How to Donate Furniture Responsibly With CARITAS
Article written by Abundance Organizing
Do you have a mindful eye on prioritizing the planet? Are you looking for ways to increase sustainability? At Abundance Organizing, we are committed to offering eco-friendly organizing solutions and products and to teaching our clients how to increase sustainability within their households. Donating responsibly is one way we can all practically take care of our planet and the next generation. In order to do this, it is important to know what charitable organizations are in need of and what items they have no use for.
SET UP A DONATION CENTER IN YOUR HOME
You can set up a donation center in your closet, garage, in the guest room, or just about anywhere else you would like. Yes, this can become a part of your home and a specific way that you mindfully seek to prioritize the planet by passing on items you no longer use to be used by others. Have you checked out the Buy Nothing Project? An item you are no longer able to use may be the exact item that someone in your community needs. Whether you decide to be committed to a lifestyle of decluttering and recycling items you no longer need or do a specific and focused purge, having a donation center in your home is a great way to ensure that items pulled to be donated do not lay around in piles, or – even worse – make their way back into your drawers and closets! You can organize the items into piles according to the intended destination. When the area designated as your donation center is full, this signals to you that it is time to schedule some pickups or make some trips to drop off the items.
LEARN WHICH ITEMS TO DONATE + HOW TO DONATE
In order to donate responsibly, you must spend some time researching organizations like CARITAS and their specific needs. Whether it is by word of mouth, looking on websites, making phone calls, or visiting location sites, do your research! Find out what resources they need and will use. Then you can be sure you are contributing to the specific needs of the organization. You may be very surprised at the items that can be reused and recycled. For example, not all charities take sheets or large appliances and furniture. CARITAS, however, is very much in need of sheets that are in good condition. CARITAS uses sheets on-site in its residential recovery program and shelter. In addition, CARITAS uses donations of new and used sheets to prepare “Welcome Home Kits” as program participants prepare to move into their permanent homes.
Knowing the parameters of a drop-off are so important and it can save you a trip if you can schedule a pickup. For example, CARITAS requests donation dropoffs 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Friday. See a list of other organizations that may accept items we do not.
WORK TOGETHER WITH FRIENDS
It may seem a little overwhelming to commit to taking your donations to different drop-off locations. There may not be a pickup option for your charitable organization or the specific items you are donating. However, you can always streamline the drop-off process by working together with friends. All of you can plan a drop-off event together where each person is responsible for taking the portion of the group’s items to a specific drop-off location. If you have five people and five different drop-off locations, then this will only be one trip for each person instead of five. Combining your resources will save everyone a lot of time. It will also increase your impact! Working with friends definitely allows everyone to combine donations and resources to support where it is needed the most.
VOLUNTEER TO SORT TO DONATIONS
You now understand some of the hard work that goes into organizing and donating furniture and other items to nonprofits. Imagine the work that nonprofits must to do to go through them. Charitable organizations like CARITAS use their own resources to sort through donations they receive. The Abundance Organizing team volunteers to help CARITAS regularly to help sort and dispose of items that cannot be used. See more volunteer opportunities here.