WabiSabi's Mission

"WabiSabi is a community life force that empowers people, promotes sustainability, and turns rags into riches"

Introduction

WabiSabi is a Moab-based nonprofit organization that exists to support the health and wealth of our entire community. In pursuing this end, we work via many – sometimes unconventional – means, bringing the WabiSabi philosophy to our multi-tiered efforts.

We operate two thrift stores in the Moab community that serve to recycle materials that would otherwise be deposited in the landfill. Proceeds from the sale of these donated items are distributed among our nonprofit partners in the community, thus ensuring their financial viability. We engage in educational outreach about our local nonprofits, enhancing their voice and presence in the community. WabiSabi also offers workshops emphasizing individual and community sustainability, provides small grants to groups seeking to make a difference in Moab, and makes material contributions to in-need communities and the organizations that serve them.

In these efforts and others, WabiSabi is an integral part of the Moab community, supporting its eclectic sense of identity and the diversity of residents that comprise it. 

WabiSabi inspires individuals to come together and create a healthy place where our children will thrive, nature will be cared for and protected, cultural diversity will be preserved, and those in need will have the resources and basic human rights they deserve. With your help, we can create a community that will outlive us all – a place we can truly call home. 

WabiSabi’s History

By Sarah Bauman, Co-Founder
WabiSabi originated from a desire to create a thrift store that would serve as a community center for people to learn about other nonprofits and brainstorm about creative ways to make the world a better place. It was also intended to empower individuals to actively support their community by both donating goods and helping area non-profits through their purchases.

2002
Since WabiSabi’s inception in May of 2002, the community of Moab, Utah, has continued to breathe life into the organization – donating goods, purchasing items, and volunteering time, energy and resources. This enables WabiSabi to flourish and become the very thing it was meant to be – the life-force of our community.

WabiSabi has many different English translations, but the definitions that speak to us are those relating to the beauty of imperfection and transcending ways of looking at things. WabiSabi’s goal is to make connections throughout our unique community and use our collective power to transcend ordinary mindsets. We seek to empower all of our citizens to recognize each person's strengths and value to our community.

We opened our doors on June 3, 2002. After months of drought, it poured down rain that day. I considered that to be a very good sign.

In our first year of business, we received tremendous community support and were able to award $5,000 to local nonprofits. Additionally, we began transporting material goods to the Navajo Nation with the help of Castleland Resource Conservation and Development (CRCD). In the spring of 2003, WabiSabi kicked off its community workshop series with its Introduction to Alternative Building. Again, the response from the community was overwhelmingly positive. Over 30 people attended the workshop, and presenters used slides, photos, books and hands-on activities to demonstrate different building techniques. Since then we have sponsored numerous workshops, including Alternative Building II, Financial Planning, Feng Shui, Native Plant Identification, Bike Repair I and II, Keeping Cool in Moab (Energy Efficiency), Xeriscaping, Rag Rug Making, and much more.

2003
In June of 2003, WabiSabi received an award from the Department of Environmental Quality for our community involvement in helping to reduce pollution and promote recycling.

In November of the same year, we accepted our first Make a Difference in Moab Fund applications. Make a Difference in Moab is a special projects fund designed to enable individuals to make a difference in our community by linking their project ideas with appropriate nonprofit organizations.

2005
In the spring of 2005, WabiSabi was awarded the Nonprofit Volunteer Program of the Year by the Utah Commission on Volunteers. In the fall of that year, WabiSabi organized a Recycled Building Supplies wing, modeled after Habitat for Humanity Re-Stores. Shortly after Hurricane Katrina hit, WabiSabi assisted in a local drive to raise funds and collect donations for the victims of Hurricane Katrina and transport items to the refugees residing in Salt Lake City.

WabiSabi’s History (cont.)

By the end of the 2005 – and with structural issues forcing the building on 100 West to be closed down – WabiSabi expanded to become two thrift stores with two unique personalities. Thus the Warehouse and Thriftique were born.

2006
In 2006, WabiSabi responded to the needs of the community and expanded its outreach with two new projects: the Colorado River Cleanup and the Community Christmas Dinner. WabiSabi helped organize a Colorado River cleanup day in order to clean up debris that had long polluted the Colorado River water stream. In this same year, WabiSabi offered its first free community Christmas dinner for those in need of a place to celebrate with others and receive a hot meal. The Christmas dinner is an annual event now, and it has expanded to include free Thanksgiving meals also sponsored by WabiSabi.

2007
The following year, WabiSabi continued its effort to ensure all residents were able to receive hot meals, despite the seasonal nature of our local economy. In 2007, WabiSabi began offering its free “Hands-Up Brunches” during Moab’s off-season – a time when money is usually short for most residents. In this same year, The Kids Art Tent also came into being, providing an opportunity to share time, attention, lessons, crafts, and the joy of the WabiSabi ethic with area youth. The tent is now a favorite amongst locals and tourists alike who are used to seeing it at the annual Moab Arts Festival.

Also in 2007, Salt Lake City’s City Weekly named WabiSabi a Best of Utah award winner, calling us “The Best Reason to Drive to Moab.” Later in the year, the Moab Area Chamber of Commerce voted us the Business of the Year. In addition to receiving important recognition for the organization’s community work, in 2007 WabiSabi raised almost $22,000 for community causes.

2008
In 2008, that number almost doubled to nearly $40,000.

Meanwhile, we continue to offer community workshops, meals, and donations to area residents. We continue to be WabiSabi…just bigger and better than ever.

Since opening in 2002, WabiSabi has provided needed materials for Red Rock Elementary School, the Moab Community School, Humane Society, Paradox School, Meals on Wheels, Seekhaven, Moab Repertory Theatre, Youth Garden Project, Department of Workforce Services, and many other community entities. We have awarded over $100,000 to local nonprofits and are enabling individuals with small dreams to have a big impact on our community through the Make a Difference in Moab Fund. WabiSabi is also one of the founding organizations responsible for establishing the new Teen Center. We have developed strong alliances with our nonprofit partners as well as local businesses through all these efforts.

Although WabiSabi has come a long way, we plan on going much further. WabiSabi is excited about the future and is looking forward to evolving based on the needs of our community, readjusting our vision to what is happening in our environment and continuing to serve those in need through our thrift stores, workshops, educational outreach, financial and material aid.

Moving Outward
Part of our dream is to see WabiSabi modeled in other rural communities. Ideally these will be communities where resources may be limited but where strong community partnerships exist, where individuals are committed to fostering a healthy environment and a positive future.

This dream became a reality on July 26, 2008, when Escalante, Utah’s Skyhoopi Thrift Store opened its doors. Dana Waggoner and Melanie Boone-Reznick of Escalante were looking for information on starting a thrift store to help support their community and promote the arts in their town. After learning about WabiSabi through the Utah Arts Council, they decided to visit.

Melanie and Dana spent a day in Moab meeting with us. WabiSabi helped with ideas for setting up the store, selecting partners, pricing, managing money, and we even donated a few hangers. Today, Skyhoopi operates on Escalante’s Main Street with a manager, four employees, and four funded partners. More than that, another community is meeting its needs through partnerships, more items are being kept out of the landfill, and the WabiSabi way of life is spreading.