Our CEO Joshua Rubin was interviewed by the Detroit Jewish News. It was a highlight in an article about the Whitney in Detroit going green. They did a great job capturing what mirainbarrel and Joshua are all about, Check out Joshua’s interview below and there is a link to the whole article on their website below too!
(Below is an excerpt from an article in the Detroit Jewish News, wrote by Stacy Gittleman, published Oct. 3, 2017.)
Joshua Rubin: Rain Barrels Catch Storm Water
When barrels of Mediterranean olives and pickles reach American shores, they could wind up in landfills — or they can have a second life saving water and keeping our Great Lakes clean when they are repurposed into rain barrels.
Joshua Rubin of Farmington Hills wants more Detroiters to “disconnect from their downspouts” that send storm water down the drain and overtax our sewers, lakes and rivers. Instead, he advocates storing the water in the rain barrels he designs for his company, MiRainBarrel.com.
Rubin comes from a family of barrel makers. His great-grandfather Charley Rubin founded Detroit Beer and was once a wooden barrel cooper who distributed barrels to bootleggers from Windsor to Chicago during Prohibition.
Seven years ago, Rubin began working with food manufacturers to collect empty 55-gallon drums, fit them with nozzles and openings for downspouts and sell or give them away across Metro Detroit. In 2016, he partnered with the Sierra Club Great Lakes Program and the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy to create a scholarship to give away rain barrels to deserving organizations and urban farms in Detroit. This summer, he showed off his products at the Michigan Jewish Food Festival at the Eastern Market.
The MiRainBarrel brand centers around easy-to-assemble rain barrel kits. In the seven years he’s been in business, Rubin also has developed products such as compost tumblers and vertical gardening containers. Each product is designed with conservation in mind and helps fulfill the company mission of providing customers solutions to live more environmentally sustainable lives.
“Everyone likes the DIY feel of these barrels,” he said. “I like empowering my customers with the knowledge that we live alongside the world’s largest supply of fresh water. It is our job to protect it, and we can do that by catching storm water that flows off our homes, mixes with oils and other pollutants on our streets, and flows into our rivers and streams.”
Save the date for the second Michigan Jewish Food Festival!
Aug 27, 2017 – 11:00 am – 4:00 pm
Eastern Market Corporation, Detroit, MI
Several thousand people joined us for the first ever Michigan Jewish Food Festival and enjoyed food, celebrated our shared history in Detroit, and learned about Detroit’s current food movement that’s creating a more sustainable, healthier, and more just community for all.
Joshua Rubin, Owner of mirainbarrel will be doing an education session as well have all our products available for sale. Additionally you can buy rain barrels in advance here on our website, pick them up the day of the event, guaranteed 🙂
Buy a rain barrel to be picked up August 27th in Eastern Market here.
This past weekend we had an amazing Saturday morning at the Heidelberg Project with the help of both the Heidelberg and the Sierra Great Lakes Program, 30 Rain Barrels went to Detroiters’. We showed everyone how to make them, install them, and paint them too! Lots of amazing people and great weather made for an amazing workshop. Thank you Heidelberg Project community and Sierra Club! Below are some pictures from the event. If you are interested in doing a workshop in your community email us for more information.
Rain Barrels on the Riverfront is back. A three way partnership between the Sierra Club Great Lakes Program, The Detroit RiverFront Conservancy and Maxi Container (aka mirainbarrel) will return (for the second time this year) to Downtown Detroit this April 23rd and July 18th.
There are many ways to participate. You can buy your barrel right here in advance. Pay online, over the phone, or send us a check. If you are unable to afford the reduced price of $50 to build your barrel you can apply for a scholarship with the Sierra Club by calling (313) 444-3705. If you are unsure if you want to buy a rain barrel, it is free to attend so just show up and watch us build. We will have special guest speakers and demonstrations on how to install your barrel during the workshop, too!
So whether you want a rain barrel or are just curious, stop by Rain Barrels on the Riverfront 2016 to help reduce storm water runoff, promote green living and most of all have fun doing it. Click here to view photos from past workshops.
Register for the event. (Click on the date you wish to attend.)
Download the Flyer here. (Please print out and share with your friends!)
Working together at 2012’s (1st year) Rain Barrel on the RiverFront event. Almost 100 people gathered to make it a huge first year event, join us for 2014.
Join us again for our annual Huntington Woods Rain Barrel Workshop on May 1st 2016.
These flyers can also be found in Huntington Woods residence water bills. We encourage surrounding communities to attend as well. For more information please call Claire at the Huntington Woods DPW @ (248) 547 – 1888.
Here Are The Details:
Rain Barrels will be available for an all time low of only $60.00 for the full rain barrel kit, May 1st 2016. You get to build your barrel with us and ask questions about rain water harvesting too! Have some fun on a Sunday afternoon and take home a rain barrel, family friendly – all ability levels welcome. Composters are now available too for $100 un-assembled. We can answer questions about how to build and how to use our composter but will not be assembling them on site this year. We will have some rain barrel accessories on hand for purchase as well. You can register online by following the link at the end of this post, click on the Hungtington Woods event and you can pay with PayPal online (highly suggested) or send us a check, or pay w cash, check (With photo valid ID), or credit card at the event. For general questions call (248) 547 – 1888. If you prefer email please send your questions info@mirainbarrel.com.
Register for the event here.
Download the Flyer here. (Please print and share with your friends!)
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