Thrifty SU deals

By Rafael Ford

Your abandoned junk is the Recycling Board’s gold.

The fifth annual Campus Recycling Board garage sale took place over the weekend in the MacEwan Hall Ballroom.

"People look forward to it," said perennial volunteer Nadine Yurack, who, based on previous years, expected turnout for the event to be nearly 400 people.

The event, which has been quite successful in the past, raised funds for the Students for Literacy Campaign and Into the Streets. The merchandise for sale was an accumulation of items left behind in U of C lockers which were not claimed within a year. This year, donations also came from the Campus Food Bank and the Cookie Nook.

Goodies up for sale included clothing and sporting items, computer and stereo equipment, school supplies and CD Walkmans. However, according to Yurack, the hottest item for sale is jewellery.

"People lineup and wait outside, just for the jewellery," said Yurack. More interesting items found included trial packs of tampons, cards for the role-playing game "Magic", karaoke CDs like Sung Like a Superstar and a book titled All your Fears and Questions Answered.

The sale was headed by SU VP Finance and Operations Matt Lauzon, who is currently chairperson for the Campus Recycling Board.

"It’s a great opportunity to recycle and reuse the materials," Lauzon said. Actual figures for this year’s sale are not yet available but Lauzon expects about $2,000 in gross sales and, once costs for event are covered, around $1,000 will go to the two charities.

The sale tends to be of great interest not only to students, but also to low-income individuals and bargain hunters. Depending on the item, some of the unsold articles will go into storage until next year while the majority will end up in the hands of Interfaith charities or homeless shelters.

"It’s a win-win situation," said Yurack.