Happy 2024! I hope you had a lovely holidays full of joy, nourishment, relaxation and FUN (whatever that means for you)!
Many of us start the year with an accumulation of stuff – gifts and Black Friday purchases from November. The idea of donating unused or surplus items to those less fortunate comes top of mind, particularly during this time. I love this and want to offer a gentle reminder to only donate things that are new or in gently-used condition.
This list includes governmental, non-profit and business resources for donations, hauling, recycling and disposal services. I hope this serves to be helpful! There are so many amazing organizations doing this important work – please connect with me to share your donation or recycling resources!
General Items
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Salvation Army: donations can be brought to the Salvation Army Thrift Store in Cambridge, MD. There is no pickup service in the area.There is currently no pickup service in the Annapolis area. Call 1-800-SA TRUCK (1-800-728-7825) for assistance or see here for nearest drop off locations.
- Second Chance: located in South Baltimore. Drop off donations are welcome at Bay 8 of their warehouse. They provide free pickup and will travel to Annapolis and Easton, MD if the items are large. They suggest filling out the online form to request a pickup (the form works best in the Chrome browser) and provide pictures of the items. Call 410-385-1700 with questions.
- Vietnam Veterans of America: schedule a pickup.
Blankets, Linens, Towels
- Donate to a local animal shelter such as SPCA of Anne Arundel County in Annapolis or the Caroline County Humane Society in Ridgely on the Eastern Shore.
Books
- Books for International Goodwill in Annapolis.
- Little Free Library in Annapolis.
- Donate to a local library such as the 14 branch libraries in Anne Arundel County and the Easton branch of the Talbot County Free Library.
Clothes
- LMS Compassion Place: Annapolis drop off location.
- Vincent De Paul Baltimore: donation bin locations in Annapolis, Edgewater and more. Provides community services to people suffering from the effects of hunger, homelessness and poverty in the Baltimore area.
- Neighborhood Service Center: helps low-income residents in Talbot County. Items are sorted and given to people in need. Drop off items or call 410-822-5015 to make arrangements for larger donations.
- Purple Heart Foundation: schedule a pickup. Donations are sold by local thrift shops which donate the revenue back to the Foundation, which provides services and resources for veterans.
Food
- Anne Arundel County Food Bank: drop off in Crownsville.
- St. Michael’s Community Center: the accept non-perishable foods.
- LMS Compassion Place: Annapolis drop off location.
Building Materials and Furniture
- Habitat for Humanity ReStore: in Glen Burnie and Easton, MD.
Mattresses
- AmeriSleep created this fantastic blog post offering many options for donating or recycling mattresses.
Disposal Services
- Junkluggers: Services Baltimore and the western shore of Maryland. Eco-friendly junk removal. They seek to repurpose, donate or recycle to keep items from the landfill. Schedule a pickup.
- 1-800-GOT-JUNK?: Full-service junk removal company. They try to recycle and donate and will deposit to the landfill as a last resort. Schedule a pickup.
- 123Junk: Full-service junk removal company. They try to first donate, then recycle and will deposit to the landfill as a last resort. Schedule a pickup.
Recycling
- Anne Arundel County Recycling Centers: Provides locations and materials accepted/not accepted.
- Talbot County Recycling : Information about Talbot County’s recycling efforts.
- Maryland’s Recycling County Recycling Programs: for all counties in Maryland. Provides links to county programs as well as recycling resources.
Electronics Recycling (eCycling)
- Maryland Department of the Environment: for all counties in Maryland. Provides information on county programs as well as manufacturer take back programs and retailers (Best Buy, Staples).
Household Hazardous Waste
- Anne Arundel County Household Hazardous Waste Drop Off Events: Residents of Anne Arundel County may drop off household hazardous waste at specified drop off events. Materials accepted and materials not accepted as well as the schedule for 2024 are listed on the website.
- Talbot County Recycling : Information about Talbot County’s recycling efforts and household hazardous waste drop off events.
- Maryland’s Local Household Hazardous Waste Collection Programs: for all counties in Maryland. Includes websites to various county programs, contacts and phone numbers.
