How Repairers of the Breach’s Clothing Bank Helps the Homeless
As temperatures dip, donated clothes help the city's most vulnerable people.
Volunteer Mike Sinclair organizes donations inside Repairers of the Breach, 1335 W. Vliet St., on Wednesday, Dec. 3. (Photo by Jonathan Aguilar / Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service / CatchLight Local)
In the busy halls of Repairers of the Breach, a daytime refuge and resource center for homeless adults, people sit in front of a television trying to stay warm during subfreezing temperatures in Milwaukee.
Many are in need of winter essentials, including clothes, to help them keep warm when they aren’t inside. Clothes donations are stored in several rooms at the center, 1335 W. Vliet St.
Winter accessories sit in a bin ready to be distributed at Repairers of the Breach. Photo from NNS.
Organizers try to maintain a constant influx of winter gear to donate. As donations come in, they are sorted by volunteers to ensure they are distributing quality garments to those who need it most in Milwaukee: the homeless population.
If a person is in an emergency situation and needs resources outside of a Monday, they can come in during the center’s regular operating hours and receive what they need. Those hours run from 7 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Pants organized by size sit on shelves ready for anyone who needs them. Photo from NNS.
Daniel Thomas, program coordinator at Repairers of the Breach, said once the weather changes from hot to cold, the center sees an increase in people who show up in need of resources.
Donations are accepted at the resource center from 7:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Monday through Saturday for all types of clothes.
The shelter also reopened the emergency warming room. It operates daily from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Here is information about all the warming centers in Milwaukee.
Shoes in all different sizes and styles sit on a rack inside the clothing bank. Photo from NNS.
Darren Ingram, a staff member at Repairers of the Breach, stocks quilts on a shelf. Photo from NNS.
As temperatures drop, here is where you can find shelter from the cold and free winter gear
Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between CatchLight Local and Report for America.
This article first appeared on Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
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