Kraft Clothing Pantry - Jewish Social Action Month 2012

Columbia/Barnard Hillel's Kraft Clothing Pantry is currently collecting clothing and accessories, in good condition, to victims of Hurricane Sandy as well as the broader homeless and low-income men, women, and children of New York City and surrounding neighborhoods.

Due to the tremendous amount of donations received, we are currently unable to accept more at this time. Please email any questions to kclothingpantry@gmail.com

This community wide partnership is taking place during Jewish Social Action Month and is supported by the UJA-Federation of NY.

We would like to thank the following organizations for helping us:

The Bronfman Center/Hillel at NYU

Rodeph Shalom

     The Alumni Community/JEC

Lincoln Square Synagogue

Stay tuned for more information!

What’s this clothing drive all about?

Columbia/Barnard Hillel is proud to participate in Jewish Social Action Month (JSAM) thanks to a generous grant from the UJA-Federation of New York. JSAM is a global initiative that uses social action as a vehicle for building bridges between groups and diverse communities during the month of Cheshvan.

After 10+ years of service, the UJA-Federation of New York grant will allow Columbia/Barnard Hillel’s Kraft Clothing Pantry (KCP) to expand its initiatives into a community wide partnership. KCP is a student-run clothing pantry located in Bishop Library on the second floor of the Kraft Center at Columbia/Barnard Hillel. Every Friday during the academic year, KCP opens its doors to homeless and low-income men, women and children in Morningside Heights, Washington Heights, Harlem and surrounding neighborhoods so that they can come and receive much-needed clothing items for themselves and their family members. All of the volunteers are students, and the majority of donations come from students, too!

We feel that KCP is an important part of the community and we are so happy to be a part of it. To us, charity represents the tenet by which our Jewish faith was founded. This concept is highlighted in Deuteronomy (15:7-8), when G-d says we must “not harden [our] hearts nor shut [our] hands from [the] poor.” KCP offers students, like ourselves, with the unique opportunity to help better the world in which we live, improving the lives of others, and ultimately fulfilling the will of G-d by making a difference in the world.

The integral role KCP plays becomes even more pronounced in light of tragic events, like Hurricane Sandy. When people’s houses and possessions are destroyed, basic needs like clothing are in high demand. We feel KCP embodies the phrase  that “Kol Yisrael arevim zeh la-zeh,“ meaning “All Israel is responsible for one another.” We feel it is incumbent upon our organization to redouble our efforts to provide for people who are in dire need for clothing.

Each and every volunteer at KCP is setting out to make that difference by welcoming every visitor with a warm greeting and helping them to select clothing that allows them to live proudly. There is no better way to brighten a person’s day than by showing how much we genuinely care. Each visitor is treated with the dignity and respect they deserve. Because of our efforts, we have clothed people for job interviews and warmed their souls during cold winters.

KCP is more than just a clothing pantry, it's an important part of our Jewish lives and we are thrilled to share the essence of this organization with the greater Jewish community.

Thank you for joining us to help others!

Presidents of Columbia/Barnard Hillel’s Kraft Clothing Pantry

Adina Applebaum

Alana Warhit

Michael Schiff