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.