What is it with charitable organizations these days?

[TomB]

Do people need more clothes?

Probably not, but some people need clothes. Homeless, etc., for instance. Many homeless are simply out of work folks who are forced from their homes because of financial difficulties. It's very hard for those folks to go on job interviews without decent clothes. Here in Hartford, there is an organization that accepts men's used suits. They are given to those men going on job interviews. I'm sure there are similar things for women here, also.

More clothes, no, but decent clothes, yes.

All the Best, Tom

[Cynth]

When we have something that someone could use but that the Goodwill can't take (say like an old gas barbecue that still works) we put it out on the curb with a sign saying "Free to a good home". If part of something is broken we just write down what is wrong. The things disappear really fast.

[TomB]

When we have something that someone could use but that the Goodwill can't take (say like an old gas barbecue that still works) we put it out on the curb with a sign saying "Free to a good home". If part of something is broken we just write down what is wrong. The things disappear really fast.

Yes, that can work well for furniture, etc. Not so well with clothes, depending upon the weather.

Tom

[BillChin]

When we have something that someone could use but that the Goodwill can't take (say like an old gas barbecue that still works) we put it out on the curb with a sign saying "Free to a good home". If part of something is broken we just write down what is wrong. The things disappear really fast.

Yes, this is a good suggestion for high traffic areas. I put small stuff out at the local bus stop. However, there is still some stuff that sits for a long time and can become an eyesore. Recently someone else put out a cheap drum, and a surfboard. The drum went quickly, the surfboard sat for days because it wasn't the latest model and had three tape patches on it. Again, it is a sign of the times and the abundance that Americans enjoy in some neighborhoods.

As for interview clothes, I believe all the suits and such that I currently own are from Thrift stores. I am very picky and go to the stores all the time, so I own some amazingly high-end stuff. In general it is difficult to find something that fits, looks good, and is in a modern style, even at a big store. There are a few donors that give the latest and greatest as they buy new sets of clothes every year, but many of the suits for sale would not make a good impression.

I guess you could throw any old thing on for many job interviews that homeless people might go on. However, I'd almost say that these men might be better off going in with a nice shirt and tie, sans jacket, if their jacket looks dated or doesn't fit right. Alterations will cost more than a suit costs in a thrift store.
+ Bill

[Flyingcursor]

I haven't bought new dress pants in some time. I need some but I can get them from the local thrift stores for $1.00. I've gotten some great buys.

[TomB]

I guess you could throw any old thing on for many job interviews that homeless people might go on. However, I'd almost say that these men might be better off going in with a nice shirt and tie, sans jacket, if their jacket looks dated or doesn't fit right. Alterations will cost more than a suit costs in a thrift store.
+ Bill

That's exactly what I was talking about. This place will accept good used suits, etc., for these men when they go on interviews.

Tom

[Redwolf]

I grew up shopping at Goodwill and Salvation Army. My family didn't have much money, and we could really stretch the clothing budget by shopping at resale shops.

I really hate the idea of throwing all this stuff away...heck, you'd think it would at least be recyclable! (you can make paper from fabric, after all). My hubby's going to throw it in his car and take it to the unmanned Goodwill drop, and we'll just hope for the best.

Redwolf

[Cynth]

yeah, the things you put at the curb are still your things so you can't just leave them---if no one takes it then it is our job to dispose of it. And they can't get wet, etc. You don't want to contribute to a trash problem in your town! Luckily we have a Goodwill nearby to take clothes and things like that to.

Once a year our town has a day that you can put out big things for trash collection and you should see people cruising the streets for stuff then. I think they like to fix things, something which the Goodwill is not any longer set up to do.

[Cynth]

The un-manned drop off sounds good to me. You have done your best. If something is stolen, well probably whoever steals it is not in the best situation. I know it isn't right, but they could need something pretty bad.

[Redwolf]

The un-manned drop off sounds good to me. You have done your best. If something is stolen, well probably whoever steals it is not in the best situation. I know it isn't right, but they could need something pretty bad.

I don't mind so much someone stealing stuff (as you say, someone who would steal from a Goodwill drop-off is probably desperate enough to really need that stuff!), but those drop-offs often get overfull, and then rain damages the contents and they end up being hauled off to the dump anyway.

Ah well...at least I'll have tried!

Redwolf

[Sunnywindo]

Here's something different:

http://www.freecycle.org/

Heard about it on the news, haven't tried it much yet, but it's an interesting concept. Perhaps another possible option for some who have stuff that could use a new home?

At my house, we do a really good job wearing clothes out before buying new stuff. Anything that can't be repaired is evaluated and the good patches of fabric are cut up for quilts. (Love quilting.) Some less quilty bits might find new use as cleaning rags.... parts from cotton shirts are great for cleaning whistles.

Like Susan, I live in Utah and here one of the big places is Deseret Industries. In fact, I like to shop there. Can't see any point in spending $15 or $20 on a pair of jeans when I could buy the same thing lightly used at DI for $5. I've got all sorts of great stuff there, plus it really helps our pocket book.

