A Brief History of The Deacon’s Closet:

After operating informally for seven years, what is now the Deacon’s Closet began formally operating at the First Presbyterian Church of Boulder in 1956.  We were originally focused on collecting and distributing good used or new clothing, especially for children and babies, bedding and nonperishable food. In the 60s and 70s, the Deacons Closet was sending clothing and other goods to nearby native American reservations and other missions sites around the state.  English and Spanish Bibles were handed out to clients in the late 70’s.  In the 1980s, we began the practice of purchasing gloves and other infrequently donated goods to augment the donations and ensure the safety and comfort of our clients during the coldest weather.  In 1990, the Deacons Closet at First Presbyterian was identified as the place to drop of clothing in support of a major apartment fire, a practice that has continued through the Marshall Fire and beyond.  In the 2010s, we began providing goods to new refugee families in the greater Denver area. This is also the era when the Deacons Closet began working alongside many other agencies to serve our client population – People’s Clinic/Clinica (medical support), Mental Health Partners (mental health support), the Boulder City Attorney’s office (coordinated entry (housing), insurance, identification and legal support) and Hope for the Homeless (laundry and shower support). This provided a one-stop location to serve many needs of the poor and homeless in Boulder.

Today the Deacons Closet is the recipient of clothing drives sponsored by churches and student groups around Boulder County, a fact for which we are eternally grateful.  In addition to Coats for Colorado, whose Boulder Dependable Cleaners campaign provides over 3,000 coats to DC annually, we are the beneficiary of many other generous donations. All Roads Shelter and Day Center maintains a shed on their premises which provides us with a carload of donations for weekly pickup. Other regular donors over the decade include: RTD, REI, Pedestrian Shops, Tru Hospice, Hotel Boulderado, Apocalypse and Childish Things. Many CU Boulder churches, CU and other organizations have made us recipients of their clothing drives.  Deacons Closet remains the largest City of Boulder provider of clothing and other goods at no cost to the poor.