As a young child in the 1910s my grandfather picked dandelion greens and wild blueberries to sell to make money for food. He and his siblings screwed nuts onto bolts for take-home factory work that gave his widowed mother money to buy essentials. He graduated at the height of the Depression, dashed dreams of going to college, yet worked hard and found resourceful ways to earn an income, support his family, and tread lightly. These life experiences were formative for him and passed on through the generations.

As a child I spent many days with him meandering flea markets for durable, used hammers and screwdrivers, lawn chairs, golf clubs, and garden tools. Determined to give everything a second life, my grandfather saw value in everything and sought to refurbish, remake, or simply reuse what he already had. He was a savvy, sensible shopper and had an eye for quality-made products. One of my greatest gifts in life is being loved by him and learning the value of reducing, reusing, and repairing.

Couple this with my time in the Peace Corps, my stint as an events coordinator for a national non-profit, and my years as an educator, and I’ve landed here: knowing the impact others have on us, the impact we have on the earth, the incredible power of community, and that we can each do our part to be problem solvers. And when you add in a hefty pinch of science and dash of sensibility you land here: with a need to replenish.

And as a mom of young kiddos I can tell you with conviction, the children, the next generation, are watching us. What we do matters. The choices we make impact them. I founded replenish refillery with the lessons of my grandfather at the forefront of my mind and deep in my heart. At 88 years old he repaired a tear in a second floor awning by stitching it with dental floss. May we all have the same courage to solve problems creatively, mend what needs care, reuse what we have, and replenish as needed.