We’ve all seen Red Cross clothing pickup areas. You may have seen them set up outside of shopping malls, public events, or near their own stores and facilities. They’re everywhere! The Red Cross, short for The American National Red Cross, is the 13th largest charity in the United States, as ranked by the amount of private donations made. In 2014 alone, they received $687 million in private donations. That’s quite a lot of people who decided to donate clothes!
Their role in society and the amount of aid they provide has not gone unnoticed or unappreciated — a study conducted in January of 2015 revealed that on any given night in the United States, there are over a half million homeless people on our streets. The Red Cross clothing pickups that you see around town are one of many initiatives the charity employs to offer aid to those less fortunate than us. It’s not just used clothing donations that the Red Cross is involved in, though. They also provide relief for families, communities, and individuals in the form of blankets, food, blood, and shelter 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. Red Cross donations are truly vital for so many, regardless of what it is that’s being donated.
Giving to those who are less fortunate allows you to feel truly special and unique, and will have you feeling like you’ve done more than your fair share to help your fellow person in need. Just knowing that someone is better off because of your charitable actions is one of the warmest feelings people can experience.
If you have any clothes laying around your home, or you feel that you might have friends or family who do (we’ve all got that one friend with too much in their closet!), consider putting together a donation and heading to a Red Cross clothing pickup location. You may not realize it, but your old, misused items may actually save someone’s life — and they will certainly thank you for it. What have you got to lose?