(Clothesline coordinator Karen Dahl)
Story and photos by Macey Wurm
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
The Clothesline, West Seattle Food Bank’s free-clothing program, hosted its first donation drive at their new location in the former food-store space at Cottage Grove Commons (5444 Delridge Way SW).
Clothesline will have two additional donation-only days for you to bring in your clothes on Tuesday, Feb. 10, and Thursday, Feb. 12, between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., before they reopen to the public on Feb. 17th. We stopped by Saturday for a look inside the new location.
Clothesline has been closed for the past six weeks in order to organize the move to the new location. In anticipation of the closure, demand increased at the end of December, and volunteers expect most of their current inventory to leave the racks upon the reopening, according to Karen Dahl, the Clothesline program coordinator.
Dahl recommended that donors bring in warm winter jackets, sweatshirts, and work boots, which have been in high demand for shoppers needing proper gear for construction and gardening jobs. She also noted that donors should aim to bring seasonal items, as Clothesline’s storage space for out-of-season items is currently limited.
The limited storage space is one notable difference between the old and new locations, another being that the new location doesn’t have a parking lot, forcing visitors to rely on street parking or visit via transit.
Dahl is the only official staff member at Clothesline, supported by a 67-person-strong volunteer network. Dahl recalled that when she was down with pneumonia in January, they stepped up to pack the entirety of the old facility.
“I have the best volunteers.” Dahl said. “Don’t get me started on the volunteers … they are essential here.”
The program typically has 10-15 volunteers working on any given day, but is looking for some additional help on Saturdays.
At the conclusion of Saturday’s first day of donations, Dahl expressed optimism about donor turnout and the items received. The day served as “another reminder that we live in a remarkable community,” according to Tom, a Clothesline volunteer who has been helping out since the pandemic.
“The donors are really fabulous. A lot of people who come in and donate; they tell me directly they want to bring it here because they know it goes directly to people,” Dahl said.
Clothesline sees 40-50 “groups” per day that receive clothes – groups consisting of an individual and potential family members that they may be shopping for. Last year, Clothesline provided items to more than 5,000 families, with around 100,000 pieces cycling through the program annually.
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