NewThreads of Hope, founded as a Wisconsin gift-in-kind charity in 1990, collects manufacturers’ and retailers’ overstocks, past season’s lines and other products to donate them to health and human services and faith-based organizations free of charge.
“NewThreads does not make any direct distributions to individuals; rather, over the years we have formed partnerships with hundreds of different nonprofits that reach out to a variety of people in need: single moms looking for work, the homeless, children living in poverty, refugees and families and individuals just struggling to keep their heads above water in these tough economic times,” said Dennis Brand, president of NewThreads of Hope. “We provide brand-new clothes for new opportunities, items to turn a house into a home and educational materials to foster children’s literacy and academic success.”
All of the items collected are processed to remove labels/hang tags, sorted at the organization’s warehouse at 3001 N. 112th St., and then delivered to qualifying nonprofits for free. NewThreads has distributed more than 2.5 million items valued at over $100 million to the greater Milwaukee community, across the country and abroad. This year, NewThreads is on target to distribute goods valued at more than $700 million.
“NewThreads is run by a volunteer board of directors, a small paid staff of three and hundreds of volunteers that contribute more than 7,500 hours of volunteer time each year,” Brand said. “We are always in need of volunteers. And because no one that receives anything from NewThreads pays even a penny for the items, we rely on funders to underwrite our activities.”
To learn more about NewThreads of Hope or financial gifts, merchandise donations and volunteering, visit newthreads.org or call the office at 414-443-0060. Companies interested in donating merchandise can call the number above or contact Brand at djbrand47@newthreads.org or Megan Byrne, director of development at mbyrne@gmail.org.
