BY LEE ANN SANDWEISS

In 2010, Jeanne Leimkuhler, then a board member and treasurer for The Center for Sustainable Living (CSL), was so inspired by an event she’d heard about in Portland, Oregon, that she spearheaded Bloomington’s first Trashion Refashion Runway Show.

“I knew this was a way to bring the CSL’s message of sustainability to a wider audience, and it sounded like a lot of fun,” recalls Leimkuhler, who moved to Berkeley, California, in 2015 but returns annually to participate in the show and see friends. “I am amazed the show has continued for so many years,” she says. “I really had no idea that it would be so successful.”

The first show was part of Arts Week in February 2010 and held at the Bloomington/Monroe County Convention Center. The following year, the show’s steering committee moved the date to April, close to Earth Day. As the show’s popularity grew (it’s been sold out in recent years), the venue was changed to the Buskirk-Chumley Theater (BCT), where it’s been held for the past eight years.

More than 1,000 volunteer hours are needed to produce the show, and an estimated 4,000 hours are given by community designers and models. After covering costs, proceeds benefit CSL projects that improve sustainability in the community.

The 10th annual Trashion Refashion Runway Show is a retrospective and will be held at 7 p.m. April 7 at the BCT. Tickets are $15 in advance, $20 the day of show, and $10 for students with ID. For more information, visit bloomingtontrashion.org. For tickets, visit bctboxoffice.org.