Warm Clothes Bin Drive To Help Spread The Warmth

October 23, 2018
SPUD
Community, Community Outreach, SPUD Vancouver

It’s time again for Spud’s Winter Bin Drive!

As the temperature drops and the rain sets in, we start bundling up. Layers of sweaters, gortex, wool socks, and toques keep us safe and warm as we enjoy the outdoors or dash from building to building, trying to avoid the weather. But for some, being outdoors represents neither a fun activity, nor a liminal space between warm rooms. For people without secure housing, being outdoors can be a defining feature of their lives. With limited resources, these people often lack the warm and protective clothing needed to withstand prolonged exposure to the elements. That’s why Spud is once again partnering with Regional Recycling Vancouver’s Gift of Warmth for this year’s winter bin drive.

Binners – people who make their livelihood collecting redeemable containers from garbage bins or dumpsters and returning them to recycling depot for the deposit – make up a large number of Regional Recycling Vancouver’s patrons. The staff there noticed that despite the fact that they spend a lot of out in the rain and cold, the binners often didn’t have warm enough clothing, and they wanted to help. That seed grew into the Gift of Warmth, an annual campaign to provide warm and protective clothing to the binner community.

Spud is proud to support the Gift of Warmth not only because it helps keep people warm, but also because of the specific population it supports. Binners do the city a great service by separating the waste streams and ensuring that items that do not belong in landfills get returned to the recycling loop.

Last year, Spud customers donated warm clothes and other items to Gift of Warmth, and your donations were greatly appreciated! We hope you’ll help out again this year. The bin drive runs Nov 12th to Nov 30th, so be sure to leave your donations in your bins for pickup.