Moncton Headstart Recycles' giant yard sales are a simple way to help the community and the environment

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Moncton Headstart Recycles is holding another Yard Sale on June 28. Tables, chairs, beds, kitchen-ware, appliances, they have it all, and all in a good cause.

"We set aside unique or special items for our yard sales," explains general manager Marc Belliveau. "There are always interesting items coming in. People are starting to know they can find anything from collectibles to electronics. The sales are four times a year, and are an important way for us to raise money so we can stay open to help people."

MHR began as a Moncton Headstart initiative some 15 years ago, but has become an independent, self-funded, registered charitable organization. Located at 84 Barker Street, it is now a six-day-a-week operation and a vital part of Moncton's social support system. They provide inexpensive or free items from toys to mattresses to people in need by recycling unwanted but perfectly serviceable donations. The items come from all over the Greater Moncton area and beyond, donated by people who are moving, downsizing, or redecorating.

"Everything in the store is for sale, to cover our costs," says Marc, "but we give things away if there is a need. Some days we give away more than we sell. People down on their luck, victims of abuse, or of disasters like fires, and even people new to the country, can all come to us and find something they can afford to get their lives started again."

Not only do people in need benefit from MHR, but so does the environment. Marc estimates that his operation annually diverts upwards of 100 tractor-trailer loads of material from land-fill sites or being dumped at the side of the road somewhere. According to two different household moving companies, the average tractor-trailer holds from 25,000 to 30,000 pounds. This means that some two and a half million pounds of goods per year stay out of dump sites because they're being affordably offered to people who need them.

Sadly, MHR has recently been having problems with vandalism and theft, losses amounting to thousands of dollars in the last two months.

"As a self-funding agency, this means we can help people less," says Marc. "If some of these people need things they could just come in and talk to us instead of breaking in and stealing."

Moncton Headstart Recycles helps people who have things to give away by taking items off their hands. They help people in need by providing things that they can afford. And they help the environment by keeping tons of items out of our landfills. All without government funding.