Ah, spring. That magical time of year when the buds of winter burst forth into beautiful flowers of countless colors and leaves whose presence has seemed such a long time coming. The grass is growing long and lush (Shhh. Are those birds chirping and twittering merrily? Yes. Yes, they are). Inspired by the sunshine and scenery, you venture to the garage to fetch a few tools, maybe even the lawn mower, in hopes of making your scenic yard even more gorgeous. You are taken aback by what you run into — a complete and utter mess.

As the reality of the situation dawns on you and you recall pledges of “cleaning this place out” for the past two or three (OK, 15 or 20) springs in a row, you wonder what the heck you can possibly do with an old 10-speed, a pair of rollerskates, waterskis, and clothes that sport alligators, paisley and bright shades of neon. Yes, it seems you have entered the garage that time — save the ‘80s — forgot. Popping on a little Menudo for inspiration, you wonder what you’re going to do with all this stuff. Can any good come of the fact that you’ve kept your New Kids on the Block dolls in their original packages? Glad you asked. (Now, put Donnie Wahlberg away, don’t you know that’ll kill his resale value?) You can get rid of the “Kids” and pretty much everything else blocking your route to the pruners and help raise money to build a hospital in Tanzania, Africa.

Swap Meets for Charity gathers in Port Gamble the third weekend of each month through October and will not only help you rid your garage of your old parachute pants but will continue its long-running mission to help improve the lives of the poor. Helping those in dire need and yourself has never been so easy. Pay 15 bucks. Get a vendor spot. Sell your stuff. Give the things you don’t hawk and are usable to charity. Simple.

As for cleaning out the garage, just remember what the NKOTB advise: Hang tough.