FAQs
What is Goodwill?
Goodwill is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization that creates opportunities for people to achieve economic stability and to build strong communities by offering job training, employment services and other community-based programs for people who have disabilities, lack education or job experience, or face other employment challenges.
What are Goodwill’s priorities?
Goodwill’s strategic plan includes the following overarching priorities:
- Create greater opportunities for people to change their lives and build independence;
- Help people with disabilities and disadvantages enter and be successful in competitive community employment;
- Create green opportunities and financial support of the agency through the resale and recycling of donated goods. Extract the greatest value from material donations to Goodwill;
- Responsible transparent stewardship of organizational resources to advance Goodwill’s mission.
- Goodwill's mission and value-added services are understood and supported by our community.
How does Goodwill fund its programs?
Goodwill is an innovative and sustainable social enterprise that funds job
training, employment placement services and other community programs
by selling donated clothes and household items at Goodwill retail stores
and online. Additional funding is also received through the Indiana Family
& Social Services Administration Vocational Rehabilitation Services.
How can I support Goodwill?
When you donate to Goodwill, you're helping people find jobs. The revenue earned from the sale of donated items helps fund job-training and employment programs in northeast Indiana and helps people develop the skills they need to find and succeed in good jobs. Financial donations are used to fund these valuable programs and services as well, helping to create job-ready individuals right here in our community. Donations to Goodwill are tax deductible and our staff will gladly provide you with a donation receipt for your tax records.
Why doesn’t Goodwill give the donations to shoppers since the items were donated?
Goodwill is in business to put people to work in competitive jobs. The majority of our employees and all of our clients are mission-related, which means they have a disability or face some other barrier to employment. We would not be able to employ the people who work for Goodwill, nor serve clients, without the generosity of our donors. As soon as an item is donated, Goodwill incurs a cost. From the employee who accepts the donation, through the processing of that item, transportation to and from the retail stores and expense of maintaining store locations – there are real costs associated with each donation. The proceeds from the sale of donated items are necessary to fund our programs and services to individuals with disabilities and other barriers to employment in the ten counties of northeast Indiana. Goodwill’s services are free to the people that utilize them and to the community employers that hire our clients.
What happens when someone is referred to Goodwill for employment services?
Goodwill staff will meet with and customize an employment plan for each individual, based on their interests, skills and education. People receive the necessary job training and support from Goodwill to be successful in the community’s workforce, earn a paycheck, become self-sufficient and know the independence and dignity that work brings.
How does Goodwill help the environment?
Goodwill encourages the practice of reduce – reuse – recycle. Instead of throwing away usable items you no longer need, give them to Goodwill.
We give your goods new life in our Goodwill stores when shoppers purchase them; in return the sales of donated goods fund Goodwill’s services to people with disabilities and barriers to employment. Goodwill seeks to resell, recycle
and repurpose everything that is donated so that nothing goes to waste.