DePauw expands move out donation effort

A positive alternative to the dumpster, the eight large U-Hauls of the DePauw Move Out effort represent a sustainable solution to end-of-year cleaning for students. In its fifth year, the 2014 effort assisted more than 100 local families through Putnam County Family Support Services and partner organizations.

Lamps, ramen noodles, futons, 1,367 coat hangers, eight large U-Hauls full and more -- the DePauw Move Out donation program concluded its sixth year on Tuesday.

The effort to donate end-of-the-year items from DePauw students to community members just keeps getting bigger.

Started in 2009 by DePauw's Office for Sustainability and Putnam County Family Support Services (PCFSS), the program originally assisted less than a dozen PCFSS families in need. This year, more than 100 families have benefited through PCFSS and partner organizations.

"We're thrilled to see this program continue to grow, and we look forward to many more years to come. We'd much rather see the items come here than to overflowing dumpsters," Cari Cox, executive director of PCFSS, said.

While Family Support Services continues to be the focus of the initiative, seven other organizations also receive various requested items.

"Beyond Homeless, Putnam County Senior Center, Cunot Food Pantry, Goodwill, Indiana Women's Prison Education Program, Round Barn Day Care -- we're increasing our number of partnerships each year," DePauw's Assistant Sustainability Director Anthony Baratta said. "The Humane Society even took charge of collections from the Greek

houses for their Rescued Treasures store."

Perhaps most encouraging is the widespread community support for the project. The initiative is funded by generous donations from Kiwanis, Rotary, Greencastle Civic League and Cloverdale United Methodist.

More than 70 individuals from various churches, service organizations and DePauw's Eco-Rep program volunteered to help, from taking items out of the dorms in boxes donated by Ray's Trash, to sorting clothes and dishes after they've been dropped off at the fairgrounds.

"We couldn't run this program without the generous volunteers from Greencastle High School and John Garner's science classes," Baratta said. "John Garner encourages students to help each year, and even drives his class over in a school bus."

DePauw's Office for Sustainability and Putnam County Family Support Services plan to continue the effort next year, continuing a program that discourages waste and encourages community partnerships.