When University of Wisconsin-Madison juniors Amelia Wozniak and Kaleb Roessler worked for a moving company last spring, they were shocked by the amount of housing items that were thrown away in good condition. That observation led them to create Badger Reclaim, an organization dedicated to helping other UW-Madison students by recycling and distributing gently used items to those in need.
Co-sponsored by the Office of Student Financial Aid, Mad City Moving and University Housing, Badger Reclaim uses drop boxes to collect students’ extra dorm belongings during move-out and distributes them during the following fall move-in.
Wozniak and Roessler worked with Mad City Moving, their former employer, to access trucks and volunteer resources. By November 2024, Wozniak and Roessler found Basic Needs Student Support, a UW organization offering food and health resources to those in need, to get their idea off the ground.
Badger Reclaim started their donation system at the end of last spring semester, putting drop boxes at specific dorms around campus to store gently used items over the summer. They picked up over 300 items after the first donation cycle, which all went to UW students during the fall 2025 move-in.
Both the Basic Needs Team and Badger Promise, an organization within the Office of Student Financial Aid, helped to get the word out to students to donate and also receive donations, with Badger Promise specifically spreading information to those on Student Financial Aid to receive donations.
To access items, students must be enrolled at UW-Madison student, fill out a form indicating what they need and maintain communication with the Basic Needs Team. Mad City Moving delivers claimed items to students during move-in.
As for the future of the organization, Wozniak and Roessler said they are looking to expand it by searching for more storage space for donated items and continuing to grow the program to help aid more students. The claim item form is currently unavailable due to the sheer number of responses, making expansion necessary for providing UW-Madison students with the help they need. Volunteers can sign up to help through their Instagram or by filling out a form.
Staff Writer
