Clothing Drive

Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful sponsors three clothing collection drives annually in cooperation with the Hilander Stores in the Stateline area. These are usually scheduled early in May, July and October. We will accept clothing at any of the seven area Hilander stores from 9:00 AM till 2:00 PM. Clothing Drive Dates.

Clothing donated should be clean and in wearable condition. We do not accept rags or items which could only be used as rags. Included is men's, women's and children 's apparel, shoes, belts, purses, bed linens (sheets, pillow cases, blankets, etc.) and other household linens such as curtains. Stuffed toys and pillows are also accepted. Items should be placed in plastic drawstring bags and securely tied. Hangers must be removed. Shoes should be tied together or at least in the same bag.

By the end of 2006 Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful had collected, processed and forwarded to third-world countries almost 1.5 million pounds of reusable clothing.Clothing items are collected and shipped immediately to a supplier in Milwaukee who processes all items on to other countries within 30 days of our collection date. Countries where the clothing is sent include Africa, Asia, Central America and South America as well as to some areas of the United States.

The first Clothing Drive was held Saturday, June 12, 1999. Volunteers at two locations (Roscoe Hilander and Brynwood Square Hilander) unloaded nearly 23,000 pounds of materials for reuse and recycling. Old coats, hats, shoes, pants, shirts, blouses, dresses, backpacks, towels, curtains, bathmats and more were donated by the community. The most recent Clothing Drive netted almost 115,000 pounds of materials.

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