Proceeds to benefit local veterans

By Abigail Whitehouse

STANFORD – A new Lincoln County non-profit is giving literal meaning to the old saying ‘one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.’

NewSon Classy Glass is repurposing recycled glass and giving local property owners a unique choice when it comes to outdoor landscapes by transforming the broken bits of glass into colorful tumbled mulch that can be used in a multitude of indoor and outdoor landscapes.

“We have started doing this to keep all of the glass from going to our landfills,” said Stephanie Newton, who serves on the board of directors. “Most counties won’t take glass because you have to pay for it to be hauled off.”

In the past, the Garrard-Lincoln County Recycling Program, now managed by the Lincoln County Regional Jail, has been one of those counties but that has changed now thanks to Newson Classy Glass. Now the center accepts recycled glass and turns it over to the non-profit to put it to use.

“We hope to save half-a-million pounds of glass from landfills this year alone,” Newton said.

Recycling isn’t the only goal for NewSon Classy Glass, she added. Proceeds from the glass mulch will be used to assist local veterans in a variety of ways, she added.

“Proceeds go to veterans, veterans’ families, anything to benefit veterans,” Newton said. “If you have a veteran who’s in the hospital and you have to drive back and forth, we hope to provide monetary assistance for gas, food, a motel room if you need it.

NewSon Classy Glass also plans to use proceeds to build homes for disabled veterans, she said.

The transformation from broken shards to smooth, safe-to-handle glass mulch occurs inside a “tumbler” machine, which Newton said is currently housed in a warehouse located at the bottom of Halls Gap on Fairgrounds Road.

The glass mulch is priced at $1 per pound with about seven pounds needed to cover one square foot, Newton said.

“It is a little expensive but it doesn’t need replacing,” she said, adding that the upkeep requires minimal effort.

The mulch can be used in almost any landscaping design, Newton said, including flower beds and around trees.

“If it gets leaves, you take a leaf blower and blow it out, and grass, same way. If it looks dingy or dirty, just take a hose and rinse it off,” she said. “Glass takes 4,000 years to decompose so it’s an investment.”

The mulch is available in different sizes from pea-sized to one-to-two-inch pieces, Newton said, as well as a variety of colors.

“We have the frosted, the browns, the greens, the mixed, the blues…” she said. “We can even custom mix it.”

In addition to mulch, Newton said the non-profit also plans to turn recycled glass into countertops, tiles and stepping stones, which will also be available for purchase.

In an effort to purchase a machine to remove labels from recycled glass bottles, currently a time-consuming part of the process, a GoFundMe campaign has been established to help raise funds. The total goal listed is $2,500 and, as of Oct. 4, no donations are reflected on the fundraiser’s page. For more information or to make a donation, visit https://www.gofundme.com/label-remover-for-glass-bottles.

SO YOU KNOW

Glass mulch and other items can be purchased on site at 46 Fairgrounds Road in Stanford. To contact NewSon Classy Glass by phone, call (606) 802-6182.

More information, as well as photos of glass items currently available, can be found on the non-profit’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/NewSon-Classy-Glass-Non-Profit-1649675195104178/