Sen. Kennedy: SARAH Recycles is a Win for the Community and the Environment

EAST HAVEN, CT – Senator Ted Kennedy, Jr. (D-Branford) toured the East Haven recycling center of Branford-based SARAH, Inc. and spoke with several of the employees about their jobs.

SARAH is a nonprofit agency that provides a range of services to children and adults with disabilities in communities across the Greater New Haven and Shoreline area. The SARAH Redemption Center opened two years ago with the mission of employing SARAH’s clients and increasing recycling in the community.

“It is incredible that SARAH has found a way to create jobs for people with intellectual and other disabilities while also doing so much to increase recycling,” said Senator Kennedy. “I am very familiar with the work SARAH does as a social services agency, but did not realize they have such a big environmental impact as well. This model of creating a dual-focused social good is very impressive to witness, and should be considered as a model for similar organizations around the state.”

SARAH Inc.’s Executive Director Pat Bourne said that running the Redemption Center allows SARAH to provide their clients with a regular job and a paycheck. The regular schedule and responsibilities offered by work at the Redemption Center helps build the confidence of clients, helping them achieve personal and financial independence. Pat Bourne has said that, “through our recycling program, we turn nickels into jobs, while helping to clean up the environment.”

The 6,000 square foot SARAH Redemption Center houses 30 computerized recycling machines. Visitors to the Redemption Center can bring plastic, aluminum or glass cans and bottles to have them recycled and receive the five-cent deposit. Over 20 SARAH clients are employed at the Redemption Center, where they collect and process an average of 800,000 bottles annually.

The SARAH Redemption Center is located at 690 Fox on Road in East Haven. Anyone interested in redeeming their bottles and cans while also supporting job creation for people with intellectual and other disabilities can visit the redemption center or drop their recyclables off at one of the “SARAH Recycles” bins. There are 21 SARAH bottle and can recycling bins, located in Guilford, Madison, Branford, North Branford, Westbrook, Clinton, East Haven and North Haven. For a full list of bin locations, visit: www.sarah-inc.org/recycle.html.