Wed April 13, 2011
Wednesday, April 13, 2011 – The Champlin-Brooklyn Park Academy for Math and Environmental Science in Champlin has installed a USAgain donation box in its parking lot.
USAgain is a for-profit company that collects unwanted textiles and resells them in the U.S. and abroad, effectively diverting millions of pounds of clothing from landfills, generating new revenue streams for U.S. businesses and non-profits, and fueling local economies in emerging countries. Donations made to USAgain are reworn, reused or recycled.
The Academy's principal Marilyn McKeehen said the school would receive two cents per pound from the donations.
"We installed the donation box because the average American throws away 70 pounds of clothing each year," McKeehen said. "We often do not want to donate a stained shirt or clothing with holes in it. Our landfills are getting too many fabric items in them and shoes are the worst in the landfills. The project was picked up from our Campus Green Team, a group of parent volunteers and school personnel who have the mission to make our campus more green."
People are invited to drop off clothes, shoes and household textiles of good quality that are ready to be re-worn and reused. Household textiles include tablecloths, towels, beddings, blankets, and bedspreads. Clothes, shoes and textiles must be clean and dry and dropped off in tied plastic bags. A sturdy plastic bag protects the clothes from dirt and simplifies handling.
Funds collected from USAgain will go to the Parent Teacher Organization to be managed. McKeehen said the PTO and the Campus Green team is working together to use the profits from the project for other initiatives to keep the green going.