Our Mission
The Problem:
All over the world, children struggle with issues that sometimes go unseen. Approximately 15.3% of children under the age of 18 struggle from poverty. More than 20 million children in the United States are growing up without access to basic essentials like clothing, shoes, diapers, and school supplies.
Growing up in a community where some families don't even know where their next meal will come from has truly altered my perspective. These families prioritize food and shelter over clothing, which can lead to severe clothing insecurity in kids. Children should not have to worry if they will have clothes to wear for the next day, and my project aims to provide access to affordable clothing to all kids in my community.
I also live in an area where a simple difference of 2 digits in a zip code can ultimately change the way of life for many people. There are many people who have grown up fortunate enough to afford an excess amount of clothing that is just sitting in their closets. These clothes can be at the great potential of improving another person's life and is just not yet being put to use. This project aims to spread the importance of generosity and how people can make a big difference with sharing what they already have.
Modern day fast fashion has made unsustainable clothing prevalent especially in low income families. Many fast fashion companies such as Shein, Zara, and Forever 21 market their products for an unrealistic price point compared to the quality of their clothing.
The SOLUTION:
Our goal is to up-cycle and refurbish second hand or thrifted clothes into cute, trendy, designs. They are then donated to kids who do not have the opportunities of getting nice clothes. Our ultimate mission is to put a smile of the faces of local kids in our community and to work together to create a change!
We host monthly meetings to conduct a team of passionate people who are willing to dedicate their time to help create the up-cycled clothing. By holding community clothing drives, we collect any clothing pieces ranging from shirts, pants, and hoodies to towels, blankets, hats, etc. During club meetings, we distribute the donated clothing to the members and brainstorm ideas and designs that would go on them. They take the clothing and/or scraps and materials home and then have a month to work and refurbish them in a way custom to their likings that will be specialized and unique to children’s interests. For any of the members that are not familiar with how to sew, we hold sewing workshops that demonstrate and teach how to implement simple designs and detailings on clothing using scraps and common supplies. After, the up-cycled clothing is brought in, and then donated to our community partner, “Catholic Charities”. There, it will be accessible to the children of local communities.