Goodwill® Encourages Spring Cleaning With #CleanSweep Campaign

Spring cleaning is an exciting opportunity to throw open the windows and sort out the clutter.

With #CleanSweep, Goodwill offers expert tips to make this spring the cleanest yet.

News provided by

Mar 22, 2016, 05:00 ET

ROCKVILLE, Md., March 22, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Spring cleaning is a great time to sort out the clutter, but it can also be an overwhelming chore that intimidates many out of even getting started. Goodwill Industries International and Lorie Marrero have teamed up to help people not only start, but also conquer, spring cleaning and develop new habits to keep organized all year long.

Lorie Marrero is a Certified Professional Organizer^®, Woman's Day contributing editor and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Clutter Diet: The Skinny on Organizing Your Home and Taking Control of Your Life and The Home Office Handbook. She also created ClutterDiet.com and is a spokesperson for Goodwill Industries International. As part of spring cleaning, Lorie and Goodwill have created an interactive heatmap entitled "Zone In. Clean Out." to help people tackle problem spots throughout their homes. For more information, visit: http://www.goodwill.org/spring-cleaning/ In addition, Lorie has provided these top five expert spring cleaning tips:

Have a plan. You don't want unwanted items cluttering up your home any longer than necessary, so plan to spring clean and take items to Goodwill on the same day.
Start with success. For the first room or space to tackle, choose the one that will give you the biggest bang for your buck—one that will provide immediate daily benefits in efficiency and reduced stress. Is it your home office? Does your car not fit in the garage? Do you struggle to find anything in your closet in the mornings? Zero in on those areas so that when you succeed, you'll be motivated to tackle another space!
Clean slate. Once you've chosen your project, clear it out as much as possible and start from scratch. By stripping your shelves bare and restocking them only with items that make you smile, your whole house will become a happy and inspiring place. By donating your unwanted items to Goodwill, you help people find jobs and build their careers.
Make it fun! Shake up your spring-cleaning routine with a peppy playlist: after a song finishes playing, move on to the next area of the room. Create a fun contest for the family: challenge everyone to find 10 items to put away and 10 items to donate to Goodwill. This can become a race, with the prize of a traveling trophy (or a hot fudge sundae, if you don't want any more clutter!) and you can repeat it once a week for the entire month of March. Share your family's success story with the hashtag #CleanSweep.
Be brave. Inherited items may come with guilt and obligation. Are you keeping things you don't want or need? Instead of keeping the items, take an artistic photograph of them, frame it and display it in your home. Then take the items to Goodwill to help you let go and move on. Wouldn't you rather the items do good by helping people build their employment skills than take up space in your home?

Goodwill stores sell your donations and the revenues are used to help fund job training and community services, such as computer classes, financial education, job interviewing skills, résumé reviews, job transportation, child care and many more. Last year, Goodwill helped more than 318,000 people earn jobs.

"Decluttering your home in the spring provides a fresh start for both the donor and people who need jobs in your community," said Lorie Marrero, Certified Professional Organizer®, creator of ClutterDiet.com and spokesperson for Goodwill Industries International. "We hope tips like these will make spring cleaning more fun for families and more fruitful for Goodwill, which means we can keep providing the critical job training services needed in our communities."

For more information about what items Goodwill accepts, and how donated goods and store purchases support efforts in local communities, visit goodwill.org

About Goodwill Industries International
Goodwill Industries International is a network of 164 community-based organizations in the United States and Canada with a presence in 13 other countries. Goodwill is one of America's 20 most inspiring companies (Forbes, 2014). Goodwill organizations are innovative and sustainable social enterprises that fund job training programs, employment placement services and other community-based programs by selling donated clothing and household items in more than 3,000 stores and online at shopgoodwill.com®. Local Goodwill organizations also build revenue and create jobs by contracting with businesses and government to provide a wide range of commercial services, including packaging and assembly, food services preparation, and document imaging and shredding. Last year, more than 426,000 people in the United States and Canada used Goodwill's intensive one-on-one career services to prepare for employment. In addition, more than 24 million people used computers and mobile devices to access Goodwill education, training, mentoring and online learning services to strengthen their skills.

To find a Goodwill location near you, use the online locator at Goodwill.org, use the Goodwill Locator app at goodwill.org/apps, or call (800) GOODWILL. Follow us on Twitter: @GoodwillIntl and @GoodwillCapHill, and find us on Facebook: GoodwillIntl.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090716/DC47803LOGO

SOURCE Goodwill Industries International