Community West Foundation Announces Socks+ Donation Drive

All donations are distributed locally to people in need

Community West Foundation is hosting a Socks+ Donation Drive to collect needed items for people experiencing homelessness. The goal of the drive is to help replenish the supplies at local nonprofit partners who are expecting an influx of need during the winter months.

The Socks+ Donation Drive is open to anyone in the community that wants to help make a difference. If you would like to give, drop off your donations on Monday, December 11th at Common Threads Thrift, 22049 Lorain Rd. in Fairview Park between 10 a.m.– 8 p.m. or Good Neighbor Thrift Shop, 158 Lear Rd. in Avon Lake between 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Please label donations ‘Socks+’.

Their current needs list includes:

  • New Socks
  • New Underwear (including women’s sports bras)
  • Hygiene products such as soap, shampoo, and deodorant
  • Winter hats and gloves
  • Backpacks
  • Sleeping bags

Community West started Socks+ in 2014 after learning that socks were, and still are, the number one requested item by people experiencing homelessness. Every year, they collect new socks and other essential items to be given directly to those in need. The Foundation works with the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless (NEOCH) to disperse the donated items to people living on the streets or in shelters.

“Common Threads is one of our thrift store partners for Socks+ because they are actually a social enterprise of Building Hope in the City, a nonprofit we support with grant funding,” commented Community West Foundation President and CEO, Marty Uhle.

Items for Socks+ that arrive at Common Threads are put in a special area of the store room until members from The Lantern Center for Recovery, a residential sober living facility, pick up the items and deliver them directly to NEOCH. “It’s remarkable the connections that have been formed through the Socks+ program,” Marty said. “It’s really the community partners that help make this program such a success.”

The Socks+ program expanded into Lorain County in 2021. A similar relationship was established with Good Neighbor Thrift Shop, a ministry of Avon Lake United Church of Christ, located at 158 Lear Road in Avon Lake. Donations are collected at their store location and then dispersed to various social services agencies with the help of United Way of Greater Lorain County.

Monetary donations are always welcome and can be made online at www.SockPlus.org or mailed to the Community West Foundation office located at 800 Sharon Drive, Suite C, Westlake, OH 44145. A gift of just $10 will help purchase 10 pairs of socks. A larger donation provides socks PLUS gloves, hats, boots and other necessities that are so desperately needed. When you support Socks+, 100% of your donation is used to provide caring assistance to our struggling neighbors.

The program has seen exponential growth since its inception in 2014 providing over $1 million in funding and in-kind donations to the homeless in our community.

Socks+ Donation Drive Details:

When: Monday, December 11th

Where: Common Threads Thrift, 22049 Lorain Rd. in Fairview Park from 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. • Good Neighbor Thrift Shop, 158 Lear Rd. in Avon Lake from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Their current needs list includes:

  • New Socks
  • New Underwear (including women’s sports bras)
  • Hygiene products such as soap, shampoo, and deodorant
  • Winter hats and gloves
  • Backpacks
  • Sleeping bags

Please label donations ‘Socks+’.

About Community West Foundation

The mission of Community West Foundation is to advance the health and well-being of our community. The staff and Board of Directors are guided by the words in Matthew 25:35-40. While their mission is based on these teachings, they are not affiliated with any particular religion. Their grantees, friends and donors come from diverse faiths and practices.

For more information, contact Community West Foundation at 440-360-7370 or visit communitywestfoundation.org.