We continue our challenge to move towards less waste, more reuse, more recycling, and less dependency on plastics. We need your help to accomplish this goal.
This year we have committed $10,000.00 towards site improvement of the Lopez Solid Waste Disposal District facility. Once the project is decided we will update through the newspaper and LopezRocks.
We continue the adventure of our Shirts-to-Skirts Project!!! We take used t-shirts that are either given to us or donated to the Take-It-Or-Leave-It, and make one-of-a-kind skirts! All the designing, cutting, and serging is done by many volunteers. This summer we sold 83 skirts at the Lopez Farmers’ Market! If you would like to receive information about skirt making workshops, please send an email to lopezswap@gmail.com. Also let us now if you would like to spend one or more Saturdays working the SWAP booth at the Farmers’ Market next summer.
We welcome Chyanne Escalate, Susan Greskovics, and Katherine Sorensen to the board. Chyanne is the artist/designer of this year’s Junk Bond. Susan and Katherine are familiar faces at TIOLI. We continue to seek new board members.
SWAP is a non-profit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization that supports our Lopez Dump in much the same way the Friends of the Library supports that institution. The annual levy for our Disposal District provides only about one-third of the funds necessary to operate our Recycle Plaza, Take-It-Or-Leave-It, and waste disposal facilities. SWAP helps fill the gap with goods, supplemental funding, and continuing education of our shared community values of reduce, recycle, and repurpose. That’s why we:
❖ Fund the Year of REUSE, a community focus by LSWDD staff member, Nikyta Palmisani
❖ Support the school’s ReMake Lab
❖ Support EARTH DAY which removed thousands of pounds of debris from beaches and
roadsides on all our islands
❖ Provide funding for a Family Resource Center Program to subsidize trash disposal for low
income households
❖ Award the Sarah Eppenbach scholarship to a graduating senior who has demonstrated a
working understanding of environmental care
❖ Host a volunteer appreciation BBQ and a December volunteer appreciation evening to
honor the many Lopez individuals contributing their time and effort to making our
community-operated facility an award-winning reality
❖ Operate a SWAP booth at the Saturday Farmers’ Market where we hosted multiple
conversations about the need to refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, and recycle
❖ Provide funds for the annual levy vote that allows us to tax ourselves to provide much of the
funding to run our disposal district
❖ Participate in the Holiday Preschool Bazaar and the Port Stanley School Holiday Sale
❖ Contributed to the purchase of a new glass container at the recycle center
❖ Sponsor the Dogs at the Dump Calendar 2020 available at PSR (Kudos to photographer Nikyta Palmisani)
❖ Maintain a bag bin outside of Blossom Grocery
In January 2020 our community-managed Lopez Solid Waste Disposal District will celebrate our seventh anniversary as a 100 percent local operation meeting Lopez Island needs. As you write your checks for year-end contributions this year, please consider adding SWAP to your list of worthy organizations that enhance the quality of life on our island. Your added support helps our Lopez Island Dump provide free separated recycling, additional recycling opportunities, the Take-It-Or-Leave-It free community goods exchange, and affordable disposal service. If you have already given to SWAP this year, we thank you for your contribution. A special thank you to those who have given SWAP funding directly from retirement funding.
Lopezians interested in
*board membership
*helping with skirt design
*serging/sewing skirts
*helping at the Saturday Farmers’ Market
Please contact us at lopezswap@gmail.com. THANKS!
Sincerely,
Chyanne Escalante, Susan Greskovics, Renee Koplan, Kim Norton, Katherine Sorensen, Kevin Utt
Board of Directors
Yet to come this year:
The Lopez Preschool Bazaar, November 30, 2019
Port Stanley School Holiday Sale on December 14, 2019
Look for more fabulous reusable shopping bags repurposed from animal feed bags by Jodi and Velma
Series E Junk Bonds by artist Chyanne Escalante
2020 Dogs from Lopez Dump Calendars available now at PSR
AND LOTS MORE SKIRTS!