All month many of you have been collecting clothes for the Westside Freestore on Sullivant Avenue in Columbus. I thought it would be good to take some time this week to ask a few folks from the Freestore to explain a little more about this ministry, share their heart, and let us know what their needs might be.

So I’ve conducted a quick interview with Michelle Fransisco and Mike Gadomski. Both are Board Members for the Freestore, but were volunteers for the ministry before ever participating in the leadership. I’ll let them tell you in their own words why they are so involved:

What exactly IS the Westside Freestore? What's the story behind it?

Mike: The Free Store came from the concept that God has provided enough for all of us. Unfortunately much of what he has provided is not distributed as it should be. Pastor Steve Rodgers (the pastor at Crossroads 5 years ago) felt the concept of the United Methodist Free Store on Parsons Ave could be replicated on the Westside because we had many people that could benefit from it in another location. A small group of people from Crossroads started the planning but realized that we alone could not take on a project of this magnitude. We started reaching out to other churches on the Westside and soon had around 10 churches involved in the planning. After finding the 3030 Sullivant location we claimed the building for God and his new ministry. We found new energy and quickly started the planning for opening the store. We renovated the interior and finally opened the Free Store in August of 2004. Our biggest fear was that we would not have enough goods to provide to those in need. But we soon discovered that was not a problem. We had an abundance of goods, volunteers and shoppers.

Michelle: The Westside Free Store motto was "sharing resources, building
relationships and creating community". I think that sums it up pretty well.
We don't use or exhibit that motto enough, do we?

Why did you get involved with the Freestore in the fist place?

Michelle: I originally got involved because I lived in the Westgate area and knew of the need in our community […] to coordinate an effort to help those in need while also creating a place for the neighborhood to give the things they no longer used.

Mike: I believe that there is enough in this world to provide for everyone and felt I needed to do something to see our abundance get to those that need it. I wanted to do what Christ asked us to do by providing the least of these something to eat, something to drink, invite them in, clothe them, visit them and come to see them.

What makes the Freestore vital to the Westside of Columbus?

Michelle: I think many customers would say shopping at the Free Store allows them to direct their money to more vital needs (food, rent, utilities) rather than
than the clothes necessary for warmth, cleanliness and general existence in
society. I think its also seen as a reliable resource and hopefully, one
that is rooted in the love of Jesus, without judgment.

Mike: I also believe the Free Store provides a sense of community to the shoppers. I have witnessed many times the sharing amongst the shoppers of information about jobs, services and advice about how to shop at the Free Store.

What does the Freestore hope to accomplish in the future?

Mike: First off we hope to be able to continue to be in service to the community. We can best do so by raising more funds so that we can provide the services that our customers need. We also would like to add to our ministries by providing educational opportunities such as parenting, health and English classes. We hope to be able to provide furniture and more household goods in the future so we can be a one stop shop to help our customers. This we should be able to do by partnering with organizations such as yours.

Michelle: More churches committing themselves to this mission would increase the number of volunteers and the revenue necessary to exist. Also a goal would be to convince our landlord that our monthly rental fee should be lowered (or forgiven completely) so that we could redirect our limited income to more beneficial means that would positively impact the people of the west side. More broadly, we are sharing the love of Jesus Christ in giving to others and hope to make disciples of these beautiful human beings.

What are the greatest needs at the Freestore? What can people do
to help and how can they contact someone to get involved?

Mike: First off we need an Executive Director who can help us. We are searching for a new director with little success to this point.

Michelle: Our hope is that in hiring an executive director, someone will be able to dedicate their attention to engaging more congregations and organizations, grant writing and public relations. Creating a new base of volunteers is essential to our long-term viability. So, we need volunteers, and a continuing flow of donations to stock the floor and maintain the commodity that keeps people coming through the doors. To get involved, I simply recommend they visit the store any week on Monday (10-1), Thursday (3-6) or Saturday (9-3) and they will quickly be put to work. We are always in need of personal hygiene items that are given out to customers (shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant, soap, etc.) and a work/church or neighborhood drive for these items are always greatly appreciated.

Mike: We need additional funding. It costs us around $60,000/year currently to keep the store open without the aid of paid staff. We have support from many of our churches but we do not receive enough from the ones that are currently giving. We need volunteers to help in the store. Many of our core volunteers are starting to experience health problems. By core volunteers I am referring to those who are often at the store most of the days we are open. We need to have more volunteers that can help these folks out so they do not feel the full burden of operating the store.

For our customers we need household goods. We used to have many to choose from but as the economy has worsened we have seen a reduction in those type of goods. We also need children’s and men's clothing. We often have to tell our shoppers that we do not have what they may be looking for. Hygiene items are also in constant need. When money is tight the hygiene items such as tooth paste and brushes, shampoo and soap are the first to be left off the grocery list.

Thanks Mike and Michelle for sharing a bit more with us about the Westside Freestore! For those interested in more information, you can check out the website at www.westsidefsm.org. Also, for those who didn't see it last time I posted it, you can check out a clip from Morgan Spurlock's television show which featured the Freestore.

Thanks everyone!