If Marie Kondo-style mindfulness is your mantra as we usher in a new decade, consider gifting items that don’t “spark joy” during the Annual Freecyle Post-Holiday Swap on Saturday, Jan. 25.
The swap will take place from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Woods Memorial Library, 3455 N. First Ave.
“This event is very helpful for people. One one hand, it is a great way to clean out the house and bring unwanted, reusable goods that are stuck in houses and transfer them to others who can use them. At the same time, it’s part of the cycle of giving and helping the environment,” said Graciela Robinson, coordinator of the event for the Woods Memorial Library.
The swap is one of two held annually at the library in conjunction with Freecyle, a Tucson-based nonprofit on a mission to “change the world one gift at a time.”
Founded by Deron Beal in 2003, the organization is now the largest recycle and re-use web community worldwide, with more than 5,000 groups comprised of more than 9 million members in 100-plus countries.
Beal said freecycle.org offers a free venue where members can give items they have and don’t need and receive items they need and don’t have.
“It is like Craigslist for free, with a healthy dose of community thrown in,” he said.
Globally more than 32,000 items — about 1,000 tons — are gifted daily on freecycle.org.
“Those tons of items would otherwise go into landfills, so this website enables us to have one less landfill on the planet. If each single person decides to give away one little thing, it all adds up,” said Beal, whose commitment to the environment enables him to “sleep better at night.”
Here at home, the Post-Holiday Swap has become a tradition for many in Tucson, according to Beal.
Goods swapped include new and gently-used clothing for children and adults; books; toys; holiday decor; household items; small kitchen appliances; electronics; and a diverse array of smaller items that can be “easily carried into the event.” Large items, such as sofas and major appliances, can’t be accommodated and can be listed on freecycle.org.
Any items left over at the swap will be donated to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Arizona and Suburban Miners.
“I feel like it is our Tucson version of ‘Boxing Day.’ People have all this new stuff from the holidays and need to figure out what to do with their other stuff, so they can box it up and bring it down instead of taking it to a thrift store,” Beal said.
“People often don’t know that secondhand stores only sell about one-third of the items donated, so if you don’t think it can be sold then it’s better to find it a new home directly through freecycle.org or the swap.”
