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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, February 20, 2015 | 8 Plato's Closet opens its doors to local charities by Nathan Howes Special to the Beaver Plato's Closet is sharing goodwill and clothing to help those in need stay warm. Last Friday, the Oakville business offered two local charitable groups the opportunity to select an assortment of clothing freeof-charge for the clients they serve. Bill Shields, executive director of Safetynet Children and Youth Charities, and Michelle Whalen, manager of Burlington's Caroline Families First program, dropped by the store to gather much-needed garments for their respective groups. Plato's Closet buys and sells slightly-used clothing for youths and young adults. Sisters Jill McChesney and Melody Taylor opened the Oakville locale on Iroquois Shore Road in spring 2014. "Today (Feb. 13) is about giving back to the community in a meaningful way. We've gone through our first winter clearance and we have a lot of items that need to leave the store," said Taylor. "We've linked up with a couple of community agencies that will take these clothes and pass them along at no cost to families in need." Two local agencies Safetynet is an Oakvillebased charity that provides an array of services and clothing to struggling children, youths and their families. Caroline Families First is a new family-driven, wraparound model of care that seeks to address the need for more open communication between primary care and community-based mental health services. Taylor has a connection with Caroline Families First, as she was "intimately involved" with the program prior to opening Plato's Closet, she said. "Having worked in Halton in that capacity for the past 18 years, I'm also acutely aware of the desperate need of a lot of families. People have this perception that Halton is a rich community and there's no poverty or need, but that's not the truth," said Taylor. "Working one-on-one with families was close to my heart. I thought this would be a good opportunity." McChesney reached out to Shields after looking for organizations that were "right around here," she said, noting Plato's Closet donated numerous coats to Safetynet at Christmas last year. "We went down (to Safetynet) and saw there was a huge need. I thought it was just clothes, but it does tutoring, music lessons and there are psychologists that donate their time to counselling with families and kids. We were very impressed," said McChesney. The store owners wanted to ensure their surplus of winter clothing would be donated, McChesney said, as giving it to organizations that are "best-positioned to recognize where the need is" and can get it to people immediately is a win-win. Funded through donations Shields said Safetynet "survives off community donations," as it provides free clothing to more than 1,700 families. "We service so many people that we rely on donations to put clothes on people's backs. We always need the clothing. Families are allowed to come in seasonally for clothing, so we go through a lot every year," said Shields. The clothing Shields picked up varied in type and age bracket, as Safetynet services "full families" -- from infants to adults, as well as business suits for adults, he said. The Oakville charity also provides free, one-on-one tutoring and lessons for piano, guitar, violin and vocals. The idea behind tutoring is to work with generational poverty, Shields said, as offering it one-on-one not only helps with academics, it's also "to mentor the importance of an education." "Hopefully a child, through help with academics and mentoring, will go on to get a skill in community college or university and that's what breaks the cycle of poverty. Music is a good outlet for kids," said Shields. Caroline Families First partners with the Reach Out Centre for Kids (ROCK), Caroline Family Health Team (C-FHT) and parents of children with mental health challenges. Whalen noted the program works with families with "pretty intensive needs" and children who have mental health issues. The manager said Caroline Families First will "really benefit" from Plato's Closet's donations because many families are struggling to find winter clothing for their children. "We're connecting with agencies within the community that are willing to donate items and help support families to do recreational activities. This is really great for what we do and for our families that are involved," said Whalen, noting the initiative launched in January 2014. Plato's Closet Oakville held a free shopping spree for two local charities -- SafetyNet Children and Youth Charity and Caroline Families First. Pictured are SafetyNet's Executive Director Bill Shields as he loads the arms of shop co-owner Jill McChesney with jeans. | photo by Graham Paine ­ Oakville Beaver (Follow on Twitter @halton_photog or facebook.com/HaltonPhotog) Colour + Inspiration = Home Carpet Cleaning Specialists Since 1952 905-257-2061 478 Dundas St. W., Oakville Visit our website www.PaintersPlace.ca for Promotional discounts On The Spot! Residential & commeRcial Wall to Wall FURnitURe & UPHolsteRY aRea RUGs PeRsian & oRiental Let our team inspire you! Dave McConnell McConnell Painting Truck Mount In-Plant Service Water damage Restoration Tom marino PainTers Place See the transformation of what we can do in relation to others! 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