ROYAL PALM BEACH, Fla. — Financial struggles brought on by the pandemic have made it a very challenging year for many families. Some are finding themselves reaching for help for the first time ever. During these tough times, Margi Bre is working tirelessly to make sure no family or child in Palm Beach or Broward County goes without what they need.
“I do it because I’ve been there. I’ve struggled in my life. I was a single parent and I’ve been evicted and I have a little bit of a past and I felt that if I could overcome it I could be an example to other people,” said Bre.
With some extra time and extra space in her garage, Bre started collecting clothing donations in 2019. Her efforts grew as people’s needs have so she created a non-profit out of it called The Legacy Closet. With a physical store in Broward County where people can drop things off and also pop in to shop the donations for free, Bre relies on volunteers to travel Palm Beach County collecting items and then opening up their homes as shopping locations.
This week, bins and bins of items lined a driveway in Royal Palm Beach where individuals and families could come to get food, clothing, toys and most importantly, encouragement.
“My hope is that it brings them hope. We all have a story. There’s always a back story to somebody’s life and it doesn’t matter. We’re a non-judgmental group and we like the victories. We like to hear the victories . We like to see lives changed on a regular basis just because we gave a little bit of ourselves,” said Bre.
Jasmine Mahboob and her husband recently graduated from college. He was working for Amazon, but just lost his job.
“We’ve been applying for jobs, but we’re also really Covid conscious so it’s just been hard to find, kind of like a stay at home job or a job with low person to person interaction,” said Mahboob.
Mahboob’s daughter's first birthday is coming up. Worried about being able to give her a celebration or even a gift, she decided to check out the donations available to shop in Royal Palm Beach.
“We came just to see if there was any little stuff to get her and there was way, way more then we expected. It’s one thing if like you go without, but just not knowing whether or not, like, you’re going to be able to give your kid everything you want and to have people who are fortunate enough to bless their things onto you is just, it’s really incredible,” said Mahboob.
When a physical shopping location isn’t set up, the help doesn’t stop. A social media page Bre started now has more than 13,000 people on it.
“Last night, a lady from Lake Worth posted on our Facebook group that she was in desperate need of food, but does not drive,” said Bre.
A stranger stepped up, commented and eventually pizza was delivered.
Bre says the group helps connect thousands of people across South Florida—those in need of things and those looking for help. Some days, there are more than 2,000 posts.
You can join the group’s online efforts by going clicking here. If you have items to donate or would like to shop, check out The Legacy Closet’s website here.