Happy Birthday Sustainable Surplus!

Sustainable Surplus celebrated its 4^th year with a Birthday BYOB. The famous Bring Your Own Box event invites teachers and nonprofit staff to come to the warehouse with an empty box and fill it with FREE office supplies.  

More than 50 of our constituents attended, singing “Happy Birthday” to staff and founder, Sue Prelozni.

A good time was had by all.  While teachers and nonprofits came for FREE items, they also bought oodles of furniture and computers. 

The event was sponsored by RMG Recycling.  According to CEO Armen Derderian, "RMG supports Sustainable Surplus because we believe in their cause.  They fill a vital void in the marketplace by finding a use through a well-established network of end users for quality products that aren't ready for or easily recycled"

Sustainable Surplus has repurposed valuable assets to over 400 local schools, nonprofits and start-ups.  As a result, SSE diverted 400,000 pounds of solid waste from the landfill.  Close to 200 companies have engaged in SSE's program, donating $1.7 million of assets.

Sustainable Surplus Success Story!

Following up on a donation in 2014, we found that some repurposed workstations were making a big difference in San Diego. Yulex Corporation, a company dedicated to the production of sustainable, natural rubber products, donated the workstations to us and we quickly found them a new life supporting a local Resource Access Program (RAP).

RAP in an innovative, award-winning program of the 9-1-1 emergency system in San Diego. RAP is a team of paramedics who engage with the most vulnerable patients in the community who misuse the 9-1-1 system for routine medical needs. The RAP program addresses the needs of these patients from a case-management approach in order to get these folks the help they need, without the unnecessary burden on taxpayers involved with frequent users of the 9-1-1 system.

Because RAP is a pilot program, the funding is very limited. Being able to purchase the workstations at a fraction of their resale value, the RAP team was thrilled to jump start their work with the proper equipment they needed to do this important work.

From Loralee Olejnik of Rural/Metro Ambulance:
 “Many times we forget the impact even the most basic giving can have. How simply could Yulex have tossed these cubes in the dumpster or listed a Craigslist ad to sell them? But now they will be used for years to combat homelessness and save lives... Thank you Yulex, for what you gave, and Sue and the Sustainable Surplus team for what you do.  Your donation supports the RAP team in its mission: Where your talents and the needs of the world cross, there lies your vocation."

It’s stories like these that keep Sustainable Surplus working hard to Turn Corporate Excess into Community Assets! (and warms our hearts!)

Sustainable Surplus Celebrates 4 Years

"It's been fun, exceedingly gratifying and a bit crazy," says SSE Founder and CEO Sue Prelozni.
To read about our journey, please click here
In just 4 years we have:

• Engaged 195 companies in sustainable practices
• Received and repurposed $1.7 million of reusable items
• Benefited 350+ local schools, nonprofit and start-up organizations.
• Supported 35,000 teachers, students, nonprofit 
• Diverted 374,000 pounds of solid waste from the landfill

Picture History...

Student volunteers from Trade Tech High School

ENGAGE! at TaylorMade-adidas Golf

Binder & office supplies donation to Oceanside Unified

BYOBers having fun with FREE office supplies

ENGAGE! at Jenny Craig

Local biotech start-up Purum picking up needed items

We came for the BYOB.  I got a cookie!

Santa came to the holiday BYOB and gave out candycanes

Supervisor Dave Roberts, GE GM Randy Bull and SSE CEO Sue Prelozni

SD Supervisor Dave Roberts meets SSE team to give grant

SD Supervisor Bill Horn dons $15,000 grant to SSE Advisor
Diana Shapiro and SSE CEO Sue Prelozni

County Tax Assessor Dan McAllister shares recycle bins
with Lora Duzyk of SDCOE and SSE CEO Sue Prelozni

SD Supervisor Greg Cox gives award to Sue Prelozni
and celebrates Earth Day

Kids and moms from Vista VIDA program, get mugs,
visors and seeds to plant from SSE for Spring fun

Victory Dance by SSE CEO Sue Prelozni

SSE Hosts First Ever Spring Sale for PublicVisitors

Sustainable Surplus held its first-ever open-to-the-public Spring Sale on Saturday, May 9.  It was a great success, raising more than $2200.

“Our normal course of business is to make items available at our online Exchange store,” said executive director Sue Prelozni.  SSE provides items like furniture, equipment and supplies to educational, charitable and started organizations. The items are donated from local companies, which helps lower their rate of disposal of solid waste from the landfill.

The sale was held to help clear out the warehouse and make room for more incoming inventory.  "It is an ever revolving door of incoming and outgoing supplies," said Prelozni.

SSE collaborated with the San Diego Futures Foundation to host a kiosk of computer systems for sale.  The systems included refurbished hardware and updated software with a sales price starting at only $120.

Membership is FREE to teachers and nonprofit staff.  SSE charges start-up and small businesses $25/year to join.  To become a member of SSE and be invited to open house sales or events, please sign up here:  www.sustainablesurplus.org

SSE Director to Present at Carlsbad Chamber

Let's talk about the 4th "R" in the Reduce, ReUse, Recycle trilogy -- REPURPOSE!
SSE executive director and CEO Sue Prelozni will talk about their new program ENGAGE! and how corporations and employees are engaged in sustainable practices.
What:  Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce Sustainability Committee - Public Workshop
When:  Tuesday, May 12
             8:15 am - 9 am
Where:  5934 Priestly Dr., Carlsbad

More info, click here

Spring Cleaning Warehouse Sale

Sustainable Surplus is hosting it's FIRST EVER Spring Cleaning sale in the Vista Warehouse this Saturday.  The event will be open to the public - another first!
Date:  Saturday, May 9
Time:  9 am - 1 pm
Place:  760 Shadowridge Dr., Vista  92083

Guests are welcome!
Inquiries:  info@sustainablesurplus.org 

Sustainable Surplus Board Secretary Walks the Talk

WELCOME!  This is a new feature of our blog where SSE members share their sustainable stories

A post by SSE board secretary, Shari Joyce - 

Living in San Diego I had no trouble growing anything green inside or out. My yard was a gift from God with very little help from me. I was excited when I started my own vermi-composting and had my red wiggler worms in my kitchen in plastic bins. It was the proverbial win-win situation; It gave me a convenient way to dispose of organic waste, such as vegetable peelings, It saved space in the county landfill, which is good for the environment, it created beautiful nutrient rich compost from the castings and It gave the worms a happy home and all the free “eats” that they could want.

I am now living in The Woodlands, Texas which is approximately 35 miles North of Houston. I am still

secretary of the Sustainable Surplus Board and try to do my part to respect the environment wherever I am.

The first year living here I just kind of watched to learn the pattern of the weather (there is none). I was not used to so much rain and waking up to huge branches in the middle of my yard which break off the trees in a good wind. Towards the end of 2014, I took three gardening classes on consecutive Saturdays and I can say that I now know enough to be dangerous. I signed up for the water challenge and stopped watering my lawn in November and have not watered it yet. That will depend on rainfall.                                        

I purchased two compost bins that stay out in my back yard and I collected all the fall leaves and pine needles and mixed them with my organic fruit & vegetable scraps from the kitchen.

I had a finished product just in time to cover the drip hosing I put in around my azaleas. By fall these babies should be in beautiful full bloom – I’ll have to send a follow up photo.

Why use compost?

Compost improves low quality soils

by adding organic matter and nutrients. 

Plants grown in good soil are healthier 

and have greater resistance to diseases 

and insects. By greatly reducing the 

need for pesticides and fertilizers,

you save money.