In 1985 the
Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless created the Furniture
Bank, which collects donated furniture and household items and
distributes them to households as they transitioning from a homeless
shelter to a home of their own.
The Furniture Bank works very similarly to the food bank concept.
It solicits donations of beds, couches, chairs, tables, and other
household essentials; picks them up from donors; and distributes
them free of cost to those in need. The Coalition’s Furniture
Bank is one of the largest programs of its kind in the nation
and in Massachusetts. The program operates from its 40,000 square
foot warehouse on the North Shore. During the year, on average
over 3.5 million dollars worth of furniture and household goods
are collected and distributed to over 3,000 households making
the transition out of homelessness.
The shear scale of the Furniture Bank enables the program to
be cost effective and efficient in its operation. In its twenty
plus years of operation, the Furniture Bank has established relationships
with hundreds of businesses that have been willing to donate
needed items. The nature of these relationships and donations
vary, but they all share the common goal of helping to provide
the essential building blocks for a family’s stable future.
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