Goodwill Industries International was founded in 1902 in Boston, MA. Originally the organization collected used household goods and clothing in wealthier areas of the city, then trained and hired poor people and immigrants to mend and repair the used goods. The items were then resold or were given to the people who repaired them. The system worked, and the Goodwill philosophy of “a hand up, not a hand out” was born.

Goodwill of Greater Washington (GGW) is an Internal Revenue Code 501(c)(3) nonprofit workforce development organization that has helped tens of thousands of Washington metropolitan area residents get jobs since 1935. Goodwill is best known for its retail stores and as the place where people donate items that have outgrown their homes, keeping millions of pounds of goods out of area landfills ever year. Today Goodwill offers a variety of free job training and employment services to people with disabilities or disadvantages. In 2011, it served almost 3,000 people and employed almost 700 more in the greater Washington, DC area.

With your continued support Goodwill of Greater Washington can serve thousands more! Remember, by giving to Goodwill you’re not only helping people; you’re also helping the economy and the environment.”