Over the summer, Brandeis made renovations and improvements to campus, leaving behind old and unwanted furniture. One of the coordinators for the Brandeis Chapter of Habitat for Humanity, Sofia Lavrentyeva ’17, proposed to the Department of Community Living that the University donate unused furniture to an organization called Household Goods Recycling of Massachusetts, a nonprofit organization based out of Acton, Mass. that provides people with simple home furnishings free of charge.

Habitat for Humanity’s mission is to eliminate homelessness worldwide, and the Brandeis chapter assists local associates in raising funds and building homes.

Lavrentyeva explained that the Brandeis chapter of Habitat for Humanity works with HGRM on several projects each semester and gets to see their work first hand. She said in an interview with the Justice that HGRM volunteers told her that they especially appreciate when colleges donate huge amounts of furniture, particularly mattresses, which are in high demand, and she had the idea to suggest Brandeis donate any unused furniture to the nonprofit organization.

According to a Sept. 1 BrandeisNOW article, the Director of Community Living Tim Touchette approved of Lavrentyeva’s idea, and the University donated nearly 200 sets of beds, dressers, tables and desk chairs to HGRM.

“It kind of became a lucky coincidence,” Lavrentyeva said in an interview with the Justice. “I just shot them an email; I wasn’t sure if they were just getting rid of random beds in places or whatever so it turned out they were doing a massive renovation in [Rosenthal Quad], and [Touchette] was like, ‘Yeah, we would love to take all of that furniture and donate it to that organization.’”

Over the summer, the University renovated buildings in North Quad, Rosenthal Quad and Ziv Quad.

The HGRM website explains that the organization provides assistance to individuals and families “in transition who need help to rebuild their lives.” This includes victims of fires or floods, domestic abuse victims, war veterans, refugees and others.

Lavrentyeva compared Household Goods’s objective to Habitat for Humanity’s goal of “hand up, not a handout.” She wrote in an email to the Justice that the furniture donation is “a way of empowering individuals to succeed.” Instead of providing money, the organizations provide tangible objects, which, in some aspect, can be more beneficial.

The renovations in the dormitories resulted in new carpeting, new desks and new beds. Lavrentyeva wrote that she is not sure of any upcoming renovations, but “if there are renovations planned, [Habitat for Humanity] would love to connect Brandeis DCL with [Household Goods] once again!”

—Max Moran contributed reporting.