A laundromat may not jump to mind as a place that serves as the heart of community engagement and sustainability initiatives, but somehow that’s exactly what owner Deb Grove has achieved with General Laundry in Victor.

Grove grew up in a place with a robust recycling scene and the habits learned there stuck with her through life. When she and Kevin Hinkley purchased General Laundry in 2017, those habits crept into how the couple manages the business and what auxiliary services are provided there.

It started with the big 32-gallon trash cans that were placed throughout the laundromat.

“I didn’t get in the business to be collecting that much trash every day,” Grove said.

She replaced the receptacles with much smaller ones and frequently combs through the bins to weed out the many things that don’t need to go to the dump, like discarded clothes and plastic bags.

“It’s your pocketbook,” she said. “You’re paying double or triple for the amount of garbage generated. I like to think our business is doing its part to make a small difference. It’s worth it to me.”

Inevitably at the laundromat, clothes are left behind. Grove, who has some skill with a sewing machine, will clean and repair what she can and put the garments in a free rack for anyone to take or send away the clothes and fabric to 2nd ACT Thrift Store, Needle & Shred or Deseret Industries for reuse, resale or recycling. In the General Laundry restroom, customers will find clean washcloths instead of disposable paper towels.

Grove has served as a Teton Valley Community Recycling board member for four years. Her other diversion and reuse initiatives include offering TerraCycle recycling drop-offs for some of the odd little pieces of trash generated in daily life; providing egg carton reuse; hosting a Little Free Library; and salvaging every recyclable or reusable item out of the trash cans.

Managing a recycling collection center takes a lot of work, as many people who deign to use the drop-off service don’t follow instructions, whether by leaving bottle tops on, not washing out containers or otherwise ignoring the posted signs.

The new Baskets Not Plastics campaign is the first initiative that Grove has written a grant for, as suggested by her friend and Riverwind Foundation founder Tim O’Donoghue. The idea was born because she sees many customers bring their laundry in trash bags or grocery bags, which they then throw away. She retrieves the salvageable ones and gives them away to anyone who wants free trash bags.

Now, when she notices someone with a plastic bag, thanks to the grant, community donations and local thrift stores, she can offer them a General Laundry branded tote, a cloth laundry bag or a thrifted hamper. Because of a partnership with Broulim’s, from now through September customers can purchase a discounted hamper at the store to donate to General Laundry.

“People are happy and gracious to receive a hamper or tote,” Grove said. “These items aren’t cheap right now at the store.”

Outside of recycling, Grove gets involved in the community in whatever way she can. General Laundry sponsors the Pedigree Stage Stop Race and other events, steps up as a Tin Cup Business Challenger every year, shows up for the annual Victor parade, offers free Laundry Love each month with St. John’s Episcopal Church in Jackson, and has a Valley of the Tetons Library reading center set up in the corner.

“It’s fun to have the resources to participate in different ways in the community, and we really enjoy it,” she said.

All of those efforts add up, and Grove’s work does not go unnoticed.

“Deb is an impressive role model of what a dedicated small business owner can do to improve our community,” former TVCR director and county recycling liaison Iris Saxer said. “Her Baskets Not Plastics campaign is changing habits one customer at a time. As a board member she has increased her impact countywide with her great attitude and passion towards all things Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.”