Can Recycling be a Ministry?
A few months ago, we joined a recycling program and we suggest that your church participate in one, too.
We use a number of rechargeable batteries in our office equipment and your church staff, along with church members and neighborhood residents do as well … batteries which in many areas can no longer be disposed of easily, so we’ve joined Call2Recycle (an authorized collection center) to dispose of these batteries in a manner that doesn’t hurt our environment.
All the items collected are refurbished or recycled to create other types of materials; nothing goes into landfills. It’s good stewardship for your church to recycle its own materials and better stewardship to serve your members this way. The advantage of your church becoming a neighborhood collection center rather than just recycling our own waste is to provide one more open door to your community.
Here’s what you can collect for recycling:
Rechargeable batteries: Ni-Cd, Ni-MH, Li-ion, Ni-Zn and small sealed lead (maximum 11lbs).
Cell phones: any size, make, model, age, digital or analog, with or without battery. Data from the phones will be erased, but for their security and peace of mind encourage recyclers to erase data before recycling. Not acceptable are any phones other than cell (no household cordless phones, two-way radios, pagers, etc.).
Let folks know you’re in the recycling ministry.
Produce some simple cards or flyers for your church members to distribute, be sure there’s information in your church bulletin, newsletter, and web site.
Then, when folks from the community drop off their recyclable electronics, make sure you have some information about your church’s other ministries, worship services, and special events. Also, take a minute to let them know your church is also in the spiritual recycling business, too.
If you’d like more information about Call2Recycle and their recycling program you can find it at www.call2recycle.org.
And, if you’d like to talk about your church’s stewardship and accounting needs, give us a call at (904) 398-4747 or visit our contact page and we’ll give you a call.
