Goodwill volunteers collect more than 2 tons of clothing at this year's P.F. Changs Rock 'n' Roll Marathon

For the fourth year in a row, Goodwill of Central Arizona volunteers collected runners discarded clothing during the annual P.F. Changs Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, held on Jan. 18. Our volunteer team sprinted after the runners for the first two miles to collect a large assortment of great gear from many different designers, including: scarfs, warm-up jackets; mittens; t-shirts and hoodies.

Many of the 28,000 runners who participated in the marathon wore several layers of clothing to keep themselves warm before the marathon. Once the race began, the participants quicky shed their garments – to stay cool while running in this year's warm temperatures.

Items collected at the race determined to be suitable for resale will be repurposed through one of Goodwill's retail stores. Those items unsuitable for resale will be recycled through our Clearance Center or community partners as part of Goodwill's commitment to our environment. 

"What an outstanding event and a great way to spend time with our community partners and friends," said Jim Teter, CEO & President of Goodwill of Central Arizona. "We really appreciate being a partner of choice with Elite Racing – who through their efforts – help us change lives locally with the collection of resellable donations."

The revenue generated from the sales of the donated marathon clothing in our retail stores will assist people in Arizona's communities. Garments will be available at retail store locations this week. Our 39 retail locations provide thousands of jobs for Arizonans and generate more than $60 million in revenue that support Arizona's economy.