So much for helping the needy

Last week I mentioned another 4-5 carloads of stuff I got to haul out. 99% of this was baby items, clothes (LOTS!), strollers, toys, carseats, etc. I set up a yard sale on Friday and Saturday and made a grand total of $40. Again, not worth the effort.

I decided to do something good with all of this, and started looking up phone numbers to shelters. Battered women, homeless, all of them.........and not a single one had a way to come get them, and the battered womens shelter only wanted NEW clothing in the packages. I tried explaining that this stuff all looked like new,and some even still had the tags on them. Nope, no can do. "We don't want used", "We can't pick them up", " Just bring them here" is what I got. I told them ALL that this was a 4x8 trailer stacked 3 feet tall FULL of things, and I had no way to get it there. We share one vehicle now and Lisa has it to work. Of course, after she gets off work at 5, all of their donation windows or areas are closed. How is someone that actually works supposed to get it there anyway?????


I didn't know what to expect, but this wasn't it. I don't expect these places to all have big box trucks to spend gas and time picking things up, but maybe a volunteer with a pickup truck. I didn't expect to me made to feel like a nuicance because I had no way of delivering them free stuff. The one homeless shelter in Akron is the size of a large high school, yet has no way of picking up donations. I'm angry, dissapointed, and pretty disgusted with the way these places work. If it weren't for the internet and Freecycle, this stuff would probably end up at the street for the garbage man. Apparantly it's only charity if I take it to you.

Freecycle has become just as dissapointing. I posted this all yesterday morning and got over 40 responses. I handed out my address like it was candy, and FIVE have shown up, FIVE. Some have asked what brands they were,(are you serious???) some asked me to sort out all the certain sizes, one asked if I could hang onto everything till the weekend, and one (sorry but I found this funny) asked if I could hold everything till after 5 when her husband got off work. Not because she didn't have a car, not because she was watching the kids, but because she couldn't leave the house with the house-arrest ankle bracelet on. WHY would you tell a stranger that???? Was it some ploy to make me feel sorry for her???? I have no idea, but found it rather humorous.

After this dealing, I'll probably drop out of Freecycle. The no-shows are a pain in the ass, and the constant questions are annoying. I don't want to sit here all day and sort this stuff and make arrangements in my schedule so it's convienent for you, just come get the stuff, it's FREE. Their wanted posts get more rediculous by the day, I have seen them for cars, big screen tv's, laptops, newer furniture, lawnmowers...all kinds of things. Maybe it's the area, I dunno, but all of this just gives me more reason to lose faith in people in general. People, groups, charities, all of them.