You’ve had that moment – you forgot you had your treasured Swiss army knife in your carry-on luggage and it had to be confiscated at customs.
Well you are not alone as 2,000 lbs. of tweezers, sunscreen, Swiss army knives, cuticle scissors, body building weights, corkscrews, skates, ski poles, golf putters, tools, hammers and even saws are collected every month at security checkpoints by the Canadian Transport Security Agency at Pierre Elliot Trudeau airport.
About 10 years ago, someone at Maison Victor Gadbois, a palliative-care centre decided to call up and find up what happened to those items. Serendiptitously, the airport was wondering what to do with the tens of thousands of things piling up yearly. All the liquids however – perfume, body lotion, sunscreen, liquor, are destroyed because they don’t know if they have been tainted.
Now, Maison Victor Gadbois receives all the rest of it and uses it as a fundraiser for this end-of-life care center, raising about $50,000 a year. They are displayed at local shows and events, and maybe even shopping malls, with suggested price donations posted on the bins of lighters, scissors, corkscrews, screwdrivers, hammers, small tools and knives of every kind – from steak to hunting. Prices might be $2 or $5 and never higher than $10.
There are about 14 events already posted for this summer, so make sure to refer to their web site for the most convenient time for you to visit their trove of goodies.
By the way, when you get to the checkpoint, you do have options of not losing your stuff. You can hand the item to a non-travelling family member in the airport, or check the item, or mail it home, or some airports offer a place to store it.
“Every month, a ton” said Melanie Marsolais with Maison Victor Gadbois in Beloil – and that adds up to a ton of money.
Maison Victor Gadbois
Tel: 450-467-1710
Dates of sales: http://www.maisonvictor-gadbois.com/activites
