Affirming Good Work
Wow. We were floored!
Last month a group of local professional organizers met at a Goodwill Outlet and Distribution Center (4105 N. Franklin Road, Indy) to learn about their operation. I dare say that all of us take donations for clients to Goodwill routinely, but we had no idea about the incredible work they do to keep stuff out of the landfill…not to mention their good work in the world.
Goodwill changes lives every day by empowering people to increase their independence and reach their potential through education, health and employment. They offer a variety of employment, education and health services geared toward helping individuals and families become economically self-sufficient.
Besides being a second chance employer for those touched by the judicial system (with recidivism under 10%), they also provide robust workforce training for employees with disabilities. Nurse-family partnerships, schools, financial literacy programs, and affordable housing are also included in their offerings. Sales from donations support all of this mission-focused work.
Goodwill of Central and Southern Indiana has 74 retail stores and four outlets. With a sophisticated sorting system, they maximize everything donated to sell in stores. After five weeks, unsold items go to an outlet for final processing. Some items are pulled to sell online atshopgoodwill.com.
The distribution center we visited is a well-oiled machine, operating 7 days a week.Shoppers have the chance to buy items from large sale bins, which are rotated multiple times during the day, before items are sorted for after-market vendors.
We heard about after-market sales of everything from shoes, clothing/textiles and stuffed toys to electronics, plastics, and glassware. All of the vendors who buy after-market goods from Goodwill are in the business of recycling those materials into new products. Goodwill tries to avoid throwing things away; in 2024 they diverted 65 million pounds of materials from the landfill.
For some items Goodwill partners with other local resources, such as RecycleForce (another nonprofit doing great work!). They even recycle car seats for the plastic! With safety regulations making it virtually impossible to put used car seats to use, we were glad to know that Goodwill recycles them responsibly. They also accept newspapers (which they use to wrap breakables) as well as CDs, DVDs and VHS tapes.
People often ask what Goodwill takes, and there are lists online to guide donations. However, there were two items they said they cannot take: mattresses (due to pests) and TVs (which cost a lot to process…but you can take those to RecyleForce or another tech recycler).
Not sure? Send it; they’ll sort. They said, “If it’s not a mattress or a TV, donate it. We’re professional curators.”
