{"id":508220,"date":"2026-03-07T00:31:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T00:31:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/508220\/"},"modified":"2026-03-07T00:31:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T00:31:14","slug":"new-shop-reimagines-in-between-waste-as-opportunity-for-turning-castoffs-into-craft-bg-independent-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/508220\/","title":{"rendered":"New shop reimagines \u2018in-between\u2019 waste as opportunity for turning castoffs into craft \u2013 BG Independent News"},"content":{"rendered":"

By JULIE CARLE<\/p>\n

BG Independent News<\/p>\n

A broken clock ticks again\u2014not as a timepiece, but as a glowing deep-sea diver lamp. Across the room, a hollowed-out console television has become a plush cat bed, and a bird feeder hangs where a floor lamp once stood.<\/p>\n

Most people don\u2019t think twice about the items they toss out\u2014an old lamp, a broken clock, a piece of worn furniture. But those \u201cin-between\u201d objects, not quite recyclable and not quite donation-worthy, make up a huge portion of what ends up in landfills each year.<\/p>\n

David Nunn, a retired environmental engineer from Perrysburg, chose to continue his quest toward helping the environment by diving headfirst into Ohio\u2019s waste stream.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring my transition to full retirement, I concluded that I didn\u2019t want to completely retire. I wanted to do something else that would be community-based and remain committed to sustainability.. I wanted it to hopefully give something to my kids, my grandkids, to see what we\u2019re trying to do. And I wanted it to be related to my environmental work,\u201d he said during a recent interview.<\/p>\n

As a middleman who collects discarded materials and helps them find new uses and homes, Nunn established Grass Roots Recycling to Reuse Network, a new business at 22544 N. Dixie Highway, about halfway between Bowling Green and Perrysburg.<\/p>\n

Inside the building that was once Midway Garage, Nunn has set up a playground for creatives, a home for unwanted materials ready for a second life, and an experience for shoppers interested in buying distinctive, high-quality goods.<\/p>\n

\"\"The shop is filled with many distinctive and interesting items including the \u2018Artful Tower\u2019 and old barn wood table. <\/p>\n

The business is an amalgamation of goods and ideas with the ultimate goal of creating a community of environmentally conscious individuals \u2013 those who choose not to send items to the landfill and those who are learning to see those discards as a possibility.<\/p>\n

He also noticed a gap in the recycling system. Many items don\u2019t belong in curbside recycling, yet they\u2019re not suitable for traditional donation centers either. As a result, they often end up in the trash.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn that space between what you put at the curb and what you give to Goodwill, we\u2019re probably throwing out in Ohio 125,000 truckloads a year,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Nunn\u2019s shop aims to rescue those materials and give them another life.<\/p>\n

\"\"Odds and ends are clearly labeled and expertly presented for reuse.<\/p>\n

The main building and an adjacent building are filled with\u00a0century-old barn wood, donated odds and ends such as Mason jars, nuts, bolts, screws, and beads are carefully curated and beautifully displayed for makers to see, touch and imagine its next life.<\/p>\n

From barns to workbenches<\/p>\n

One of the shop\u2019s most valuable resources comes from an unlikely place: old farm barns.<\/p>\n

Through connections with the Black Swamp Conservancy, where Nunn serves as board president, he had the opportunity to dismantle several century-old barns that were scheduled for demolition.<\/p>\n

The wood inside them was remarkable, he said.<\/p>\n

Many were built more than 120 years ago using slow-growth hardwoods from the historic Great Black Swamp forest. The dense grain and durability of that timber make it far superior to most modern lumber.<\/p>\n

When the barns were taken down, the wood was salvaged instead of discarded.<\/p>\n

\"\"Space in an adjacent building is filled with old barn wood and other reclaimed wood.<\/p>\n

Today, those beams and boards fill the shop, ready for transformation into furniture, d\u00e9cor, and art.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaterials just need to be valued for what they were,\u201d Nunn said. \u201cThey were farmed and mined and processed and manufactured and utilized some way. We shouldn\u2019t just landfill them.\u201d<\/p>\n

