Northern Ont. non-profit groups frustrated trash is being mixed with real donations

Donations welcome, but not trash, groups say Northern non-profits say they are grateful for the help, but some have also been dealing with an increase in items that end up in the trash.

Northern non-profit organizations that rely on donations of household items say they are grateful for the help, but many are dealing with an increase in items that end up in the trash.

Manitoulin Family Resources recently posted on Facebook about the do’s and don’ts of donating.

"Some of the donations we receive are excellent," said Vanessa Glasby, Manitoulin Family Resources food security program supervisor.

"Some of the donations we receive are not great. Part of that is related to the cost of waste disposal. People don't want to throw things out."

While they understand people want to help, sorting through items to remove garbage is a huge job, Glasby said.

"We've received just a really big increase in volume of donations to the point where they don't necessarily fit in the space that we have available," she said.

Glasby said the organization uses two sheds to collect donations, one for clothing and another for housewares.

"We strive to keep those open and unlocked at all times just to be really available to donors, so that they can come by when it's convenient for them," she said.

"However, we do need donors to kind of work with us and work with our systems in order to be able to keep doing that."

She said they can't accept food donations, items left outside of the shed or items that are soiled, torn, unwashed or damaged.

"We do support a lot of families with clothing," Glasby said.

"Warm winter clothing, hats, mitts, boots, coats, those are always in need. As well as, like, space heaters and blankets and things for those whose homes maybe aren't as well insulated."

This has also been an ongoing issue for the Pet Save ReTail thrift store in Sudbury since the summer.

"Don't get me wrong, we are so grateful for the community's support and the donations that are coming in, but we are finding that we are still getting a lot of garbage," said Kari Fabilli, the store’s staff coordinator.

Fabilli said as a result, the store has put a pause on donations as taking away the trash is costing the organization hundreds of dollars a month, affecting the care they provide to animals in need.

"Right now we are overcapacity (and) we just did another huge rescue," she said.

"We're at over 500 animals in care at the shelter and in foster homes. So that's, again, money taken directly away from our animals -- and right now we need we need every penny."

Both organizations urge the community to simply follow the rules before you drop something off.