I was concerned about Goodwill throwing away perfectly good items so I read on their website:
Why should I donate to my local Goodwill rather than another thrift store?Goodwill Stores are linked to a great cause — 82 percent of Goodwill’s revenues go directly into employment and training programs for people with disabilities and other barriers to employment!
For-profit thrift stores sometimes arrange to use a charity’s name to collect donations in exchange for a flat fee or a percentage of the revenue. Often this deal is not generally publicized, and the percentage that charity actually makes may be less than 5 cents for every dollar spent. Make your donations wisely!
It seems like Goodwill services vary in different geographic locations. Why is this?
We are the corporate headquarters for Goodwill and we work with an autonomous member network. Our member Goodwills strive to identify the needs of the community and the demand of local industry for employment. Based on the needs of the community, each local Goodwill designs programs and services that give Goodwill graduates the skills they need to find work right where they live.
What happens to donated items that aren’t sold at Goodwill stores?
Our goal is to try to generate money to fund Goodwill programs from every item that is donated. So in most cases, we’ll do what we can to get items in salable shape.
As for items that can’t be sold in our stores, we’ve found other creative uses for them. For instance, some member Goodwills recycle old clothing scraps into industrial wipes (cleaning cloths) for industrial buyers. Other items that are too damaged for retail sales are sold to salvage brokers.
If I shop at a Goodwill store, will I be depriving disadvantaged people of stuff they need?
No. Goodwill serves disadvantaged people by educating, training and placing them into jobs. By becoming gainfully employed, these individuals gain resources to buy the things they need. Many disadvantaged people who are in training or are employed by Goodwill Industries are offered vouchers or discounts at Goodwill retail stores.
Sometimes people donate "trash" just to get rid of it, and just because someone is "needy" doesn't mean they will wear anything. I was raised poor, so I speak from experience. One of my favorite hobbies is yard sales and I'm just amazed sometimes by what people think "someone can use it" entails. I attempted to pick up some items on Freecycle and on a couple of occasions I found it was a person getting someone else to haul off their trash.
I think it's great if anyone can find clothes at Goodwill and other thrift stores to re purpose, and make something beautiful out of something un-useable., while still raising money to help people.