In 2017, 2.7 million donations were made to Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona amounted to almost 200 million pounds of items diverted from going directly to the landfill.
Think about that level of impact for a second.
That’s 2.7 million instances of Arizonans choosing to pay it forward by donating to Goodwill.
When you shop at Goodwill, the experience is far more personal than a traditional retail store. This is because every piece of clothing, pair of shoes and children’s item has a story.
A toy that helped a brother and sister learn their ABCs. The wardrobe pieces that helped a new graduate gain the confidence to land her first job. The Mary Higgins Clark book collection just waiting for the next mystery lover to come along.
Sure, you could afford to skip the donation. But the real question is can you afford not to?
To understand the real impact of not donating your clothes, it’s important to understand the bigger picture.
In the U.S., over ten million tons of clothing are sent to landfills every year. That’s 21 billion pounds! It would take 20 years to reach that weight in America’s phone books.
Thankfully, clothing that’s donated for resale avoids the landfill pile. Plus, any clothing or no-longer needed items donated to Goodwill that can’t be sold can be cut into rags for industrial use, or processed into soft fiber used for furniture, home insulation, car sound-proofing and carpeting.
With a recycling rate of roughly 34% holding steady over the past five years, reducing personal waste is a major priority for environmentally-conscious America. But a clothing donation to Goodwill helps fight unemployment in our community. When you donate or shop at Goodwill, you’re also helping place Arizonans in jobs with hundreds of companies across the state each year through our no-cost career centers.
Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona is deeply rooted in the local community. By working as a catalyst for positive change, we take a neighborly approach by offering 80+ community locations where your no-longer-needed items can be dropped off, which in turn give new life to clothing that would otherwise be thrown away.
Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona is grateful for the goodwill of our community, knowing Arizonans have a choice of where to bring their used clothing, household goods and furniture. Without your generosity, we couldn’t do what we do.
