It was the best of times; it was the worst of times. Maybe a bit dramatic for a blog but what a year it was. Our busiest year ever – thankfully no one on our team got sick. Among the insanity that transpired day after day, we were able to see much success.
Our biggest change this past year was introducing no-contact removals. The process looked a little something like this: customers would call and contract us to do the work, they would pile up everything in their garage or driveway, we would drive by and estimate, and get paid by credit card over the phone. Thank goodness for technology!
There were so many businesses, restaurants, offices, and retail shops closing. People were moving out of the city and into home offices. This created an explosion of small moves for us which has continued to be a service we enjoy offering. The worst part of all was being contracted to clean out the homes of the elderly that had passed away from COVID. We often found ourselves in nursing homes trying our best to support their families. Many times, we were told the horrific stories families unable to spend their last hours with their loved ones. We worked hand in hand with the management team which allowed families to step back and focus on other matters. Clearing out the home of a loved one is often an extremely emotional process. Clearing items away was a sobering experience for our team as it was direct evidence of the catastrophe that COVID has been for every one of us.
The key to surviving this past year was to be very thoughtful in all that we do, very careful in all interactions and extra precautions in and out of the home. The shared experience of frequent hand washing, mask changing, and the constant awareness of social distancing has at times felt exhausting. I’m sure we can all agree that every effort is worth it to keep one another safe.
Another Challenge: Dumping in Massachusetts.
We need to dump our trucks every day and MA is facing a historic dumping crisis. Landfills are so full they are closing and there are no new ones in sight. At times the commercial dumps are closing for days as they are completely backed up. Trash is being bailed and stacked not only in the warehouses but next to the warehouses as high as 30 feet. All the buildings are surrounded by bail trash as it waits to be taken away. Everything we are throwing out is going to Ohio or Pennsylvania. Don’t be disheartened! Landfills are done very responsibly. Hazardous waste is disposed of at special facilities and there is enough space for generations to create responsible landfill sites.
When we opened our company in Florida, I was shown one of the large landfill sites. There were two beautiful green hills with pipes sticking out. At first glance, I would have never known what they held inside. The purpose of the pipes was to let methane escape as materials continually decomposed. I felt like I was in a state park. They told me to look at the two hills, and that in 45 years they would meet and be one large hill. We then turned and looked to the opposite side, and I was told there was enough space for 100 more years of dumping. I was very impressed to see not only a responsible but eye-catching solution to disposing of waste.
The bottom line is business is constantly changing. When things change, we must change with it. That is how we survived. And that was our 2021.to disposing of waste.