list? Leave a comment and share some more ideas.
Time Commitment: 15 minutes to drive to donate
Cost: 0
Day 349: 5 Questions to Consider When Shopping
Sep 26th
What if there was a way to shop twice as much and help the planet?
Day 349: Give 349
My husband calls me cheap. I call myself a value shopper. Before I make a purchase I always ask myself a few key questions.
1) Is the purchase helping the planet or adding to it’s distruction?
2) Will it harm me or my family (how toxic is the item)?
3) Will it add more waste to our already overfilled landfills?
4) Does the company I am purchasing from give back with the purchase? (one for one to charity like Tom’s Shoes or a portion of the sale going to charity)
5) Is it a really good deal! (on sale, deep discount, FREE!)
I needed two new items this weekend – a stroller and a dresser for my sons room. My husband and I hit a few stores to check out styles and pricing. He found the exact stroller that had all the gadgets to suit our needs and wanted to buy it on the spot. It would have cost us $400! The dresser – another $300. Money I would much rather give to charity.
I told him we would wait and I would go shopping on one of my favourite sites for both items.
The Craigslist. If you are not familiar with the Craigslist you need to take a look. You can search by your city as they have them all over the world. It is a free online classified site where you can buy what you need or sell what you want to get rid of. (let’s avoid the landfill!) You can find a house to a car to a pair of shoes. When it comes to kids gear it is the best place to look. As fast as we buy the gear for our kids we are ready to get rid of it as kids move to a new stage of their life or it just wasn’t the perfect item for your needs after all.
What I love about the Craigslist is it is the perfect place to reuse an item.
Do we really need one more brand new stroller in the world that will one day get dumped into a landfill and never decompose?
Have you ever thought of all the toxins that come off a new stroller and into your child’s body?
My search began and in just minutes I found exactly what I wanted:
The matching dresser to go with my son’s bed ($120 no tax vs $300 with tax)
The stroller my husband wanted in the store (just 4 months old barely used). ($100 no tax vs $400 with tax)
Savings: Over $500
The next time you decide you need to make a purchase go check out 3 of my favourite sites for shopping. It will save you money and save the planet.
If you have a favourite site you use for reusing and purchasing items leave us a comment and we will share it!
Time Commitment: 1 hour longer than buying it in the store
Cost: I saved over $500 (taxes included) by buying second hand
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