“What does MDI do”
Macon County’s extended employment sheltered workshop program, does business in our community as Macon Diversified Industries, INC and we are often referred to as MDI.
MDI is an equal opportunity employer (EEO), and strives to be ADA compliant and follows a TITLE VI policy for transportation needs of our hired employees who are state certified with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education of Missouri, for participation in our extended employment program. If you feel you have been discriminated against by persons representing MDI or utilizing MDI services, please contact the executive director of MDI and ask for a complaint form – via phone call at 660-385-3111 or fax at 660-395-9578 or email at mdidirector@outlook.com. We take these complaints seriously and hope to resolve them speedily.
Our 501c3 nonprofit mission is to contract with businesses or to create community service operations to provide jobs and employment choices for people with various disabilities. We sustain ourselves by operating in valuable community service operations, like the MDI Recycle Center and the Timeless Treasure thrift store. Both these operations are ran on public donation of goods. Your support is needed so that MDI can offer these job opportunities.
“What are your operating hours?”…
The facility is open Monday through Friday from 8am-4pm.
Timeless Treasure is open Monday – Friday from 9am-3:30pm with a late close on Tuesdays of 6pm.
Severe weather conditions do affect our hours and we do observe some Holidays.
If in doubt, call first! (660) 385-3111
HOLIDAY CLOSINGS – Should the Holiday fall on a weekend, MDI observes either the Friday before or the Monday after the Holiday date, which ever is closest.
New Year’s Day (Jan), President’s Day (Feb), Good Friday (Mar), Memorial Day (May), Independence Day (Jul), Labor Day (Sept), Veteran’s Day (Nov, the day before and the day of Thanksgiving (Nov), Christmas Eve and Christmas Day (Dec).
“What kind of residential collection services for goods/recyclables does MDI offer?”
At the moment, with the rising cost of fuel, we are not able to come to accommodate RESIDENTIAL pick ups or deliveries made of purchases in our thrift store.
“What kind of collection services does MDI offer for area businesses?”
MDI offers businesses collection services for cardboard, and some other recyclables like paper (kept dry by securely bagging), for a fee, dependent upon location, per visit. Call (660) 385-3111 to set up an account.
You can control the necessity of multiple weekly visits by breaking down your cardboard boxes. MDI will work with you to find the right weekday for your collection visits according to your needs and may be able to place a bin on your property.
Large businesses with large weekly volumes can negotiate contracted collection services; especially if there are multiple materials types involved.
Just give us a call to set up an account, at (660) 385-3111, Monday through Friday from 8am-4pm.
“What recyclable plastics does MDI accept?”
MDI can only process plastic made items which are marked on their bottom or side with a resin code of #1 or #2 inside the resin “triangle” symbol. These plastic items usually have a screw top lid.
“Does MDI buy aluminum beverage cans?”
During the regular hours of 8am-4pm, Monday – Friday, MDI will BUY your clean and dry aluminum beverage cans ONLY, at a fair market price. In fact our prices usually beat our local competition! Save your self the gas money and support our organization!
Please DO NOT include any other type of aluminum products in your bags of beverage cans.
“Does shredded paper need to be separated from my other paper recyclables?”
Yes please! Shredded paper should always be separately bagged and the bag tied securely shut.
The litter waste created by shred materials escaping its container creates a significant problem for the storm water drains at MDI and for the community.
“Do I have to separate my paper recyclables by grade?”
NOPE! There is no need for you to separate your paper by grades, because this work provides jobs for our employees. However, if do, it is always appreciated! Sometimes we get a little backed up in our processing work and an “easy bag” to process is a nice thing to come by!
“Why doesn’t MDI take recyclable glass?”
Even if MDI had the space in our stock yard to store recyclable glass, there is just no money to be made in recycling glass, especially in a rural area. The mill buyers for this product are in the bigger cities and the high price of fuel keeps them from straying too far from their plants to find materials and if they came here, they would not be able to pay us anything for it.
MDI must concentrate on more lucrative recoverable waste types to sustain our operations.
“What happens to the clothing I take to MDI?”
The list of textiles processed at MDI include:
- NO MOLD, NO MILDEW, NO BODY WASTE, NO BIOHAZARDS!
- Clothing of all kinds and in any condition
- Other fabric made items like bedding, curtains, tapestries, rugs
- Stuffed toys and fiber filled items;
- Any leather made goods like handbags, purses, belts;
- Fabric made goods like luggage, handbags, grocery bags, book bags;
- All types of footwear.
We examine each item to see if it can be sold in the thrift store first and if not, we separate these things and bale them up for sales to recycling mills. These kinds of recyclables can be in any condition, but please do not donate textiles that have been soaked in flammables!
Sometimes our buyers will reprocess clothing and footwear, since some of it is still reusable. They even sell good clothing to third world countries, where good used clothing is a precious commodity.
“What kind of items will MDI accept for donations for the thrift store?”
If in doubt, just give us a call at (660) 385-3111, Monday – Friday from 8am-4pm. We accept most anything that has a QUALITY retail value and when it comes to thrift finds our customers are looking for all kinds of stuff! You just never know what will sell at Timeless Treasure!
There are a few exceptions, so please visit our Unaccepted Recyclables page for a list of “No No Items”! When donating, remember, if YOU wouldn’t BUY it, in the condition it’s in, we won’t want it. QUALITY COUNTS!
All donations are subject to the scrutiny of management and we reserve the right to refuse any donation presented.
FURNITURE donations must be reviewed by management! No “after-hours” drop off of large furniture!
“Can someone from MDI come talk to my group about recycling?”
We would LOVE to come see you! Educating others, about our employment mission and about our community service operations, is a great way for us to recruit people into customers. Whether you’re looking for a full one hour educational presentation with a slide show, or just something small to fill in that fifteen minute gap in a meeting, just let us know. Call (660) 385-3111
“Does MDI offer public transportation services?”
No we do not. If hired at MDI on our work program, you will be offered free transport, from home to work and work to home, if living inside a 15 mile radius of the facility or work location.
“Is MDI partnered with United Way?”
WE SURE ARE! MDI is partnered with United Way of Adair County. You can donate to United Way on their website and ask for the monetary gift to be sent directly to MDI.