Basic Needs Ministry was organized as a clothing ministry team of Restoration Christian Ministries (RCM), an independent Christian church, which was planning to serve the area centered around the Johnston County intersection of I-40 and N.C. 42. One of RCM's principles of organization was to encourage its members to use their talents to serve the church and community in ministry teams. Ronald Still, a 16-year Garner resident and RCM member, was encouraged to set up a clothing ministry. The Articles of Incorporation were filed in the N.C. Secretary of State's Office on February 25, 2003, with the Bylaws adopted on March 2.

The warehouse opened Saturdays from 9-6 beginning May 3, 2003, and then Mondays from 6-9 p.m. By the end of 2003, Basic Needs Ministry was serving many more people than expected. The Junior League of Raleigh suggested that Basic Needs Ministry could reach even more people in need by permitting other organizations to distribute its gift certifiates. Basic Needs selected 200 church and community groups to distribute 18,000 gift certificates. The results were impressive, because by mid 2004 it exceeded its growth projections seven times over. In early 2004, RCM decided to dissolve and the members changed their focus to other churches, while Basic Needs changed its status to a community charity with a restatement of its corporate filings and requested IRS recognition of its tax exempt status by filing its Form 1023. This ensured all donors that their tax deductions would be protected.

Needs assessment:

In 2003, there was no facility offering a greater variety of general clothing, whether new, used, free, reduced price, or full retail price in the 40/42 area. Basic Needs usually displays more clothing than either Salvation Army in Raleigh or Goodwill in Clayton. Most residents in need of free clothing, who are least able to afford rising gasoline prices, are driving 22 miles or more for each round trip to an outside community and agency for access to their basic needs or go without.

Wake and Johnston County public schools are now providing 7,000 low-income children with reduced price or free lunches within 15 minutes of Basic Needs warehouse. Poverty affects more than one in every five children in our area.

The smallest township in the core area has almost 9,000 residents and the circle formed from a 15 minute radius has over 119,000.

Many small churches, which have tried to run an internal clothing exchange or deacon's closet, found it difficult to match its limited types and sizes of donated clothing with the various sizes and types of its members and particularly community residents. In a telephone survey of the local churches, Basic Needs had the assurance of fifteen respondents that this service was needed in the community.

Most large congregations lack space for a significant clothing exchange effort.

Triangle Area United Way needed an agency to serve this area that would provide either or both evening and weekend service, for those clients who work the traditional work week.

Concepts behind the clothing ministry:

Based on track records nationally, nonprofits are successful in helping communities with at least 2,500 residents to support the clothing needs of the community. It is necessary to have a lead organization to coordinate the collection and distribution.

Despite acknowledged poverty in the service area, the community is financially strong enough to support its own. Currently many of the community residents drive donations out of the community and donate them to charities, which will not serve anyone from this area. This is why one Raleigh warehouse had 50,000 pounds fo winter clothing and 150,000 pounds of summer clothing waiting to be shipped and why another local charity ships about 15,000,000 pounds of clothing a year from this region to world markets.

It is a tradition for large families to share clothes between children as they grow through the sizes. Some churches even have a clothing exchange time during the year. Storage and display can be a challenge for both situations.

Clothing reuse is widely accepted, because there are very few folks in any area who wear clothing once and toss it to the trash. Most folks just wash it and wear it again. Even in upscale Cary, the Dorcas shop has great success. Basic Needs opportunity for clothing exchange continues the good environmental stewardship of reuse.

Many associations do good benevolent works, but members fail to get IRS tax credit for their donations, because the associations are not also incorporated as nonprofit charities. When association members coordinate their efforts and needs with local ministries and charities, both are winners.

The Difference:

Basic Needs seeks to place excess clothing free to people in need, whether in North Carolina or other parts of the world. A small truck load carrying 5,000 pounds of clothing might earn Basic Needs $50 in Raleigh from a broker, but its benefit to people who cannot afford clothing at retail may exceed $330,000. Donations from local residents, businesses, and churches can keep this program alive.