[Earth Day Edition] Buying Recycled Paint

The paint.

On the last painting project The Brown’s undertook we decided not to buy paint the conventional way, at a big box store. That combined with wanting to buy sustainable paint--we chose to go to the Habitat for Humanity Omaha ReStore.

There are 825 Habitat ReStores in the U.S. and Canada. These Habitat ReStores provide a socially and environmentally responsible way to keep good, reusable materials out of landfills.

Brian and I were very aware of what this store Humanity Omaha Restore had to offer; since, we’d been there before and helped with a life-long friend bring this very store to fruition. Read about our volunteering effort here.

At Habitat’s ReStore, our first choice is Amazon Paint, which is repurposed paint. This is rescued paint from government, stores, construction and consumers. Amazon’s goal since 1992 has been to repurpose and reprocess paint. It's good paint. In fact, the paint is inspected through a processing and filtering system.

A Burnt Corral wall at The Browns.

On our visit to the West Maple Habitat ReStore, we didn’t see any Amazon paint in our color choice. So, we investigated further and there it was--a five-gallon bucket that spoke to me. It was Sophir Morris paint, which we’d later call “Burnt Corral.” Why? Because it reminded me of the very first corral Brian & I ever saw while scuba diving in Jamaica.

We paid $35 for a five-gallon bucket (shown above). I thank whomever donated this paint to the ReStore! Because each and every day we see our walls we are reminded of our scuba adventures in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Have a painting project in mind? If so, consider buying paint from a Habitat for Humanity ReStore.

Indeed, in the end when I look at my burnt corral walls these words echo in my head, “home improvement never felt so good...because it's repurposed paint!”


In celebration of the 44th anniversary of Earth Day population-we™ staffers will celebrate our love for planet earth with green posts the entire month of April! Thanks for reading our first Earth Day post. 

- population-we™ blog post by Becky Bohan Brown 

© 2014 population-we, LLC

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How to Protect Your Curb from Snowplows This Winter

ReStore Reflectors.

This time of year everybody in the Midwest is bracing themselves for a four letter word, s-n-o-w! So, when the temperature drops in these parts, yes snow is inevitable. With snow, homeowners are required by law to maintain our walkways and driveways by shoveling. If you live in the city limits, it's up to your city works department to however plow the streets in your neighborhood. That is where this post comes into play. Year-after-year since moving into our new Elkhorn neighborhood we've been plagued with a problem. Vehicles clearing our roads of snow; unfortunately, during the process of pushing the snow aside--peel back the grass along our curb too.

This post is a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) household project, which is based around a repurposed (recycled) item. We want to share with our population-we™ readers that Earth Day should be commemorated every day of the year! For The Brown's: a recycled home project evokes something you already had around the house; were given specifically for repurposing; picked up thrifting or bought at a ReStore. To be classified as population-we™ repurposed project: one- or all- components should be recycled in the project. In this case, this blogger husband and wife team live in an area that receives lots of snow--here's a buy we found to combat our snowplow woes at a local ReStore.

Our neighbor's prepare for snowfall too.

If you're not familiar with this type of store, the concept is to give products a second life. Habitat for Humanity ReStores provide a socially and environmentally responsible way to keep good, reusable materials out of landfills. To learn more about the ReStore we visited, read my post at: Be Green, Shop at a Habitat for Humanity ReStore. To alleviate our snowplow problem, we've borrowed a tip from area businesses snow removal playbook. To save their businesses' high-priced manicured lawns, they place reflectors in the parking lots and sidewalks for snow removal. While at the ReStore, we happened upon some reflectors (see picture above), and immediately bought a dozen. And, strategically before the ground froze we placed them along our curb to warn the snowplows too steer clear.

If you live in a neighborhood that has a Homeowners Association (HOA) covenants; you may want to check to see if reflectors are permitted. Our neighborhood has one but no one abides by it. This year, The Brown's are not alone, corner lots around the neighborhood are littered (see picture at left above) with their own reflectors awaiting Nebraska's first snowfall. The only difference between our reflectors, we saved ours from a landfill, by purchasing them off season at a ReStore. Keep repurposing!

-population-we™ blog post by Becky Bohan Brown

© 2013 population-we, LLC 
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[Earth Day Edition] pop-we Celebrates Earth Day Every Day

According to Siri, the third rock from the sun is 4.54 billion years old. The question on the minds of scientists and its inhabits, but for how much longer? Luckily for everyone involved steps can be taken to prolong the shelf life of our planet. We take this Earth Day Edition to highlight the efforts by a few to keep earth around longer. Below is a population-we™ compilation of previously reported Earth Day posts from the last three years.

Planet Earth.

[Earth Day Edition] 'Citizen Scientist' Volunteers Sought for April 23 UNO Elkhorn River Study
My husband and I moved out to Elkhorn, Ne., about a year and half ago. Brian and I grew up and lived most of our lives in the same zip code in...Read more.

