Pagan Goodwill?
By Scott_Harper
@Scott_Harper (13)
United States
September 22, 2008 12:47pm CST
I work part-time for Goodwill. I don't want to go into it all here, but in the seven months or so that I've been there I've learned one thing - Goodwill doesn't have much goodwill. A lot of homeless people come to us for help. What does Goowill do? Send them away, telling them to go to FEMA. It breaks my heart to have to deny these people the clothing and things they ask for. But, that's Goodwill's policy. If you want it, you buy it. They refuse to give anything to these people. At last that's the way the store I work for is run.
So, I have a question. Is there any pagan/Wiccan version of Goodwill that might actually help needy people? If so, I want to know about it.
1 person likes this
3 responses
@bunnyhoover (406)
• United States
15 Mar 09
THat is a rather interesting concept. I've never heard of a store like that and I've been all over the country. I think it sounds fantastic. I do know of several nonreligious groups that take donations and give them out to the local homeless community. One of the best I have encountered works with homeless children out in Colorado. They helped me out a whole bunch when I was younger. The group is called stand up for kids. I have never came across any pagan goodwill stores though.
@Scott_Harper (13)
• United States
15 Mar 09
Far as I know, nothing like that exists, either. It would be nice to see a pagan/Wiccan version of Goodwill start up.
Scott
@jonesy123 (3948)
• United States
23 Sep 08
Lol, I don't know about a pagan/Wiccan version of Goodwill, but I know that Goodwill is essentially a business and everything on the floor is for sale, not for free. Most people don't know that the clothes and other items they donate are sold, albeit cheap, but still they are sold. If the homeless need free clothing, toiletries, blankets, pillows or such, they need to go and inquire with the shelters and churches, some of which do have provisions for items like that. The Red Cross and Salvation Army do, too, to an extend.
FEMA, however, is not responsible for handing out these items unless these people are in a catastrophe area like right now Texas for example, where so many people lost so much due to Ike. So that would be the wrong place to send them.
@Scott_Harper (13)
• United States
23 Sep 08
Still, FEMA is where the store I work for sends people who go in asking for help. But you're right - most people have no idea what Goodwill does. Not long ago, when the massive flooding was taking place in some of the states north of here, people were showing up at the donation trailer I work in with piles and piles of blankets and towels. They were donating these things just for flood victims. What happened to it all? It got picked up by the driver, taken to the store, priced and put on the sales floor to be sold to whomever paid for them first.
Then you have the other people who don't know or care what Goodwill is. They simply want to take out their trash and do so by bringing it to us. We throw away massive amounts of stuff that's nothing more than garbage that people "donate". We're not even allowed to hand that stuff out to the homeless people who ask. If I'm caught giving anything to anyone I'm fired, simple as that. It really bothers me to have to turn these people away. They need help. They come to us thinking we'll give it to them. Then I have to tell them, no, sorry, I'm not allowed and send them away. Goodwill would rather throw things in a landfill than give them to needy people. It makes me sick. Yet, I'm not at a point yet of being able to make a living from my writing alone and need a part-time job on the side. If I did what I really want to do and walk away from Goodwill, I'd be in a whole different type of trouble. It'd be really nice to find such an organization that actually helps people who need the help.
@Amarantha (32)
•
1 Nov 10
I agree that it is wrong that items that people donate for the poor and needy end up being sold for profit but try looking at it from a more cynical point of view. if these items were just handed out to anyone who came into the store for free then anyone could take free clothes. how would you know if these people were really needy or if they were just people who wanted free stuff.
it would be better to donate to a non profit charity store that sends all the proceeds from sold items to organisation to pay for supplies.
at the end of the day it is difficult to know what our donations are being used for (take for example the millions of £/$ sent to countries such as africa to help save the poor people that is simply taken by the government and used to supply their armies which continue to oppress the people)
Amy *
