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I have some broken lights I didn't want in the landfill and I found this program out in Texas that let’s people send in their broken or dying string lights. They recycle them for you and use the proceeds to buy items donated to Toys For Tots. 

Text from the website:

This program is active all year, and we save all recycling proceeds for this year's Toys for Tots donation. On top of helping children in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, you can feel good knowing that your lights didn't end up and a landfill and were appropriately recycled in the U.S.

The idea of a recycling program has always sounded like the right and responsible thing to do, but the implementation of such a task was a challenge. The thought of used Christmas lights being carted off to a landfill after bringing joy to so many passersby just didn't seem right to us, but very few recycling centers had the capabilities of recycling the glass, copper and plastic from Christmas light sets. Luckily, we found a recycling solution near Dallas and have been running this program since 2008. We found a local recycling company who will take your lights and recycle the copper, glass and plastic. They pay a small amount per pound of lights - like the money you get for aluminum cans.

All proceeds from the Christmas lights recycling program are used to purchase educational books and toys donated to Toys for Tots in early December.

Image transcript: Christmas Lights Recycling Program

Here's how you can participate in our program to get your lights recycled, get a discount on your next order of Christmas lights, and support Toys for Tots at the same time:

1. Box up your old, broken Christmas lights into the smallest box that will accommodate the lights and send them to us in the cheapest and slowest way at:

Note:  We have a new address for our recycling program. If you've participated in the past, please use the following address:

Christmas Light Source Recycling Program 4313 Elmwood Drive Benbrook, TX 76116

2. Please include your name and email address (mandatory if you want the discount code - we won't save it or sell it) and we'll email you a code that will be good for 10% off a single order of Christmas lights (one rebate coupon per household).

3. Then we'll take the lights, have them recycled, and take the proceeds from the recycling and use them to buy books, educational games, puzzles and toys!