[Earth Day Edition] Johnny Apple Seed and Earth Day Should Take a Bow from AmeriCorps NCCC
When one thinks Earth Day what is the first nonprofit organization that comes to mind...Read more.

[Earth Day Edition] Conduct Your Own Trash Walk or Trash Blog
Trash doesn’t discriminate you can find it in any neighborhood, village or farm...Read more.

[Earth Day Edition] pop-we Dinner Club Reviews Texas Roadhouse
In March the population-we™  (pop-we) Dinner Club went to our first chain restaurant, the...Read more.

[Earth Day Edition] Celebrate Earth Day 2012 with pop-we Summer Get Active Adventures
What a great way to commemorate the 42nd Anniversary of Earth Day this April than to get active outside and...Read more.

[Earth Day Edition] Committing to a Green Commute on 'Ride the Bus to Work Day!'
During the work week Brian and I commute to work via a carpool; however, March 13, 2012, one of us decided to catch...Read more.

[Earth Day Edition] Recycling Electronic Devices
Being green is not always the easiest and most convenient thing to do. You have the casual person who recycles...Read more.

[Earth Day Edition] Arbor Day Brings Back Doggy Memories
This Friday, April 27, the U.S. will celebrate Arbor Day, a day set a side to remind Americans...Read more.

[Earth Day Edition] pop-we Dinner Club Reviews Jaipur
Hot…Hot…Hot…Hot! This month Marv took us on a trek for some Indian fare, we headed to...Read more. 

[Earth Day Edition] Be Green, Shop at a Habitat for Humanity ReStore
Giving products a second life is the concept behind a Habitat for Humanity store in...Read more.

For now even Siri can't answer the question of when earth's expiration date may be. However, if population-we™ readers take action and follow any of the steps above -- we can extend that date. Let's choose this day and each day to make a difference and allow many more generations of its inhabitants to celebrate Earth Day, too.


Editor's note: In celebration of the 43rd anniversary of Earth Day population-we™ staffers will celebrate our love for planet earth with green posts this month!  

- population-we™ blog post by Becky Bohan Brown 

© 2013 population-we, LLC

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[Earth Day Edition] Be Green, Shop at a Habitat for Humanity ReStore

Truck that took away repurposed items.

Giving products a second life is the concept behind a Habitat for Humanity store in Omaha, NE. This isn't a one-of-a-kind store because there are 825 Habitat ReStores in the U.S. and Canada; however, you can happen upon original products. ReStores provide a socially and environmentally responsible way to keep good, reusable materials out of landfills.

Brian and I got introduced to the store when the new northwest location was in the demo stage. We both were in charge of the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) crew in conjunction with UNO’s 7 Days of Service. Since its inception in 2003, UNO students have chosen to forgo their spring break plans and donate their time serving their community as part of UNO’s 7 Days of Service project. Brian & I didn't just participate, we both served as the job site coordinators. To qualify, we attended an hour debriefing before the event and received instructions the day of.

Upon arriving at the future site of the Habitat Restore, we could tell it was going to be a total team effort. This was a day of hard labor and a lot of drywall dust; but we had a small army of volunteers to accomplish our task. Among the volunteers, Brian's best friend from first grade, Brian Orme. He took a day off from TD Ameritrade to join our volunteer crew. The six-hour day consisted of packing up insulation, tearing down drywall, cutting down beams and sorting out metals for the future site of the Habitat ReStore. All day our crew worked alongside a Habitat family. This family, recipients of a Habitat house of their very own, were putting in "sweat equity" this day.

"Like you saw today, each family has to work 350 hours of sweat equity. A 100 of those we try to get them to work on their own house that way they build pride of ownership," said Marshall Vernon, construction crew leader for Habitat. "We offer workshops where they learn home maintenance and lawn maintenance, as well as financial stuff. Pretty much anything you can think of you need to know as a homeowner they get taught in a workshop."

Brian and his best friend repurposing drywall during demo.

The mission of 7 Days of Service is to facilitate the building and strengthening of the Omaha community by actively engaging with the community and responding to the urban need. The feeling of accomplishment working together to get this site ready for a future ReStore is something Brian & I will never forget. We both recommend getting your hands dirty with this wonderful service project.

Months later Brian and I would attend the Grand Opening of the ReStore. At the event, Mr. Brown purchased repurposed lights for our basement and I found a framed movie poster. The feeling of buying repurposed items at a store we helped create was amazing.

Don't have time to donate your time? If so, each Habitat ReStore accepts donations of home goods, furniture, appliances and building materials (contact your local ReStore for donation drop-off or pick-up information). Better yet, shop at a ReStore and you'll love it!


In celebration of the 43rd anniversary of Earth Day population-we™ staffers will celebrate our love for planet earth with green posts this month! Thanks for reading our first Earth Day post. 

- population-we™ blog post by Becky Bohan Brown 

© 2013 population-we, LLC

If you enjoyed this post, make sure to leave a comment, 'Pin' or 'Like' it.

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