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Prairie Village Textile Recycling pick ups start Wednesday

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Among the vehicles on display at the Prairie Village Earth Fair last weekend was the new Prairie Village Textile Recycling program truck.
Among the vehicles on display at the Prairie Village Earth Fair last weekend was the new Prairie Village Textile Recycling program truck.

Starting today, Prairie Village residents have the chance to participate in a first-of-its-kind in the Kansas City area program aimed at keeping usable textiles out of the landfill.

The Prairie Village Textile Recycling truck is making its first rounds Wednesday, and will be picking up used clothing, towels, sheets, blankets, shoes, bedding, curtains and other fabric and apparel items door to door. The textiles recycling truck, which is operated by Team Thrift, will visit Prairie Village homes on their regular trash and recycling days. Residents must bag or box their donation items in a container clearly marked “PV” and placed by their front door, garage or porch before 7 a.m. For more information about the donation procedures, check out the city’s FAQ on the program here.

Prairie Village’s city council approved the pilot program in February.

Team Thrift Director of Marketing and Design Dan Cogan was on hand at the Prairie Village Earth Fair over the weekend to answer questions about the program. He said the question people had most frequently was what types of goods they will pick up.

“This would basically be anything made of fabric,” he said. “We do not currently pick up hard goods, but are working toward that for the future.”

Team Thrift takes most of the items it picks up to thrift stores for sale or has them shipped to developing countries. Other items are used to create products like sound barriers or insulation. The proceeds from Team Thrift’s operations through the program go to the Prairie Village Foundation.

“The greatest benefit of PV residents donating through [Prairie Village Textile Recycling] is that the proceeds stay right here in Prairie Village to help their neighbors and community with things like utility assistance, camp scholarships, etc…,” Cogan said.

At this point, Team Thrift does not have any drop off locations for non-Prairie Village residents to donate textiles, but the company is looking into a few options.

“We do not currently, but are discussing ways to allow surrounding communities to easily donate as well,” Cogan siad. “We do encourage those who wish to donate to the charity of their choice to continue to do so. One of our primary purposes is to make it as easy as possible for folks to donate their textiles in order to encourage them to do that instead of throwing them away and filling up landfills.”

About the author

Jay Senter
Jay Senter

Jay Senter is the founder and publisher of the Post.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in business at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, where he worked as a reporter and editor at The Badger Herald.

He went on to receive a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Kansas, where he earned the Calder Pickett Award. While he was in graduate school, he also worked as a reporter for the Lawrence Journal-World.

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