VA: Why are you doing the CHAH closet?
Macknight: In student government, we always like to do three components where we have something that builds school culture and that’s like our spirit days and our dress down days. Then we have something that involves helping like the community and community service and that’s where this idea came from.
VA: Is it fun doing the CHAH closet?
Macknight: Yes, it’s super fun. It’s a great way that students can exchange clothing and swap clothes. They can also reduce, reuse, recycle. So maybe you have a dress you no longer wear, but then you can give it to another member in the school community and they can wear it.
VA: How happy are the students about the CHAH closet?
Macknight: It was like a fun shopping event here. They were all excited, like looking at things and trying them on over their clothes, asking their friends, what do you think about this? And then what would be super cute was they would find other things.There was a lot of energy. We played music. A lot of last year’s seniors came and volunteered to help and teachers too.
VA: What kind of clothes can you find in the CHAH closet? Or are there, like, certain things that you cannot donate because they’re too expensive or non appropriate?
Macknight: Anything that’s like shirts, pants, dresses, jackets. We even took shoes. We’re just not taking anything that’s intimate like bras and underwears because those are kind of, you know, nobody maybe wants to have that here. Also old uniforms, like sometimes people have CHAH uniforms that don’t fit them anymore.
VA: Where is the CHAH closet going to take place?
Macknight: So we do it here in the art room just because there’s a lot of space and we’ve been collecting the clothes here. We’ll move all the desks. We’ll bring out the rack. We’ll set the desk up so there’s like clothes folded. And then we like to put all the shoes together. Sometimes people donate hats and scarves, and accessories.We just try to make it cute. And then we play music.
VA: Have any outfits that you’ve worn been from the CHAH closet?
Macknight: So I didn’t get one thing from the child’s closet. I didn’t take anything, but I did bring a lot of stuff. But I did see a lot of students who would come and show me that they got a pair of sneakers or that they wore something. So that was really cool. And then what we do at the end is anything that’s left over. We pack it all up, and there is a nonprofit organization in Larchmont, Westchester. And what they do is they take all the clothes, and then they sell those clothes, and they use all that money for girls’ scholarships. So that’s nice that then the money goes back to, like, the community. So nothing gets thrown out. It’s all reduced, reused, repurposed, and found a new home for it.
VA: So do you think that this helps some students that may not have certain clothes?
Macknight: For sure. I think this is awesome because sometimes people buy things and then they only wear it once or twice or they buy things and they never get to wear it. And then the students, it works out perfectly because it’s free for them. It doesn’t cost them any money. Also we’re helping all that stuff not go in the landfill right because if something’s made of polyester it’s not gonna deteriorate for a long time because it’s a man-made fabric.
VA: Do you think this will be a tradition?
Macknight: So we started it last year, and the kids really liked it, and they said they want to do it again this year. And it’s like a fun way to take pictures with your friends. So then they can get stuff from the chalk closet and they can, you know, participate in the spirit stuff
