Clothing Drive
The next Clothing Drive is Saturday, May 12, 2012, from 9AM to 2PM, at all seven Hilander Stores!
According to a May, 2011 article in the Chicago Tribune, the government estimates that Americans throw 85% of their unwanted textiles (clothes, bedding, curtains, etc.) in the trash every year.
To combat this waste and keep unwanted textiles fron winding up in our landfills, 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 2010 Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful had collected, processed and forwarded to third-world countries over 2.5 million pounds of reusable clothing. The three Clothing Drives of 2010 saw over 5,400 area household participating.
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.