Additionally, I personally find some of the styles that grace the regular stores a bit distasteful and sometimes lacking in, um... cloth. It seems like it is easier to find things that are more to my personal taste (clothing that covers where is should/how I prefer it to, not too tight, colors I actually like, etc.) at the DI more often than at the regular stores. At least for now.

As for donating, I've never had DI turn something away. Granted, you gotta drop it off, but they'll take it. That there are "charities" turning perfectly good stuff away blows my mind. Don't get it. It seems a real shame that so much stuff which still could be of use to someone gets trashed into the dump. People somewhere could use it, guess sometimes it just too much trouble to get it to them???

When we lived in California a few years back, I pulled a really good micowave out from the top of the dumpster next to our building. It was a little older but clean and had been well taken care of. My guess is who ever it was just wanted something bigger and upgraded; not knowing or perhaps not caring about what to do with the old one, they chucked it. Our microwave was nearly dead and the one someone didn't want anymore fit us just perfectly... today it still works great. It was a real blessing right when we needed it.


One man's "junk" really can be another's treasure.




(Mmmm... perhaps that's "too much" info?)

We have a place here called the "Rescue Mission" that usually takes clothing. But lately, it seems they've had a huge glut of it, and they just won't accept any more. They have more than they know what to do with and the vast majority of it ends up in the dump anyway. It's a shame. They also will not pick up if it's clothing for the same reason. But apparently they will if it's furniture or a TV or something like that.

That really is a shame. (*Imagines all the perfectly good clothing and perfectly good fabric going to waste in this country. Enough to help clothe the world by day and wrap them up in warm quilts at night.* )


Anyhoo...


Sara (who stumbles off to bed being that it's waaaay past her usual bedtime)

[dwinterfield]

I too like thrift shops, but have come to realize that my old stuff is mostly junk, and so is everyone else's.

This isn't about clothes, but I think it illustrates the dilemma that charitiable organizations have to confront.

Two years ago, we did a lot of work on our house. The previous owner had installed an "in-law" apartment in 1987. As part of that, he put in a high quality combination GE washer/dryer unit. I don't think it was ever used from 1987 to 1991, when we used bought the house and we might have used it a dozen times in the following 12 yrs. (We had another washer/dryer.) It was in perfect condition, with all the original manuals. We tried for weeks to find an organization to give it to, with little success. The explanation was that it is not helpful to give a poor family older appliances for which parts are not available, repairs are expensive etc. Eventually we found a local woman's shelter that agreed to take it if we'd deliver it.

Similarly, don;t even think about trying to give away a 5 year old pc with windows 95 on it. A few organizations collect electronic equipment for poor school districts, less developed nations etc. They do great work, but they don;t want much that is more than 2 yrs old.

I live in a country where consumption is the ultimate god. If stuff lasts and we keep stuff, we stop buying. It would be the end of life as we know it.

[Charlene]

At least now I know it wasn't just ME the Salvation Army was rude to!

Last year I loaded up the trunk, pulled up to the store, rang the bell at the drop off door, and the woman who came out saw what was on the top of the pile and immediately started criticizing what I had. When I said "forget it then" and shut the trunk she said huffily "Well, you don't have to come in with THAT attitude!!!" I reported her and did get an apology from the office, but I won't give Salvation Army anything else ever again and I won't even go in their store to look at things.

A different local charity thrift store took my stuff and even thanked me for bringing it.

I guess some years ago Goodwill quit repairing furniture etc.

We've put some stuff out on the corner by my husband's store and it usually disappears within a week. We don't have to worry about stuff getting rained on in the summer from about July 10 to Labor Day since we usually don't get any rain during that time anyway. And this year we've barely had any precip of any kind so it wouldn't be a problem.

There's a place in Washington state called 2 Good 2 Toss - http://www.2good2toss.com but you have to live in the state to post anything. It's run by the Dept. of Ecology - maybe other states have similar outfits.

[Martin Milner]

I really hate the idea of throwing all this stuff away...heck, you'd think it would at least be recyclable! (you can make paper from fabric, after all).

In Britan during the war, everything possible was re-cycled. Cloth, paper, bones, sucepans to make aircraft, iron railings to make shells. Any uneated food (unusual) was fed to a pig. Waste Not Want Not. etc. Maybe one reason who those who went through the War are nostalgic about it - it just brought out a better community spirit in people.

[Redwolf]

As far as finding homes for older PCs go, we've always found a poor family with kids who have no computer at all. We clean off the PC, load it up with educational games that we either have on-hand or get on the cheap, make sure it's got Word or some such on it for homework, and my hubby sets it up for them. We try to find a used printer to go with it as well. It may or may not be internet capable, but most of the families we've given these to can't afford even as much as NetZero anyway...what they are happy to have is something that is fun for their kids and that will teach them a few skills, and that will allow the parents to do such things as write cover letters and resumes. Agencies may not take them, but individuals are often very happy to get them.

Another place that's often very happy to take older electronics is private schools. They don't necessarily use them as computers...rather, they have the kids "dissect" them and put them back together (sometimes functional, sometimes not!) to help them learn how such things work.

Redwolf