Creative Production employees on the day of their e-waste drive.
Goodwill was founded in 1902 on the concept of a hand up, not a hand out. Now, 111 years later, Goodwill Southern Los Angeles County (SOLAC)–which covers the territory from Manhattan Beach to Norwalk down to the southern boarder of Los Angeles County–continues to operate under those same founding principals with the help of local business partnerships.
On June 5, SOLAC partnered with local Long Beach business Creative Productions to conduct a very successful e-waste drive at their office complex located at 4510 E. Pacific Highway.
E-waste drives have become a very popular way to raise money since the California State Legislature passed the 2005 Comprehensive Recycling Act. Under the act, consumers pay a tax on electronic products that is collected by the retailer, then passed through to the state before being remitted back to companies and organizations that collect and recycle the materials through state certified recyclers. One of the caveats is that the e-waste must come from California and cannot be imported from other states.
Since 2005, Goodwill SOLAC has recycled over 6.5 million pounds of e-waste and received 22 cents for each pound, which has helped fund the Goodwill operations.
Goodwill is one of many organizations that does e-waste drives, but one of only a few nonprofits that reinvest the proceeds back into their local community. Goodwill does not have unattended drop-boxes for e-waste. They pride themselves on having attended donation centers to make sure that the material is properly handled.
Creative Productions owner Deborah Castro.
Some may not be aware, but Goodwill is one of only a handful of national non-profits that are self-funded.
“Goodwill is about jobs,” stated Julie Dover, Goodwill SOLAC’s Director of Commercial Operations. “Goodwill helps put disadvantaged and disabled individuals without jobs on career paths that can sustain a family through the donation and sale of goods. It is not just about a job, but it is about helping people overcome challenges to lead a better and more productive lifestyle.”
Deborah Castro, the President & Chief Executive Officer at Creative Productions is a life long resident of Long Beach. She was ecstatic that her firm could help Goodwill SOLAC do more in her community. Since Creative Productions services were retained in 2006, SOLAC has far outpaced the average growth of Goodwill nationally. “As a life long resident, I believe in this community. I am extremely proud to work with Goodwill SOLAC. We have been able to successfully rebrand the organization by comparing them to other low-cost retailers such as Target and Marshalls. It is amazing to see that everything is recycled down to the individual thread. Nothing goes to waste.”
Part of that rebranding included a new e-commerce presence. With www.thinkgood.org taking the place of a less appealing website, SOLAC has paced itself for growth. They have also taken part in www.shopgoodwill.com, an online international auction site much like eBay, as well as becoming a certified used bookseller on Amazon to allow Goodwill shoppers around the globe help SOLAC put people to work in Southern Los Angeles County. They anticipate raising $250,000 in 2013 alone from the sales on Amazon.
However, it’s not all good news for Goodwill SOLAC. While the retail side has grown exponentially over the last seven years the donations have stayed relatively flat. Goodwill needs the help of everyone to continue to support getting people back to work. These e-waste drives are one of the many amazing ways everyone can give back.
For more information on Goodwill SOLAC visit www.thinkgood.org.
{FG_GEOMAP [33.7876835,-118.1394818] FG_GEOMAP}