the Informer

When the end of the year comes, it can seem easy to simply throw away whatever does not fit in the back of mom and dad’s car, but a group of students on campus want students to think twice about putting these items in the trash.

Students and faculty on campus have combined efforts to create “Stash It, Don’t Trash It” in an effort to donate these items to local charities.

A truck trailer will be located in N Lot, behind Regents Park and the Village Quad 5. Students can drop off unwanted items there and then they will be given to local charities, such as The Bridge Family Center, A Hand Up and the Salvation Army.

“This is a project begun several years ago by a campus group of faculty and staff called the Campus Alliance for Progressive Policies and Action (CAPPA) to collect good furniture, appliances, kitchen ware, clothing and unopened food that students can’t take home with them at the end of the school year and recycle it to charitable organizations in the Hartford area,” said Sharon Shepela, a psychology professor and one of the organizers of the program.

“Instead of winding up in the dumpsters, these household items wind up in the apartments of local families who desperately need them,” she said.

The truck will be open on specific days, but it can also be opened at a specific time to work with students’ schedules.

Students can visit uhaweb.hartford.edu/UHdonates and click on “Donate” to list what they are donating and what time would be convenient for them.

The group is also looking for volunteers who want to help move items and manage the truck. Anyone who is interested can visit the website and click on “Volunteer” to complete the application.

Volunteers will be provided with food coupons for a slice of pizza and soda from ARAMARK. If a team or club signs up with many volunteers, the Center for Community Service will provide them with a whole pizza.

“It is a win-win operation based on the cooperation of the students moving out, and the volunteers who help to collect and store the goods,” said Shepela.

Instead of throwing away the things they do not use, students should think about donating them.