Join us for this year's Family Circle clothing drive

Join us for this year's Family Circle clothing drive
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Last year, Goodwill teamed up with Family Circle to invite their readers across the country to donate clothing to their local Goodwills. Our goal was to reach 5 million pounds of clothing donations, but by the end of the initiative, we had more than 11 million pounds!

We're hoping to repeat this success this year, and I know I'll be doing my part. What I love about giving to Goodwill is how the organization creates value in clothes that most people think have already fulfilled their uses.

For instance, according to Goodwill's online Donation Impact Calculator, that old suit just hanging in the back of my closet can support 16 minutes of a job search class for a Goodwill participant. If I combine that with my wife's winter coat, we can nearly double that amount of training time provided by Goodwill, enabling someone in my community to gain a foothold in the workplace.

Someone like Doyle McGee. Doyle was able to leave behind a life of homelessness and alcoholism after participating in a job search program at Goodwill of Central Indiana .

Less than a month later, Doyle had the opportunity to volunteer and train in customer service. A year later, this experience helped him secure a position with the State of Indiana as a customer service representative. Because of his amazing strength and drive, Doyle was named that Goodwill's Achiever of the Year in 2009.

With the support of our partner, Family Circle, we are able to help more folks like Doyle have opportunities to find dignity through the power of work.

The Back-to-School clothing drive started on August 2, and will end on Thursday, September 30.

What's in your closet that can take on a new value for others in your community?

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