Darlene “Dee Dee” Soderberg, a Sustainability Champion and member of the waste reduction task force, died on March 4, 2024. Sustain Rockford mourns the loss. We remain grateful for Dee Dee’s dedication and contribution to our organization.

Sustain Rockford recognizes Dee Dee Soderberg as a Sustainability Champion for her individual efforts to reduce her carbon footprint. She is always looking for new ways to mitigate climate change. Her sustainability efforts include: composting; recycling paper, tin cans, bottles, plastic and metals; and using toothpaste tablets, bamboo toothbrushes, shampoo packaged in a cardboard box and laundry detergent strips from a recyclable package. Using items packaged in cardboard reduces single-use plastic. When practical, she also hangs laundry outside and dries it indoors during the winter to increase humidity in her home. She makes her own dishwasher detergent, which she shares with friends and family. She takes her own containers to the deli and brings her own recyclable bags to the grocery store. She never throws away single-use plastic without finding at least one more use and does the same with aluminum foil. Her process has developed over several years. The key is taking just one step and adding more to establish habits. 

Dee Dee’s goals are to:

• Decrease her carbon footprint
• Encourage efforts to combat climate change
• Support companies that recycle (she plans to purchase sustainable products at the new
  Go Green store on Jefferson Street in Rockford)