Community Closet seeks volunteers and shoppers

The Odessa Community Closet started in January 2014 as a ministry of Zion-Emmanuel Lutheran Church. The goal of the Closet was to help provide gently used clothing and shoes, free of charge, to people in Odessa and the surrounding community. Members of the Odessa community donate clothing, which volunteers sort and organize. The clothing is then made available during regular shopping hours, every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Closet is also open by appointment any other day of the week, to meet the needs of individuals and families who are unable to shop on Thursdays.

The other local churches, Schmidt Insurance, Inc. and Odessa Memorial Hospital have partnered with the group to provide donation bins in town. Since the open house held January 24, 2014, Odessa Community Closet has given out clothing and shoes over 650 times, 350 of them in 2015 alone.

Also, in 2015, the Closet received a Thrivent Action Team grant to help buy shelving to store off-season clothing and conducted a textile drive with Clothes for the Cause to raise funds for community members in need of additional clothing. The textile drive lasted four months and collected over 2.5 tons of clothing (5,407 pounds)!

Odessa Community Closet is always looking for volunteers to help sort clothing on Thursdays, to donate gently used clothing and shoes and, of course, to shop! Feedback is appreciated as well. Please call 982-2402, visit OCC or complete a survey via the Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/OdessaCommunityCloset.