18-year-old’s company recycles plastic found on streets of Haiti

Jack Foley, an 18-year-old from Rockville, Maryland, has started ReYuze Cases, a company that makes phone cases out of 100 percent recycled plastic from the streets, canals and landfills of Haiti. One dollar from every purchase goes to The First Mile Coalition, Los Angeles, to aid in its efforts to address undignified child labor in plastic collection in Haiti.

Foley is a recent graduate from Thomas Sprigg Wootton High School, Rockville, who says he started ReYuze Cases to help save the oceans.

Growing up around the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, Foley says he is an advocate for environmental conservation. Recently, he broadened his view and looked to a place that needed his help in removing plastic and trash: Haiti. 

Foley’s phone case design philosophy is sturdy and flexible cases that accentuate the beauty and craftsmanship of the modern phone. He compares the current phone case market to “buying a luxury car then putting a cover on it while driving down the road. It’s silly.” That’s why each ReYuze phone case is designed with a portion of the sides cut out. This provides a unique appearance without skimping on protection of all four corners, Foley says.

Each case is $10 plus the cost of shipping and handling. Foley says he wanted to help both his local community and the Haitian community that collects the plastic. Therefore, he manufactures each case out of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) using Xometry, Gaithersburg, Maryland, in addition to partnering with The First Mile Coalition.