A lucky Puyallup family unveiled their sparkly clean, professionally organized garage recently after they won a Tacoma Power recycling contest, the prize for which was a free room reorganization.

What did it take to make it happen? Truckloads full of items for donation, multiple trips to the recycling center, and the plan of a professional organizer who happens to carry a drill in her purse because you never know when you might have to assemble some shelves on the fly.

The Luoma family and Monica Del Giudice, owner of organization service DECOTACOMA, have spent dozens of hours in the Luoma garage, picking through years’ worth of household items, family memorabilia and holiday decorations, deciding what to keep, what to toss and where it should go.  

“My garage was in desperate need of reorganization,” said Luoma, who’s lived in his home for seven years. “It was a lot of work to get organized, but it was worth it.”

Through Tacoma Power’s refrigerator recycling program, you can arrange to have your old, working fridge or freezer picked up for free. In return, you'll get $30, and 95 percent of the old fridge will be recycled. Call 1-877-577-0510 or visit jacoinc.net to schedule a fridge or freezer pick-up date.