How It Works · Albuquerque
How It Works — And Why a For-Profit Does It Better
I’m a for-profit business, and that’s exactly why I can do what a charity can’t: take any book in any condition, pick it up free, and keep every single one out of the landfill. Here’s the whole model, in plain language — no fine print, no catch.
First, the honest part
The New Mexico Literacy Project is a for-profit small business — not a charity, and donations are not tax-deductible. I lead with that on purpose. Everything else here is the warm part of the story, and I don’t want any of it to feel like a bait-and-switch. You’re giving books to a person who makes a modest living keeping books in circulation. That’s the deal, and I think it’s a good one.
Request Your Free Pickup
Tell me what you have and where it is. I’m the only person who shows up — I do the lifting, any condition, no sorting. Texts go straight to my phone at 702-496-4214.
What happens to the books you give me
I look at every book by hand — no algorithm, no dumpster shortcut. Here’s the path each one takes:
The valuable few get sold
A small share of any collection is worth real money to the right reader. Selling those is what funds the truck, the gas, the free pickup, and the recycling. It’s the engine that makes the rest possible.
The good reading copies go back into circulation
When there’s a place that can use them, they head back out into the world — classrooms and rural school libraries, Little Free Libraries, care facilities, readers who’ll actually open them. I can’t promise any single book a particular home, but my whole aim is to keep it in use rather than waste it.
The rest is recycled responsibly
Whatever truly can’t be reused goes to the paper recycler — never to a landfill. That promise is the whole reason I exist.
Want the full breakdown? See where donated books go and the lifecycle of a donated book.
Why it’s built this way
A nonprofit has to be picky — storage is limited, donor receipts have to be tracked, and the board worries about optics. So charities and the library reject the moldy box, the encyclopedia set, the third-floor walk-up, the whole-estate cleanout. I don’t have to. Because I sell the valuable few, I can afford to say yes to everything else — and to do the lifting myself, for free.
So “he sells some of the donations” isn’t the catch. It’s the funding. It’s what pays for the free pickup, the rehoming, and the recycling that keeps your books out of the ground. The for-profit part is the feature, not the fine print.
Not a charity. Still community work.
For-profit and good-for-the-community aren’t opposites. This work helps get free books to kids in Title I and rural districts, keeps books and paper out of the landfill, and gives people a respectful, no-judgment way to clear out books when they’re moving, downsizing, settling an estate, or just out of shelf space. I make a modest living doing it. The books stay in use. The landfill gets nothing.
I’m one person — Josh Eldred — with a truck, a warehouse, and a 24/7 drop box. No crew, no call center, no sorting required on your end. Just a sustainable way to keep books alive and serve the people around me.
How most people end up donating
Almost nobody donates because they want to support a business. They donate because they’ve got a problem and I’m the easiest answer to it: a move, a downsize, an estate, a divorce, a snowbird heading home, a hoarded house, a school clearing its shelves. The books are heavy, cheap to replace, and feel wrong to throw away.
My promise is simple, and it’s the whole reason people call me instead of hauling boxes to a thrift store that’ll reject half of them:
Free. Any condition. No sorting. I do the lifting. One text, one pickup, and you’re done.
And nothing you give me hits the landfill. If that’s the situation you’re in, schedule a free pickup or just text me at 702-496-4214.
Frequently asked questions
Is the New Mexico Literacy Project a charity?
No, and I’m always upfront about that. NMLP is a for-profit small business that I run on my own. Your donation isn’t tax-deductible, and I’d never pretend otherwise. What you get instead is convenience a charity usually can’t offer: free pickup, any condition, no sorting, and a guarantee that nothing ends up in a landfill.
If you’re for-profit, why should I give you my books instead of selling them?
Most used books are worth very little individually — the time and hassle of selling them one by one rarely pays off. I take the whole lot off your hands for free, sort it by hand, and sell only the small share that has real value. That revenue is what funds the free pickup and keeps the rest moving to readers or recycling. If you think you have something genuinely valuable, I’ll tell you honestly.
Where do my donated books actually go?
I look at every book by hand. The ones with resale value are sold; many of the good reading copies are passed on to schools, Little Free Libraries, care facilities, and readers who need them when there’s a fit; and whatever can’t be reused is recycled as paper. Never the landfill. There’s a full breakdown on my where donated books go page.
Do you really take books in any condition?
Yes. Water-damaged, moldy, highlighted, missing covers, old magazines, encyclopedias — all of it. The for-profit model is exactly what lets me say yes to the boxes that Goodwill, the library, and most charities turn away.
Got books to clear out?
One text, one pickup, any condition — free, and never the landfill. Or drop them at the 24/7 box anytime; it never closes.
24/7 Drop Box: 5445 Edith Blvd NE, Unit A, Albuquerque, NM 87107