California Closets

Yesterday, I had a team of 4 volunteers. Many of them were brand new to the Canadian Red Cross. We had 6 impacted clients and families reach out for support. Many of them we helped refer them to the correct agency or organization that can give them support. However, there was one couple who lived in a basement suite that needed assistance from a fire that damanged the entire home. I worked with a new volunteer to go step by step to learn how to take care of this couple. The volunteer was able to get the couple to an hotel with transporation & then get them visa cards for basic level of food and clothing money assistance. We now have 3 new volunteers that now have access to their Red Cross credentials and are gaining confidence assisting impacted individuals from disasters.

Sunday morning received a call from an individual that had a basement flooded. Found resources and agency referrals to support this individual and their family to be able to start to recover from this disaster.

The California Closets team in Southern New Jersey (NJ071) spent time last week volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, supporting a local resident. Habitat for Humanity is a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to help people have access to safe, decent, and affordable housing. Its vision is “a world where everyone has a decent place to live.”

"This is the second year in a row that we've partnered with Habitat. Their vision aligns with our values and our deep commitment to making space for what belongs. Thank you to our team members who joined us for this community event," said Marilyn Dolnick, General Manager.

The team spent the workday doing yard clean-up in 100-degree heat and humidity. Thank you and Kudos to (from left to right in group pic solid blue shirts): Lauren Napoli (designer), Kara Collins (Sales Mgr), Brandon Wall (Lead Installer), Scott Varga (Install Mgr), Tom Cullen (designer), Jaci Voss (designer); Emily Little (designer) is not pictured.

Our California Closets team in Raleigh continually seeks out opportunities to give back to the communities where they live and work. In June, the team partnered with the local Make-a-Wish Foundation on a very special project. The team volunteered their time to design and donate an entire room for a young girl who is bedridden. The goal was to create a beautiful, inviting environment that not only reflected her personality but also made daily life easier for her and her family, providing custom storage for her medical equipment and other essential items. It was an incredibly rewarding project and we're grateful to have been part of making her space more functional, comfortable and uplifting.

In preparing for "back to school", the California Closets (FL107) Florida Owned Operations team planned a timely event to stuff backpacks for underprivileged students from local schools. The team had fun doing the event together and built new connections with their community. “Belonging means ensuring every student feels supported and set up for success. By stuffing backpacks for these local students, we’re helping create a more inclusive community and giving children the tools they need to start the school year with confidence,” said Staci Russell, Regional General Manager, FL

Assisted impacted individuals to get them into short-term accommodation, food, and clothing for two major events that occurred in Edmonton the week of July 13th. The events were a flash rain storm that flooded many basement suites and an apartment explosion that displaced numerous individuals & families that did not have insurance and/or of less means. I served two 48-hour shifts to support these activities.

Our Franchise Ops Team teamed up with United Way Knoxville to pack 150 cold weather kits. These are bags packed with gloves, hats, socks, hand warmers, and basic essentials for the unhoused community through the city's cold weather shelters.

We took our passion for efficiency to heart and packed the kits within 30 minutes, which allowed for more time spent creating handwritten cards for the individuals receiving the kits. We even personally designed a system onsite as you can see from this professional drawing on one of our cards

As a team, we had so much fun coming together, creating personal cards to bring others a moment of joy, and feeling accomplished in knowing we have had a hand in making a difference in someone's day.

The team at United Way Knoxville were amazing hosts and made us feel right at home. They were so kind to share a bit of their history, culture, and the reason(s) why they do what they do every day.