By Brad on May 13, 2012
The physical process of moving is done, thank you to all those who showed up to help move, sort, and start to set up the new space.
We still have much work to do, and our normal processes of testing and building are still not ready to start, but we will work on getting those back up by the end of May.
Stop on down to visit the new space, if you have time help us get back up and running, drop off those odd electronics and tell everybody you know about us.
Remember that if you come to volunteer, wear comfortable clothing that may get dirty.
Posted in Build, Recycling, Volunteers |
By Brad on May 9, 2012
We have a majority of the items moved, and would like to thanks all the volunteers who have turned out to help us lift, lug and transport items to the new space. There is still moving to be done, and then we need to set up the space to get back into the flow of things. First we will focus on getting our recycling back up to speed, there is a back log of items already, so we hope to have that aspect working in the new space by the end of this weekend, then we will work on getting testing back up and working, and lastly our build process should be up and working by the 19th or so. Plus we have a new space to set up our thrift store.
So stop in during our normal hours this weekend and help get things back up to speed, we cannot do this without our volunteers.
Posted in Uncategorized |
By Brad on May 5, 2012
Once again we have a remote pick up scheduled at Jerry’s Foods in Edina, last year we had a significant collection of equipment and weather permitting we hope to again gather significant quantities of gear that might end up in a landfill otherwise.
We hope to have a couple more over the summer as well, so watch the website to keep updated.
Posted in Featured, Recycling |
By Brad on May 5, 2012
Welcome to our redesigned site, just in time for our new Location. Big Changes, but still the same plan. Recycle, Educate, Re-Use, and support Open Source software.
We will be moving for the next few open days, and some in between, so there will be no Break-down, Testing or Build until mid May, the Store is being moved, and that may be limited to what we can locate in the boxes.
Posted in Build, Featured, Recycling, Volunteers |
By pscheie on November 18, 2011
It’s official! Last week we received a letter from the IRS stating that Free Geek Twin Cities is now a formally recognized 501c3 non-profit charity. This means that donations to FGTC are tax-deductible. Since we received the certification in 2011, any donations made this year can be deducted, not just those made going forward. This certification will enable us to work with businesses and other groups that might not otherwise donate their old computers to us if we weren’t a “formal” non-profit.
So, come donate your old computer or money to Free Geek Twin Cities and take a deduction. Better yet, come donate your time with us and help us help the needy get nerdy.
Posted in Featured | Tagged 501c3, donations, non-profit, tax-deductable
By pscheie on October 16, 2011
Kitty, one of our regular volunteers, lives in Edina. As part of the Edina Day of Service, she organized a “Donate your old computer to Free Geek Twin Cities” dropoff in the parking lot of Jerry’s Foodssupermarket. The weather was perfect, but we had no idea if anyone would show up. Well, the good folks of Edina really came through for us. We received over 50 desktop machines, more than 20 laptops, and about 20 flatscreens. We filled two minivans and an SUV with all the donations. A hearty thanks to Kitty and the people of Edina.
Posted in Recycling, Volunteers | Tagged edina-day-of-service, recycling, waste-management
By pscheie on August 8, 2011
On August 1 we had our first pickup of recyclable materials at our new location. Waste Management/Recycle America sent a truck which took away seven pallets of plastic, CRTS, hard drives (all spiked!), circuit boards, and various other sorted components. We just got the report back from WM/RA and the grand total was 1976 pounds! That’s right, we shipped almost a ton of recycling, keeping a whole bunch of toxins and precious metals out of landfills.
Our last shipment had been in April, in preparation for the garage sale and the move. Considering that we didn’t do any recycling work in May because of those events, nor for a week or two after the move while we settled in, it appears we generate a ton of recycling about every twelve weeks. Plus, we recovered enough valuable materials in the process to not only pay for the truck to come pickup the materials (in the past we’ve hauled it ourselves), but even had a bit of credit left over.
Having the space for pallets and gaylord boxes has been a godsend. Without it, we wouldn’t have been able to scale up our recycling as we have. We really are moving along now.
If you haven’t seen our new site, come visit us, and we’ll show you our great new recycling area, where we are making “a ton” of difference.
Posted in Recycling | Tagged gayloed-boxes, recycling, waste-management
By pscheie on June 12, 2011
Now that we have a space of our own, we have expanded our hours:
- Wednesday, Noon – 5pm
- Saturday, Noon – 5pm
- Sunday, 2pm – 7pm
We’re still unpacking a bit and deciding where things should go. But our teardown and recyling have resumed, and we’ll soon be ready to start up our build program again. So, if Saturdays haven’t worked for you in the past, you can now come join us on a couple of other days, and help the needy get nerdy. See you there.
Posted in Featured, Volunteers | Tagged growth, hours
By pscheie on May 15, 2011
A couple months ago, we concluded that we were outgrowing our space at PPNA and that we would have to move. Then, PPNA told us they were selling the building and that we had to be out in three weeks. With help from Seward Redesign we found a new space at 2310 Snelling Ave. South in Minneapolis, sometimes known as Seward Commons. May 14 was our moving day.
One of two moving trucks being loaded at our old place
Moving out...
...moving in.
The new building is between Hiawatha and Minnehaha Avenues, right next to the bike trail on Hiawatha, and just three blocks south of the Franklin Ave. light rail stop.
Our new space has over 2000 square feet, about 25% more than we had at PPNA, and we’re very excited about that. While we did like the fact that multiple groups shared the space with us at PPNA, it did impose limits such as how many days we could be open. We’ll have the new space largely to ourselves. There are some other community groups storing stuff in the space currently, but they’ll be moving to the garage/warehouse out back in the next few weeks. We hope to expand our hours in the coming months.
All moved out...
...all moved in.
It will take us a few weeks to get everything arranged in our new home. We had some donated shelving arrive while we were moving; it turned out to be too tall for the new space, so we’ll have to shorten it a bit.
After everything was moved in, we visited our next-door-neighbors at Sisters Camelot. Turns out they are big Ubuntu fans just like we are. We think we’ll get along terrifically.
The new space offers us great opportunities, but it can’t be our long-term permanent home. Seward Redesign plans to eventually raze the whole building and redevelop the space. However, our lease says that won’t happen for at least six months, and it’s possible that it may not happen for a year or two. That suits us just fine. Free Geek Twin Cities is a hive of bustling activity; we’re always busy doing many things, constantly growing. The number of new volunteers showing up each week continues to increase. The space at PPNA lasted us about a year before we outgrew it. It’s likely we’ll outgrow Seward Commons in a year as well. It’s a good problem to have.
So, come see our new digs. Come donate your old computer. Come learn about computers. Come help us teach people about computers. Come help us recycle responsibly. Come make a difference in the community.
Posted in Featured, Volunteers | Tagged growth, moving, organization
