Find your right fit at this year’s Dream Closet

Dream Closet to offer free, gently used clothing April 24

It is officially time to get excited because Dream Closet has announced that their next free shopping event will be on April 24.

For those that do not know, Dream Closet is a recognized student-led organization here at MSU. It started in November of 2013 after Kylen Feltes, an MSU junior at the time, realized the strong need for clothing in the community. YWCA assisted her and her idea of a free shopping event and with their help, and the help of many others, they held their first very successful free shopping event in December of 2013.

Dream Closet events were originally only planned to be held as holiday events. However, there was a seasonal need for clothing so these events are now held every spring, fall, and holiday season completely free for everyone in the community.

How it works is the organization holds a donation event where anyone can donate clothing. They accept men’s, women’s, and children’s clothing along with shoes and accessories. All donations must to be in good condition with no holes, tears, stains, etc.

Next, after the donations have gone through a quality check, a free shopping event takes place. This is where all of the donations are laid out and anyone can come and take what they need with no cost. It is positively a wonderful event for anyone to attend.

This year’s donation event is held at WowZone on Saturday, April 16 from 12-3 p.m. Here is where anyone can bring any clothing items that they wish to donate.

According to President Allison Theis, the amounts of every type of clothing vary for every event. However, more variety of children’s clothing and plus size items have usually been asked for by shoppers. A free coupon for a game of mini golf or bowling at WowZone will be given out to each family that donates at least one bag of clothing.

This gives the Dream Closet organization a chance to really connect with the community and have some fun at the same time. Past events have just included placing white boxes in different areas around Mankato and North Mankato for people to drop their donations in. Hosting the donation event at WowZone is new to the Dream Closet organization.
“I’m excited to see how the event goes; I think it will be more successful!” said President Allison Theis. If anyone is unable to make this event but would still like to donate some of their clothing items, donation boxes will be placed outside of YMCA and College Town Apartments from April 15-19.

On April 24, Dream Closet will be holding their next free shopping event for the community. This will be the eighth time this event has taken place. It will be located in MSU’s Centennial Student Union Ballroom from 2-4 p.m. Everyone in the community is invited to shop around and take any clothing items that they need completely free of charge. There is no limit as to how many items you can take. Dream Closet personal shoppers will also be at the event to help guests navigate through the clothing and find what they are looking for. To top it all off, the event will even include professional face painting by Face 2 Face Creations, a photo booth with professional photography, and snacks and refreshments all free of charge.

The community could not be more grateful for such an amazing event. When asked what one of her favorite things about this event was, President Allison Theis said, “One of my favorite things is the smiles that we bring to everyone’s faces. Every time I talk to shoppers at the events, they are so joyful and grateful that we put this all together just for them. It’s amazing being able to hear their stories and how they ended up walking in our doors.”

Dream Closet is truly an inspiring event that greatly benefits the entire community. If you have any questions about the Dream Closet events, feel free to contact President Allison Theis by email at allison.theis@mnsu.edu.