WESTFIELD — Jill Keenan, Westfield High School English teacher and WHS Community Closet coordinator, recently spoke to the Westfield Education to Business Alliance about the success and continued needs of the closet, which provides needed items to students, faculty and staff at the school at no charge.
“We’re newly renovated. The community really came together to allow this to happen,” Keenan said, adding that the catalyst for the renovation was state Sen. John Velis (D-Westfield), who put a line item in the state budget for $5,000.
Keenan said the grant from Velis was also the catalyst to move the Community Closet to its present location, with the help of the custodial staff who moved the huge cabinets and the IT department who moved the servers.
After the initial grant, the Home Depot Foundation came through with a grant of $11,000. She said their donated labor, time and talent are behind the new dressing room, floors, countertops and freshly painted walls. A grand opening for the new space took place last February.
“The entire place was redone with those two funding sources. It really makes the space inviting, welcoming, warm and beautiful. All members of our community feel good about walking in there,” Keenan said.
Keenan herself staffs the Community Closet every “F” period from 12:15-1 p.m., but if any students need something at another time, they can go to guidance, a nurse or an administrator who can all accompany them. She said they get approximately 1,000 visits a semester.
“Everyone in the WHS community uses and is invited to use it — students, teachers and staff members,” Keenan said, adding that teachers often grab pens and pencils, and students go for school supplies and personal care items which allow them to continue with their education instead of going home.
Keenan gave the example of a spill or an accident of some sort. “They can grab a sweatshirt and not go home for the day, which allows students to continue their education uninterrupted.” She said the closet is not seeking donations of clothing at this time, which she said are often not teenage appropriate. She said students and teachers often donate clothing themselves.
The top current needs are for lip balm and deodorant, which are the most requested items, and for which the Community Closet has no budget. Other items in demand include leave-in hair conditioner and gel, sweatshirts and sweatpants.
“The most important thing is personal care items. it’s the personal care items that I really struggle to keep on the shelves. I don’t have a funding source or a budget. The kindness of the community is the only way I can get money. If people want to donate cash, there is an account here at the school — they can make a check out to the WHS Community Closet for personal care items.” Keenan said checks and donations may be dropped off at the WHS office between 7:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.
There is also an Amazon wish list for the WHS Community Closet at tinyurl.com/9uta7v9f.
For the second year in a row, Jess Shular-Dunlop, owner of Très Lounge Luxury Salon and her staff are partnering with WHS and the Community Closet, collecting donations of personal care and other wish list items over the holidays, which she said is really helpful. Keenan also gave a “shout-out” to Advance Manufacturing for a recent donation.
Keenan said Westfield High School Principal Charles Jendrysik was really the one who “got the ball rolling” on the WHS Community Closet. “The support of Charles Jendrysik has been instrumental to making us the success that we are,” she said.
