What if the outfit you’re wearing right now was the only clothing you had? And, what if you’d been wearing it for days, or even weeks?
* You’d have no protection from the sun, rain or cold.
* You couldn’t go to court to get a restraining order or to fight for custody of your kids.
* You couldn’t carry yourself with pride to a GED class, a job interview, or even a free meal at the local church.
How would you do laundry? And, how could you possibly think about creating a better situation for yourself, if you had to spend most of your time worrying about how to meet your most basic needs?
Second Chances brings people from our community together to help other community members in need. By using local resources and working through local nonprofits, we can have the greatest benefit and most efficient impact.
I hope you’ll join Second Chances at the Somerville Community Growing Center on Wednesday, June 22 from 5 to 7 p.m. We’ll be having a Clothing and Coin Drive to support people in our community who need your help. Second Chances provides free clothing, shoes, accessories and gift cards to more than 400 people in our community each year.
By donating to Second Chances, you are investing in the future success of hundreds of people in our own community who are experiencing crises or temporary setbacks. You are also offering a second life for gently used clothing, shoes and accessories, conserving valuable natural resources instead of straining our already overflowing landfills.
Have you heard of Second Chances? We’ve been quietly working in Somerville since 2005. Since then we have provided great outfits for more than 1,900 homeless and low-income people in our community and recycled or reused more than 268,000 pounds of clothing, shoes, accessories and more. Second Chances is tiny – it’s just me and a handful of volunteers each year, with donated space and lots of donated time, materials and clothing.
In a little more than five years, Second Chances has built a reputation for efficiently and effectively providing clients with the clothing they need to take the next steps to a better future, but we are still small, and the need for our services has grown every year since we began. Here’s where our community can help!
You can help by donating:
* Clothing – at our conveniently located donation bins or one of our public clothing drives. Details »
* Funding – sponsor Second Chances or make a financial contribution to support our work. Help us online or send a check. Details »
* Time and skills – volunteer with us. Volunteer your time and skills at the clothing drive or any other time. We need help with marketing, events and much more. Details »
* Space – sponsor one of our clothing donation bins at your business, social organization or congregation. Details »
Or:
* Coordinate a clothing drive or fundraising event. Details »
* Got an idea? I want to hear it. Contact me »
On Wednesday, June 22nd from 5 to 7 p.m. you can help by donating clothing, shoes, accessories and coins - we certainly won’t turn away your checks or dollar bills either – at our Somerville Clothing and Coin Drive. I really hope to see you there.
- Andrea Shapiro
Founder/CEO and President
Second Chances
Clothing Donation Program
Somerville, Massachusetts
www.secondchances.org
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