| The importance of used clothing to some citizens of Kenya is evidenced by this photo. |
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An unusual use for some of Harvey’s used clothing is as a component of Detroiter Tyree Guyton’s Heidelberg Project. “He worked on a piece of art and I provided two blocks of used shoes,” Harvey says proudly.
Harvey cautions potential donors not to place their donations in a box operated by a charity they don’t know. “There’s a firm headquartered in Amsterdam and the bins bear the name of a phony charity. The guy’s got 7,000 bins. He’s been chased out of Europe and now he’s in the United States. Here everybody’s after him – immigration, income tax – the whole thing’s a scam. He places those bins anyplace he wants without asking the property owner. He doesn’t check for zoning. If he finds one of our Easter Seals bins – they’re red with a picture of a little girl in a wheelchair being pushed by another one – he puts his next to it. Or, in front of it.”
Whether you’re donating a barely used suit or a well-loved shirt or pair of shoes – even things that you don’t think anyone would wear – go ahead and do it, in a bin or at the resale shop of a charity you know and trust. And think of Jon Harvey when you do.