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After touring The Salvation Army Phoenix Emergency Family Shelter, members of the Phoenix Echelon Chapter—The Salvation Army’s young professionals arm—learned of a growing need: professional clothing.
“We kept hearing that this was such a need in our area,” said Alexandria Garza, Southwest Divisional Marketing and Social Media Liaison and Phoenix Echelon Member. “We felt like we could make a difference with just a little planning.”
The Echelon members organized a professional clothing drive-through event with Salvation Army staff that was held May 13 in Phoenix.
The Echelon members determined professional attire could enhance the confidence and self-esteem of guests of The Salvation Army Phoenix Family Emergency Shelter and participants of The Salvation Army Phoenix Adult Rehabilitation Center (ARC) as they participate in job interviews to achieve stability in their lives.
Phoenix Echelon member Jasmin Lattimore was involved with the clothing collection, and said approximately 115 cars participated, bringing wardrobes’ worth of clothing. Anything non-professional, Echelon sorted to go to The Salvation Army thrift store.
“We had a system of putting out racks and pulling rolling bins so people could just pull up and we would handle the unloading for them,” she said. “Everyone was very sweet, and you could tell they were excited to know where their items were going.”
She recalled one woman who had been holding onto her late husband’s suits as she wanted them to go to a good home.
“She told us how she’d been keeping them to ensure they’d really benefit someone else,” she said. “I just let her know that we would take good care of it, and she was so appreciative of us doing this.”
According to Garza, the clothing will benefit over 500 individuals by providing new professional attire for job interviews, work and other formal occasions. She said the clothing will go to locations where participants can pick what works for them.
“Individuals who have experienced homelessness or substance addiction are often in survival mode,” she said. “They’re not always familiar with the workforce and usually don’t have any options of professional clothing they can wear to feel good and confident.”
Garza said the initial goal was collecting 1,000 articles of clothing. She said in around six hours, they gathered 5,645 items, including clothing, shoes and accessories for both men and women.
Phoenix CBS news station Arizona Family worked with The Salvation Army to broadcast live hourly progress updates. Leading up to the drive, they informed viewers about the significance of donating professional clothing to benefit someone’s fresh start.
“Arizona Family was a major help in this clothing drive,” said Scott Johnson, The Salvation Army Southwest Division Public Relations Director. “People heard what we’re doing and thought, ‘Wow, we can really help these people integrate themselves back into the community by having something to go to a job interview in,’ and so people kind of recognized the impact their donations would have.”
Johnson said The Salvation Army collaborated with Biltmore Fashion Park, an outdoor shopping entertainment area in central Phoenix, to utilize their half-loop driveway for the event.
“It really shows that people have huge hearts,” Johnson said. “For everyone to get involved and get behind causes that they believe in is amazing to see—and for them to trust The Salvation Army makes us feel incredible.”
Garza said Echelon intends to establish the drive as an annual event.
“It was really beautiful to see people come and donate items they had been holding for years,” she said. “The way the community came together was the best part.”
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