April is Earth Month, which feels like a natural time to reflect on mission that drives the work we do at the RE Store.
That reflection starts with a simple question and definition: what actually is our mission?
For many in our community, the answer might seem obvious. The RE Store is a place to find affordable, second hand furniture, tools, and building materials. A place to donate items that still have life left in them. A place that feels, in its own way, a little different from traditional retail.
And all of that is true, but it’s only part of the story.
Retail With a Mission
As a program of RE Sources, a Bellingham-based nonprofit formed in 1982, the RE Store was created in 1993 to divert usable building materials from the landfill and to promote a sustainable circular economy within community. While operations have evolved over time, the core principle has remained the same. Every donation, every purchase, and every interaction contributes to something bigger: reducing waste, increasing access to affordable materials, and investing money back into people.
The reality is that, in the United States, construction and demolition materials make up one of the largest sources of waste, generating an estimated 600 million tons every year—more than twice the amount of everyday household trash. Much of that material still ends up in landfills, even though a significant portion could be reused.
Accepting these materials for on-site donation resale is just where our work begins.
Revenue generated through the RE store and our fundraising efforts also help to fund a range of programs and services:
- It supports our Salvage Services team, which provides both free pickups and contracted deconstruction services.
- It helps power our Community Jobs Training program, offering hands-on work experience, education, and skill-building opportunities to folks from all backgrounds.
- It helps facilitate Community Partnerships with local manufacturers to divert commercial waste.
- It allows us to invest in community-centered initiatives that extend far beyond the sales floor, such as partnering with Sustainable Connections for the Freedge and offering skills-building workshops.
The RE Store is not just a place where diverted materials change hands. It’s a place where ideas, skills, and ideas for a better future circulate. At its core, our mission is about redefining waste not just as something to be reduced, but as something to be reimagined.
But perhaps the best way to understand our mission is to hear it from the people who live it every day.
Our Mission, in Our Own Words
Across our staff, there’s a shared understanding of why we do this (often quite challenging) work, but each team member approaches it with their own unique perspective.
In general, it starts with the core idea of keeping usable materials out of the landfill:
“The mission is to reduce the amount of material that would be going into the landfill by diverting usable material into the RE Store and helping our local community”
“We divert usable material from landfill by recirculating it within the resilient community it comes from.”
“To divert solid waste from the landfills by redefining waste, reselling what is still useful, and empowering people to waste less.”
Others highlight the importance of accessibility and affordability in an increasingly challenging economic environment:
“I believe the mission is to divert usable materials out of the landfill and to make them affordable to those that could not normally afford to buy them.”
“Landfill diversion, environmental protection and offsets, community building and education, neighborhood solidarity and inclusion, and offering affordable and obtainable materials.”
“We divert usable material from landfill by recirculating it within the resilient community it comes from.”
Most of us here see the RE Store as something even broader—a place where environmental impact and doing our part to encourage people to think differently about waste:
“The RE Store subverts the single-use culture of the waste stream by modeling creative reuse and community care.”
“It is a place for people to come and feel like their project is important, whether it’s for a silly little art thing or building an entire house out of materials purchased here.”
“To divert solid waste from the landfills by redefining waste, reselling what is still useful, and empowering people to waste less.”
“We strive to do our best for our community in education, inspiration, and support for projects that reclaim, reuse, & upcycle materials that would have otherwise ended up in the waste stream.”
And for some, the mission is deeply tied to building community:
“It is a place for the community to do their part in helping both our environment and our local economy by shopping at their local re-use store to keep useful items within the community.”
“I think it’s important to think about what kind of Bellingham we want to live in and how we can make sure everyone is invited, then figure out the work we need do to make that happen.“
“The RE Store is a place for people to come and feel like their project is important—whether it’s a small art project or building an entire house.”
For the twelve of us who make up the RE Store team, a few themes consistently rise to the surface:
- Waste diversion
- Environmental stewardship
- Accessibility and affordability
- Community-building, safety, and inclusion
Looking Ahead
Earth Month is a moment to reflect, but it’s also a chance to look forward.
As one staff member put it:
“I hope that in our future we are able to broaden our community-building opportunities.”
While there are many challenges to operating a small non-profit in the context of the current economic realities, we continue to be optimistic about what is possible. Our retail storefront diverted nearly 3 million pounds of reusable material last year, and is on pace to exceed this number already in 2026. Last year our Community Jobs Training Program expanded our job-seeking and resume building modules, while providing almost 4,000 hours worth of opportunities to more than 60 participants, including 17 long-term trainees. Our Salvage Services crew is busier than ever, and working towards developing a reproducible model of our work that we can share to encourage sustainable green deconstruction beyond our subdued little corner of Washington.
At the RE Store, we are committed to continuing to expand what waste diversion can look like, deepening our impact, and strengthening the connections that make this work possible in the first place.
Because at the end of the day, this isn’t just about the materials.
It’s about people.
It’s about community.
And it’s about building a more sustainable future together.