A workshop for makers<\/p>\n

The shop isn\u2019t just a store\u2014it\u2019s a community workspace and creative network, said Rachel Petropoulus, a team member who has worked in the sustainability sector for more than 20 years. She is helping with the shop\u2019s concept, making connections and handling some of the marketing and graphic work, \u201ctrying to get the word out of who we are and what we\u2019re trying to do,\u201d she said. \u201cThere\u2019s such a plethora of ideas between Pinterest and social media that we\u2019ll try and glean from those and others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Local artists and hobbyists regularly stop in to browse donated materials, from vintage sewing machines and old hardware to scrap metal and glass.<\/p>\n

Some makers receive materials for free and return later with finished products to sell on consignment. Others simply experiment with new ideas.<\/p>\n

The results are eclectic and inventive, Petropoulus said<\/p>\n

Nunn hopes the space lowers barriers for people who enjoy creating but lack resources.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll give them wood, we\u2019ll give them what they need,\u201d he said. \u201cAll they have to do is make something and bring it back.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the business grows, Petropoulus said they hope to offer classes and workshops for the makers.<\/p>\n

Building a reuse network<\/p>\n

The shop is also part of a growing regional effort to reduce waste through collaboration.<\/p>\n

Rather than competing with existing reuse organizations, Nunn works closely with them. Partnerships include Habitat for Humanity\u2019s ReStore, Scrap for Art, and a local pickup service that rescues unwanted household items before they reach the landfill.<\/p>\n

If the shop can\u2019t use something, it often gets passed along to another organization that can. Or, inside the shop, Nunn has a \u201cfree table\u201d set up with donated items available to anyone who might use them.<\/p>\n

The goal is simple: find a home for as many materials as possible, Nunn said.<\/p>\n

Beyond its environmental mission, the shop has become something else entirely\u2014a gathering space.<\/p>\n

Visitors wander through displays, examine handmade pieces, and share ideas about projects they might try themselves. Many say they didn\u2019t expect the space to feel so welcoming..<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone who comes in goes, \u2018This is not what I expected,\u2019\u201d Nunn said.<\/p>\n

The shop attracts a diverse crowd, from retirees with woodworking skills to younger visitors interested in sustainability and Do-It-Yourself creativity.<\/p>\n

Nunn\u2019s hope is for the space to help rebuild a sense of connection that has been fading in many communities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to stop isolating ourselves,\u201d he said. \u201cStop thinking there\u2019s a community that I\u2019m in and another community that\u2019s out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"The Grass Roots buildings have their own past, including serving as an auto repair garage, lunch counter and nightclub. <\/p>\n

Just getting started<\/p>\n

Although the shop is still new, its impact is already growing. More makers are joining the network, more materials are being donated, and more customers are discovering the possibilities of reuse.<\/p>\n

And for Nunn, the project feels like only the beginning.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re just getting started,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are just scratching the surface of what this could be.\u201d<\/p>\n

The shop isn\u2019t just about salvaging materials.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about changing how people see them. Every reclaimed board, every repaired object carries a story of where it came from and what it can become next,\u201d he said. And if his vision succeeds, fewer of those stories will end in a landfill.<\/p>\n

For David, that moment of curiosity is the real success of the project. If people leave seeing possibilities instead of waste, then the shop has already done its job.<\/p>\n

After all, as he likes to remind visitors, every material deserves another chance at life.<\/p>\n

Grass Root hours are Thursdays 3-6 p.m., Fridays 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or by appointment by texting 419-250-3226 or emailing info@grassrootsrecyclingtoreuse.com<\/p>\n

Find more information about Grass Roots on their website at https:\/\/grassrootsrecyclingtoreuse.com\/<\/a>, Facebook page at https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/grassrootsrecyclingtoreuse<\/a> or Instagram account at https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/grassrootsreusemarketplace<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\"More<\/a>Posted by: Julie Carle<\/a> on March 6, 2026. \t