What do a Donald Duck stuffed animal, two graduation robes, and bunny poop have in common? They were all items listed on Coastside Freecycle this May – items offered to others for free. And they all found new homes in short order.

The Freecycle Network is dedicated to keeping usable stuff out of landfill. It’s an international network with over 4,000 local groups and 5 million members. The Coastside chapter, which serves communities from Pescadero and La Honda to Pacifica and San Bruno, has over 1,300 members. There are also Freecycle groups for Belmont, Burlingame, Foster City, San Mateo, South San Francisco, and San Francisco.

Members of a Freecycle community offer items for free to other community members. The messages are sent by e-mail to the other members; alternatively, a member can choose to read the messages on the Freecycle Web site. Anyone wanting an item being offered responds directly to the person making the offer. Members can also let others know about specific things they want; in many cases, someone in the group can help out.

Items exchanged are sometimes very small: discount coupons for airport parking, embroidery floss. Sometimes they are very large: a king-size brass bed, a sofa, a refrigerator. Some will hopefully be making the receivers healthier: blood pressure monitors, PMS tea, exercise weights, an adjustable step for aerobics.
Steve Portigal created Coastside Freecycle on March 30, 2004 for a very simple reason: “I hate waste,” he says. When he heard about Freecycle it was a “no-brainer” to start a local group, and he was pleased with how quickly it established itself.

Carole Genovesi is currently the Coastside Freecycle group owner and primary moderator – and one of its evangelists. When she goes to garage sales, she uses the opportunity to introduce people to Freecycle. She finds that many people conducting garage sales are more interested in finding their things a new home than in making money from the sale, which means Freecycle might be a good alternative for them in the future.

Easily getting rid of things you don’t want, and sending them to good homes. Getting useful stuff for free. If either of these appeals to you, Freecycle might be your answer.

On the net:

www.freecycle.org

groups.yahoo.com/group/Coastside_ freecycle/