What do you get when a small group of visionary educators, artists, creators and environmentalists with a passion for the planet—and future generations—join forces with a mission to reimagine waste by creating couture with a conscience? You get Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show: a dazzling event where landfill-bound debris is transformed into jaw-dropping garments and designs. You get an event where creativity becomes a catalyst for change.
After humble beginnings in 2010 and a two year pause during COVID, this eco fashion show is the passion project of three bold and dedicated women who believe in sustainable living, hands-on education and a future where beauty does not come at the planet’s expense. Every crocheted strip of campaign signs and sculpted reimagined scrap on the runway supports curriculum-connected field work and intensives—hands-on, real world learning experiences—for Realms students.
The Heart of the Matter: Realms and Real-World Learning
Founded in 2001 by a small group of educators led by Mary Bryant and Kris Jarvis with founding teachers Roger White and Karen Holm, Realms Middle School began as a public charter alternative middle school with a mission “to foster scholarship, strengthen community, and inspire stewardship through active learning.” Ten years later it joined the Bend La Pine School District as a magnet school and expanded in 2017 to include high school grades.
Realms Schools are EL Education schools (formerly Expeditionary Learning) where curriculum emphasizes leadership, action, community service, social justice, environmental stewardship through real-world investigation and projects.
“When learning is real, it’s engaging,” explains Holm, also a co-founder of Rubbish Renewed. “When students have a real audience, a real connection, it changes their brains. It helps them care — about the environment, about their community, about people with different experiences.”
Think: eighth graders designing watershed education kiosks seen by thousands at First Street Rapids. Or students planting riparian zones and contributing data to state environmental agencies. Or creating educational materials for irrigation district customers on water conservation. These are actual projects Realms students have completed, and they are not just school projects, they are community contributions.
A Runway Like No Other
Because this kind of curriculum-connected work is not funded by the school district, Friends of Realms, a 501(c)3 non-profit, was created to oversee fundraising and distribution of these funds for Realms Schools. Their largest annual fundraiser is Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show.
Holm recalls the “aha” moment when a conversation with fellow educator Amy Anderson sparked the idea for the eco fashion show. “I was wearing a skirt I’d made using old neckties while Amy was wearing a Castaways skirt made from and old sweater. She looked at me and said, ‘We have to do a trash fashion show before someone else does! We will do great things and it will be a fundraiser for Realms.’ I said, ‘Okay!’ And that was it.”
Together with community member Allison Murphy, Holm and Anderson launched the first show at Bend’s Century Center. Since then, the event has evolved into a high-energy production with a green room, VIP lounge, local food and beverage sponsors and Flip Flop Sounds creating a professional runway, lights and DJ and much more. This year’s event took place in May at The Pavillion.
“We wanted to show that fashion and purpose don’t have to be mutually exclusive,” explains Holm. “It started as a creative fundraiser, but it’s grown into something so much bigger, an experience that empowers kids and brings the whole community together.”
Each year roughly 700 attendees gather for the event. The show features three runway categories: students, adults and the “business challenge.” Designers range from second graders to college students, from professional artists to everyday adults who want to share a message. Every garment is made entirely from landfill-bound materials.
Funds are raised through ticket sales, sponsors, “business challenge” entry fees and a curated selection of runway garments auctioned off at the show. The highest amount raised by Rubbish Renewed so far was $30,000. This year’s event raised approximately $20,000 for Realms Schools.
Trash with a Message
The runway is only the beginning. Designers submit a short write-up about their garments, sharing the stories behind the materials, their design method and the message. For Holm, a self-proclaimed “trash fashion designer,” it’s a deeply personal process.
Through the years Holm’s designs alone have raised more than $15,000 for Realms. This year’s highest bid, $2,500, was for a dress designed by DeeDee Johnson, who used pages from past issues of Bend Lifestyle magazine, with other materials, to fashion flowers for her garment. VP of Homeowner Services for Bend-Redmond Habitat for Humanity, Johnson also helped design the Habitat ReStore Business Challenge entry. ReStore serves as a Rubbish Renewed sponsor each year.
“It’s art, it’s message-driven, and it’s fun,” Holm notes. “For the kids, it’s transformative. They get the full experience, from design to mentorship to the runway. They’re rock stars.”
A Model of Sustainability
Rubbish Renewed doesn’t just look sustainable. It strives hard to be sustainable. There’s no single-use waste, not even compostables. All dishware and serving items are reusable and washed for continued use. Booths from organizations like Commute Options, ReCoHere, and The Environmental Center offer interactive education. A marketplace of upcycled goods round out the event.
And the business challenge? It’s a fierce, fabulous, fun competition where local businesses like ReStore, Gear Fix, Lonza, and Humm Kombucha craft garments that reflect their sustainability missions. They compete for a coveted trophy and use this platform to engage the community with their environmental practices.
“It’s a way for businesses to say, ‘We believe in this,’” Holm says. “They’re sharing their story through fashion and fun.”
Looking Forward
While Holm has technically “retired” from classroom teaching, she is still deeply involved. She’s committed to at least two more years as the show’s “facilitator of creativity and joy,” working alongside a growing team of younger volunteers and a community that continues to show up, year after year.
“It’s a lot of work,” she admits, “but it’s amazing. I get to use my art, inspire students, and contribute to something that’s meaningful — and I get to do it with people I love.”
After 13 years, Rubbish Renewed isn’t just a fundraiser. It’s a force. One stitched from passion, purpose, and the belief that even trash can be beautiful. Especially when it brings a community together to dream, design, and do better for our world.
RubbishRenewed.org