“We all know what a number of articles there are which are not quite bad enough to be thrown into the dust heap, and yet are no good to us.” These very profound words were written by Salvation Army founder, General William Booth in his 1890 publication In Darkest England and the Way Out. Among many first time programs established by The Salvation Army through the direction of General Booth, arguably, The Salvation Army could be viewed as one of the first organized recyclers in communities everywhere.

In fact, General Booth created and organized a program for such reusable, yet unwanted articles and named it “The Household Salvage Brigade.” Nearly 116 years since the creation of that brigade, in today’s terms we refer to this kind of program universally as the three “R’s”…reduce, reuse, and recycle. However, for The Salvation Army, there is one more “R” that mobilizes all recycling outcomes, which is rehabilitation. Without question, General Booth was a true visionary, and understood that in addition to collecting used items from households for the specific purpose of rehabilitating those in our society who have lost their way, or have fallen on hard times; Booth also recognized the many environmental benefits to society as a result of this kind of program.

The Household Salvage Brigade in contemporary terms is in fact The Salvation Army Thrift Stores of today, and this retail store program plays a vital role in communities across the country where recycling is concerned. Salvation Army Thrift Stores provide members of the community with a depot where gently used items can be donated, and those items generate proceeds in support of community social programs The Salvation Army provides.

As important, is the impact this program has on local environmental goals. Recent annual totals show that The Salvation Army Thrift Stores diverts a massive 60 million pounds of materials from landfills across Canada.  With these programs in place, and the new and aggressive municipal recycling initiatives on the rise across the country, that figure is sure to increase dramatically.

Under the umbrella program of “Recycle for Good”, The Salvation Army its Thrift Stores across Canada are forming partnerships on a consistent basis with regions, municipalities, and provinces across Canada on the subject of recycling, and establishing landfill diversion programs.

There is no question that landfill issues will be with us for some time to come, and it is for this reason that we encourage you to donate gently used products to The Salvation Army’s Thrift Stores; not only will your contributions help to reduce product headed for landfills and help to protect the environment as a result, but will ensure that vital community programs can continue to deliver their services to those in our communities who need our help.

Salvation Army Thrift Stores…respecting Life, Land, and Soul!