A zero-waste group has moved to a spacious location on South Whidbey to better collect reusable items and difficult-to-recycle materials from islanders.

And this Saturday, the community is invited to check out the new digs during a grand opening event.

Founded in 2023, rePurpose has grown significantly in the past year and a half, from a shelf in the South Whidbey Community Center to the back room of the South Whidbey Commons to its current 1,200-square-foot location in a portion of the Coffman Building on the Whidbey Island Fairgrounds.

“It’s amazing how much stuff is there,” said Joan Green, one of rePurpose’s founders.

Corks, tubes and fabric pieces are just some of the reusable items that people have dropped off. For artists like Green, who loves working with repurposed materials, it’s a haven.

Members of the public can check out the space 1-4 p.m. on Nov. 9 while enjoying refreshments and live music from singer-songwriter Sage Hayes. Guests can drop off up to three grocery bags of reusable and hard-to-recycle things or purchase reusable materials for a suggested donation of $10 per grocery bag.

Things that are challenging to recycle that are accepted by rePurpose include beauty products, cell phones, lightbulbs, shoes and eyeglasses.

With the holidays coming up, Green pointed to the prolific amount of tissue paper, gift bags, wrapping paper, ribbons and cards rePurpose has amassed that can be reused.

“We really have so much material for giftwrapping that people don’t need to go anywhere else,” she said.

During Country Christmas at the Fair and the Whidbey Island Fair, rePurpose plans to move out of the Coffman Building.

People can become members of rePurpose with a monthly membership fee on a sliding scale or by volunteering a minimum of two to three hours per month. Becoming a member allows more access to the recycling and reuse program, with three drop-off events per month.

As of this week, Green said, rePurpose has about 155 members. Membership fees help support the cost of recycling these difficult items. More than anything, the founders want people to be aware that Whidbey Island trash is transported 400 miles away to the Roosevelt landfill on the southern border of the state. Recycling reduces that amount of pollution.

Besides the reuse and recycling center, rePurpose has led a number of other zero waste efforts in the community. This past summer, the organization worked with Island Shakespeare Festival to make concessions more environmentally friendly, with reusable cups, plates and silverware.

“That was a big undertaking because they have 42 shows,” Green said. “It was pretty amazing how much we were able to reuse and recycle.”

As an additional benefit, rePurpose members can also access one free reusable dishware rental per year for up to 30 people.

For more information, visit repurposewhidbey.org.