Ruth’s continues looking for a new space
Ruth’s continues looking for a new space
By Zack Anchors
Staff writer
After 13 years of bringing delight to teachers across the state by providing them recycled and donated school supplies, Ruth Libby is scrambling to find a new home for Ruth’s Reusable Resources as well as the money to pay for it. With a new senior housing project moving into the 3Rs current home in the Bessey School, Ruth’s non-profit business has to be moved out by June 30 of next year.
“There are lots of places we could go,” said Ruth, “But we can’t go anywhere until we have enough money to move.”
Since Ruth and her husband Tom started the organization in 1994, the 3Rs has distributed more than $10 million worth of supplies to more than 7,000 teachers. The space they are currently occupying in the Bessey School is filled to the seams with every conceivable item that a teacher might find useful, from computers and filing cabinets to rolls of felt and stacks of paper. But the 3Rs has so much inventory, donated by more than 500 companies, organizations and individuals, that they also use three additional sites for storage. They have several tractor trailer trucks filled with supplies parked in South Portland, several more parked at Scarborough Public Works and also a space rented at a local storage center.
Eventually, Ruth would like to settle the 3R’s in one space, with at least 25,000 square feet and easy access for loading supplies. But she estimates that to buy such a space would likely cost around $1 million. She said that a short-term solution would be to move the 3Rs into a temporary location so that they could initiate a capital campaign to raise the money needed for a permanent space. But even finding a temporary space will cost money, she said.
“It would take at least $100,000 to pay rent for a year,” said Ruth.
According to Tom, Scarborough schools alone have benefited from $70,000 worth of supplies from 3Rs. But teachers from as far away as Orono and towns in New Hampshire also trek to Ruth’s. Many of them work at schools that have become members through paying a fee. The schools pay $2 a student to become a member or $350 for smaller schools. The teachers are then able to rummage through Ruth’s and take back to their classrooms anything they think might be useful.
Scarborough English teacher Marita O’Neill said Scarborough’s classrooms are filled with items that were found at Ruth’s. O’Neill runs a children’s theater program in Scarborough and takes her students to Ruth’s every year so they can find materials for the plays they produce.
“I don’t know what we would do if they weren’t here,” she said. “All our props and all our costumes come from Ruth’s.”
Tom and Ruth said they would prefer to move just once, instead of twice, and they are hoping someone will come forward with some kind of donation that would allow them to move into a permanent space. Although Ruth has lived in Scarborough since she was six months old and would like to stay here, she said they are looking all over the greater Portland area for a new space for the 3Rs.
Whatever happens though, Ruth is confident that she will continue providing her service.
“I am not willing to close the doors,” she said. “I’ve had to work way too hard to close now.”
By Zack Anchors
Staff writer
After 13 years of bringing delight to teachers across the state by providing them recycled and donated school supplies, Ruth Libby is scrambling to find a new home for Ruth’s Reusable Resources as well as the money to pay for it. With a new senior housing project moving into the 3Rs current home in the Bessey School, Ruth’s non-profit business has to be moved out by June 30 of next year.
“There are lots of places we could go,” said Ruth, “But we can’t go anywhere until we have enough money to move.”
Since Ruth and her husband Tom started the organization in 1994, the 3Rs has distributed more than $10 million worth of supplies to more than 7,000 teachers. The space they are currently occupying in the Bessey School is filled to the seams with every conceivable item that a teacher might find useful, from computers and filing cabinets to rolls of felt and stacks of paper. But the 3Rs has so much inventory, donated by more than 500 companies, organizations and individuals, that they also use three additional sites for storage. They have several tractor trailer trucks filled with supplies parked in South Portland, several more parked at Scarborough Public Works and also a space rented at a local storage center.
Eventually, Ruth would like to settle the 3R’s in one space, with at least 25,000 square feet and easy access for loading supplies. But she estimates that to buy such a space would likely cost around $1 million. She said that a short-term solution would be to move the 3Rs into a temporary location so that they could initiate a capital campaign to raise the money needed for a permanent space. But even finding a temporary space will cost money, she said.
“It would take at least $100,000 to pay rent for a year,” said Ruth.
According to Tom, Scarborough schools alone have benefited from $70,000 worth of supplies from 3Rs. But teachers from as far away as Orono and towns in New Hampshire also trek to Ruth’s. Many of them work at schools that have become members through paying a fee. The schools pay $2 a student to become a member or $350 for smaller schools. The teachers are then able to rummage through Ruth’s and take back to their classrooms anything they think might be useful.
Scarborough English teacher Marita O’Neill said Scarborough’s classrooms are filled with items that were found at Ruth’s. O’Neill runs a children’s theater program in Scarborough and takes her students to Ruth’s every year so they can find materials for the plays they produce.
“I don’t know what we would do if they weren’t here,” she said. “All our props and all our costumes come from Ruth’s.”
Tom and Ruth said they would prefer to move just once, instead of twice, and they are hoping someone will come forward with some kind of donation that would allow them to move into a permanent space. Although Ruth has lived in Scarborough since she was six months old and would like to stay here, she said they are looking all over the greater Portland area for a new space for the 3Rs.
Whatever happens though, Ruth is confident that she will continue providing her service.
“I am not willing to close the doors,” she said. “I’ve had to work way too hard to close now.”
Comments