By Jim Baer
MERS/Goodwill, the largest
single service social agency in the state of Missouri likes to think of itself as the "original recycler."
According to organization President and CEO Lewis Chartock, going green is nothing new for MERS/Goodwill.
The organization has been the catalyst of encouraging people to re-use or recycle no longer needed clothing or household items now for 105 years.
According to regional Vice President of Retail Kevin Shaw, MERS/Goodwill brought in 207 tons of cardboard, 138 tons of metal, 8,097,043 pounds of rags, 472,000 pounds of books and 144,000 pounds of shoes from January through September 2007.
"We recycle just about everything. We recycle cotton into rag bundles, paper,
cardboard boxes, almost everything,"
says Chartock. "Tennis shoes are recycled
and they fly off the shelves in all sales
locations."
At the same time, the agency, which employs 1,300 disadvantaged workers in the bi-state region, with 20 service stores in the Metro and 29 in the Region (stretching to Carbondale and Marion in Illinois and
Rolla, Sikeston, Jefferson City, Columbia, Springfield and the Ozarks in Missouri) is bringing its buildings up to green standards too. "We rely on a lot of natural lighting and we are upgrading all our lighting to energy efficient light bulbs," says Chartock. "Even the paper that we use at our workshops is sent to document recycling centers and the same goes for cardboard boxes," he says. "Some of the greening at our sales locations is a little harder to do since we have a lot of rented space."
In addition to the items that get a
second life through sales in the various stores, MERS/Goodwill passes along items
it cannot use to the appropriate places.
For example, since they do not deal
in computers, they have a working arrangement to recycle or refurbish computers
to Web Innovations & Technology (W.I.T.S.), where they are recycled or refurbished
on site.
In 2006 alone, the organization recycled 45 million pounds of materials with donations being sold in stores or sold for salvage. In 2006, nine million pounds of textile salvage was sold as a commodity at an average of 13 cents per pound.
Chartock is most proud that donations
go mostly to employee salaries. "Only nine percent of donated dollars goes to administration and overhead. Ninety-one percent goes to social services," Chartock reveals.
"This is all important from a greening aspect. Goodwill International is able to divert 2.1 billion pounds of donations and keep these recycled items out of landfills and up for sale in our local stores," says Chartock.
As a social services agency, MERS/Goodwill has been able to substantially raise the level of earning for its vocational workers. The organization recently raised its minimum pay rate for new hires from $6.50 an hour to $8 per hour. "Our business is improving society and our goal is putting our workers into unique opportunities. We are able to give vouchers to many poor people so they can shop our stores free of charge," he says.
MERS/Goodwill, a non-profit agency
continues to provide vocational needs and skills to individuals who have barriers to employment through disability or economic disadvantage. Revenues from the stores continue to provide job training and employment services.
So the recycling efforts by the agency are important in the overall operational plan. Everyone at MERS/Goodwill feels good about meeting his or her mission and saving the Planet at the same time. Recycling has been a prominent way of life now for 105 years for this important corporate citizens' agency.
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