Rotary Auction’s recycling effort is one of a kind | Guest Column July 1

Each of us has a different reason for volunteering at the Rotary Auction and Rummage Sale. Mine is to keep things out of the 50-yard garbage bins.

Since 1960 the largest recycling event on Bainbridge Island has been fulfilling the “reuse” part of recycling. And yet, in 2007 we paid for 64 tons of garbage to be hauled away from Woodward Middle School and placed in the landfill.

Even with the collaboration and generosity of our friends at Bainbridge Disposal, it was the biggest cost for the event that year. When we keep things out of the trash, we save money. That means more dollars are available for community projects.

When donated items arrive at the curb, volunteers sort them into one of 32 different departments. Then, department managers evaluate what will sell, what needs to be cleaned or repaired, and what has to be disposed of by some route.

The current Recycle Team, formed three years ago, is tasked with what to do with the cast offs as well as any items that do not sell.

Some of the items can be gathered and given to someone else. For example Goodwill will take clothing that is torn or badly worn. They have a program to turn these items into rags, which they can sell. Other items, such as commercial flower vases or wire hangers can be returned to merchants and reused.

Eyeglasses are donated to programs that distribute them to others in need. Cell phones can be used for emergency calls. Printer cartridges can be recycled and reused.

There is plenty of cardboard that can go into a separate bin and metals are also sorted. Just like at home, we try to put cans, jugs, paper and aluminum in recycle totes.

Special bins are on site to collect electronic materials. Televisions, computers, stereo equipment, appliances, Christmas tree lights that do not work, can all be repurposed for their parts. These items are kept out of the trash and we no longer have to pay extra fees for them to be taken away.

An event of this size runs on volunteers. Volunteers who get hungry twice a day. Last year we added compost totes onsite. We use compostable utensils, plates, napkins and bowls at lunch and dinner during the week of preparation. That means 300 to 500 volunteers per day are composting instead of trashing what is left after each meal.

Even though we do our best to sell everything we collect, there is always something left when sales end at 2 p.m. Over the years we have developed a network of local nonprofits and charities that register and arrive to claim much of the remaining items.

This year some 37 organizations and teams have signed up to help us keep much of the remaining items from going to the landfill. They are very organized. Last year we had seven trucks and trailers filled before 5 p.m., along with many individual’s volunteered cars and vans. It is great to know that all those items were on their way to help support other organizations, and stay out of the landfill.

It is only with the help of hundreds of volunteers and the team of eight dedicated recycle coordinators that this great “sort” happens. Many hours with sore feet, gloved hands and a sunburned nose or two results in the repurposing and recycling of donated items.

Is this the largest recycling or repurposing effort in the state, the nation, or the world? We may never know. What I do know in my heart is that the dedication, love and commitment of a dynamic community, each taking one step, can make things happen.

Joanne Ellis is in charge of the recycling department for the Rotary Auction and Rummage Sale