On April 19, Southern Utah University’s Sustainability Club hosted their annual Bargain Bash, where students and staff came together to sell their unwanted clothes, books, furniture and other knickknacks. From 11 a.m. until 4 p.m., community members gathered in front of the Gerald L. Sherratt Library and haggled over items that may otherwise have been thrown in the trash.
The Sustainability Club works on this event as their capstone to the school year in an effort to minimize waste as students move out of their dorms and apartments for the summer.
“The idea is that when everyone is getting ready to move back home with their parents and packing up their stuff, you bring the stuff that you would have thrown away and sell it so that somebody else can use it,” club president Tasha Anderson shared. After the event was over, the club offered to donate any unsold or unwanted items, further helping students to make environmentally conscious choices.
One man’s trash was another’s treasure at the Bargain Bash. Students sold everything from wall decor and old appliances to a tiny plastic chair and vintage clothing. Student Chloe Copeland has participated in the sale for the past two years, and said, “I had a lot of fun, the Bargain Bash is one of my favorite events of the year.”
Live musicians performed on a stage overlooking the sea of tables, sellers and buyers, and many students enjoyed the music as they passed through the event. Among the performers was The Redcaps, a local band comprised mostly of SUU students.
The Geo Club also used the event as an opportunity to sell rocks and stickers and raise money. The club’s president, Clay Meerdink, said, “We haven’t done the Bargain Bash before, but we usually have at least a couple of rock sales a year, and we saw this as an opportunity to have an extra one as a bonus.”
In addition to yearly traditions, some new elements were thought up by Anderson and this year’s club members. “Sell your old stuff and revamp the broken ones,” Anderson said, reminding students that repairing old things can be just as sustainable as reducing, reusing or recycling.
These new changes included a repair clinic where students could have mending done to their damaged clothes and someone there to advise about mechanical issues with their automobiles. City Bike Works also attended, offering students the chance to have their bikes repaired.
Although this year’s sale may be over, students can follow the Sustainability Club’s Instagram page and check back next April for more information about signing up to sell at the Bargain Bash or other ways to support the club.
To learn more about the Sustainability Club, visit their website.
Story by: Lily Brunson
outdoors@suunews.net
Photos by: Lily Brunson
