County Employee Clothes Drive Fetches Over 1,100 Items for Distribution to Homeless
A brush with a man experiencing homelessness spurred a County employee to take action, but she never expected what happened next
SANTA CLARA COUNTY, Calif. – A chance dreary-day encounter with a downtrodden man inspired a County employee to initiate a wildly successful post-holidays coat and clothing drive, something she plans to convert into an annual event.
During working hours, Diane Curiel is a friendly face behind the reception desk at the County Executive’s Office on the 11th floor of 70 W. Hedding St. She was heading to her post on a rainy, windy morning three days into the new year when she saw a man walking up the sidewalk toward her. He carried a wad of crumpled paper the size of a bowling ball, which he casually tossed to the ground and kept on coming.
Diane’s visceral reaction: “Litterbug!”
“I thought, ‘Oh he did not just do that!’” she said. “I raised my children telling them we do not litter! If you drop something you need to pick it up. I decided to wait for the man to pass and respectfully tell him, ‘Sir, we have garbage cans right over there – there’s a place to put that litter.’”
But as he got closer, she felt her stomach drop. The man was not wearing shoes. Or socks. Or a jacket or any protection from the bone-chilling cold and rain, just thin cotton pants and a button-up shirt.
“I felt like falling to my knees in humility,” Diane said. “God forgive me for thinking I was going to scold him; I came from a warm home in a warm car to my warm, secure office. I had on a sweater with a jacket over plus a scarf and an umbrella. He had nothing.”
By the time she was behind her desk, a plan was forming in her head from the humbling encounter – she was going to start an office coat and clothing drive with hopes of collecting at least some protective gear for a charitable donation. Who knows, Diane thought, maybe people got new jackets for Christmas and have old ones to give away.
The response from her colleagues was nothing short of overwhelming. By the time the drive ended in late January, she had received:
- 289 coats/jackets
- 88 hoodies
- 157 sweaters
- 103 pairs of socks
- 103 shirts
- 60 pairs of shoes
- 79 scarves
- 79 pants
- 60 beanies/hats
- And dozens of other items including sleeping bags and blankets, slippers, thermals, rain ponchos, children’s coats and pants, and gloves.
That’s 1,142 items donated – many of them brand new.
“It was a totally amazing thing; I was really heartened,” said Steve Preminger, the County’s Director of Civic and Community Engagement. “Employees really do want to be able to give back to the community that they are here to serve, they do want to be more engaged. Diane’s effort proved exactly that.”
Most of the clothes went to the Downtown Streets Team (DTST) for distribution to the unhoused population.
“When Diane said she would rally the troops at the County office for a coat drive, I didn’t know what to expect,” said José Villarreal, San José project manager for DTST. “Usually, when someone says they’re going to collect coats they get two or three bags. But Diane kept calling – we were going over there every couple of days for two or three bags!”
The DTST crews took the clothing into various encampments on a weekly basis, and Villarreal said it was crucial for many who were not prepared for the January storms that swept through the region.
“It was amazing – there was such a need that we were able to fill,” he said. “I remember one woman was in tears; she didn’t have any kind of winter gear, no warm clothes. Some people had lost clothing in the middle of the storm when the wind blew their tarps and canopies away and we were able to replace those clothes.”
Diane was inspired to make the clothing drive a recurring event, only it’s going to get a jump on the weather the next time around.
“This time it’s going to start in October so by the time it gets really cold we’ll have warm jackets to hand out, not have them the day after it gets cold,” Diane said. “And we’re going to try to include more people, get more of the County workforce involved – can you imagine how many more clothes we could get?”
Diane, who is deeply religious, said she often prays for the opportunity to spread a little good to the world. She believes her prayers were answered that cold and rainy morning on Hedding Street.
“I felt like God was saying, ‘You asked, don’t hesitate. Don’t knock on my door if you don’t want me to answer it.’”