To right several wrongs. To save precious memorabilia, to save donors having to buy more sleeping bags, back packs, etc., to save volunteers from having to redistribute these items. To save the planet. Because its the right thing to do.
You may have seen the many facebook posts – you can find out the backgound there – but essentially tons (literally) of homeless people’s belongings were heartlessly thrown into the dumpster instead of donated as we thought would have happened. We also found out that attempts to reach the owners were few and far between. And the owners of these items in many cases had no place to take their items. 100’s – maybe about 250 Bins full of belonging were discarded. Including tents, sleeping bags, blankets, brand new boots, ids, birth certificates, photos, back backs, luggage, etc etc etc etc.
Facebook posts started on my facebook page on December 28th (I can’t link Dec 28 – Jan for some reason?), but here are the rest
and videos
Well, now that the lease is over, the city says the keys should have been returned, the organization is out and the stuff is here, its hard to know exactly how to do this in the most ethical of ways . . . but we can’t not do it . . . so come join Karen Andro and her volunteers in their dumpster diving efforts today 8:30 – 2.
I’d recommend the following if you choose to volunteer:
Wear long johns and good boots/shoes.
Bring good gloves – leather or harder surface not yarn or material
Take lots of breaks, its cold out there, we’ll have warm beverages inside.
Be respectful of people’s privacy as you find things.
Sounds like Madison Urban Miinistry and Linda Ketcham are renting a storage locker for the remaining 75 or so bins – others like 1st United Methodist Church are pitching in to help pay for that cost. Social Justice Center is stuck paying staff to clean up much of the mess left behind. Sounds like the City will now let us charge the dumpster to the grant. We had intended to use it for demolition waste and the “garbage” that was left over from storage. The plan was to recycle re-usable items. That plan, unbeknownst to the Social Justice Center was changed at the last minute and obviously did not get implemented. Had we known . . . things might have gone differently. So far there have been many, many trips to St. Vinny’s and I suspect that will continue throughout the day.
