Community Closet

The Community Closet's mission is larger than providing affordable second-hand clothing & household goods; we're also one of the largest charitable foundations in Park County. The Community Closet is redefining the business model for both pollution prevention and philanthropic second-hand sales.

The Community Closet opened 14 years ago with a new model for second-hand philanthropy. We don't raise funds for a single organization as most thrift stores do, we raise funds to give out as grants to nonprofits and civic activities throughout Park County. We maximize our community impact rather than maximizing our revenue stream. Since opening in 2005 we have given out more than $450,000 in cash grants and distributed thousands of dollars of materials to Park County nonprofits and civic activities.

We receive and process hundreds of tons of donations annually, segmenting goods to sell in distinct markets in three stores. Through Give a Hoot we are raising funds for equipment to enhance the safety and sustainability of our donation processing system. Carrying hundreds of pounds of donated materials daily from intake to our three stores' sales floors is a herculean effort and is rife with safety hazards. Investing in equipment is an investment in keeping our employees healthy, happy and safe. Personnel is not just our greatest expense, but our most precious asset and we hope you will donate today to help make Community Closet more safe and sustainable while increasing our scope of service.

We maximize donations by segmenting goods for sale at our three stores plus the free bins in front of the thrift store so everyone across our community's financial spectrum has access to clothing, household goods, and reading material. To handle ever increasing donations while maintaining our convenient flagship thrift shop location, we opened the Alley Annex for lower-value overflow and upscale goods go to our main street Curated Closet store.

With so much movement of so many heavy materials, we strategically took a very helpful year-long Montana State Fund WorkSafe Champion safety training and education program. Community Closet is dedicated to safety in the workplace for our employees, volunteers, and shoppers, including safety education about donated products and announcements about product recalls. Learn more at https://www.communitycloset.org/single-post/2019/01/09/Unsafe-and-in-Our-Town

After focusing on giving back to the community, now we need your help to raise $16,000 through Give a Hoot to purchase safety equipment and supplies to maximize our space and efficiency, prevent injury, and keep our workforce diverse by using equipment that doesn't require great physical strength and allows us to hire more women, older workers, and those with physical challenges. Our goal is to widen our alley intake door to a double door to increase both capacity and safety and eliminate the possibility of collision. The other crucial need is to purchase a roller-rack to convey donations instead of manually lifting and carrying every contribution, which will speed up the process for donors while minimizing what is currently back-breaking work.

Investing in equipment to reduce our repeated lifting is an investment in our employees' well being, the sustainability of our model, and will increase the amount of products available for sale, raising more money to give back to the community. Thank you for your investment.

Testimonials

-> "I love that whether I'm donating or purchasing items, the proceeds fund community grants and projects. This is a great town, and Community Closet does an exceptional job caring for it!! Bravo!" - Andrea Danielson

-> "This amazing & welcoming place is one of the reasons we moved to Livingston... Really!" - Darlene Pucillo

-> "Great staff and treasure hunting! I admire how much they do for our community!" - Christine Grohusky

-> "My kids were clothed in style through Community Closet. And then, everything was donated back to pay it forward! It felt just as good giving, as it did receiving!" - Julie Gaye Benden

-> "This is a Must Stop Shop, every time I'm in beautiful Livingston!!!! The staff are amazing and it's TRUE- I never know what treasures I'll find, but I always leave with at least one bag, a big smile and a very warm heart. Love you!" - Scarlette Meersen

-> "The Community Closet has saved me! Years when I couldn't afford any Christmas presents I found incredible ones there, for a fraction of the cost. . . they are there when you need them, for a warm coat, or new pants, and for when you just want something new: a new puzzle or basket." - Jody Davis

-> "Always find something interesting and unusual. Love what you do for the community." - Pattie Rolf Stokes

-> "Community Closet, a small thrift store, is doing more in terms of safety than some of the much larger and much more exposed policyholders that I work with. " - Mark Rosenleaf, ARM, Safety Management Consultant, Montana State Fund