Local charity holds giveaway with clothes donated from Dillard’s store closing

WARREN, Ohio (WKBN) — When Dillard’s in Niles closed , they donated all the leftover “brand-new” clothes to the Warren Family Mission.

Now, the mission is using that to give back to the community.

The dining area of the Warren Family Mission is looking more like a clothing store on Friday as it holds a clothing giveaway.

The mission received a large donation of more than 5000 clothing items and shoes from the Dillard’s clearance center when it closed its location at the Eastwood Mall.

Hundreds of people lined up outside the mission’s building on Todd Avenue, waiting for the opportunity to pick out a few clothes.

“Each person was allowed four articles of clothing and a pair of shoes,” Dominic Mararri of the Warren Family Mission said. “Those here say they’re grateful Dillard’s chose to donate to the Mission.”

Susan Findlay was in line for the giveaway.

“I’m hoping I can find something in my size,” Findlay said. “I can’t afford to buy a lot of clothes anymore.”

It took a lot of help to prepare for the giveaway.

Before the clothes were set out, volunteers took the tags off of each individual article of clothing.

“We are just happy to be able to make a difference and just share the blessing given the chance to pick out four new articles of clothing and a pair of shoes,” Mararri said.

The dining area looked a lot more like a clothing store.

“Clothes are expensive, and this right here saves money in your pocket,” shopper Latanya McDougal said.

Both organizers and recipients say they’re thankful for Dillard’s donation.

“There are many different organizations or ways they could have chosen to liquidate the items. They could have sent them overseas, they could have dumped them in a dumpster, but they chose to keep them local right here in our community,” Mararri said.

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