“A Nicaraguan Dump
Our founder, James Barnett, visits a city trash dump in Nicaragua called La Chureca, where people live and survive among the waste. He sees human suffering on a new level and opens up his Bible to Amos 5:21-24, Isaiah 58, and Philippians 2:3-7. Moved by the downward-mobility of Jesus and the command to follow suit, he comes back to the United States, quits his lucrative job, sells everything he owns, and chooses to live homeless among people in the margins. Starting a nonprofit isn’t on the radar quite yet. Instead, it is out of this experience that our nonprofit is born.”
“The Shirts
We’re launching our online store! This way we can assist James in providing clothing to his homeless friends while he is living on the street. For every shirt purchased, clothing is given. James’ parents are shipping the online orders from his sister’s old bedroom at his childhood home. Our first sale is to Cealey Godwin in Tallahassee, Florida, at 11:02 pm, who orders a red t-shirt. Talk about the eleventh hour.”
“Too Legit to Quit
We receive our official letter of nonprofit 501(c)3 status. NBD.”
“Learning Curve
We’re visiting Haiti to do relief work after the earthquake. In addition, we’re distributing thousands of colorful shirts that say “Clothe Your Neighbor as Yourself” in the Haitian Creole language. We later find out that the exact translation was “Wear Your Neighbor on Yourself.” An A for effort? Locals are helping us see that our well-intentioned charity and free items are disempowering people and depressing the price of local clothing. Our intention is good but our strategy is off. Since local business owners can’t compete with free items, we start asking ourselves what it would look like to give in ways that empower people.”
“School Uniforms
Without a school uniform, a child in Kenya is not allowed to attend public school. So we’re now employing local women in Karagoto, Kenya, to make and give school uniforms to children who are unable to afford them. This work in Kenya would soon be followed by other countries like India, Guatemala, Haiti, and Mexico.”
“Pick Your Cause
For our fifth anniversary, we’re announcing that our supporters can now pick a cause that matters to them. We discover that many of our supporters have a passion for ending homelessness and helping to restore the lives of ex-sex workers in India.”
“Campaigns & App
Every 90 days, we run a campaign for a new community somewhere in the world to help children gain access to education by providing the required school uniform. Donors are shipped Impact Kits with necklaces made by the homeless folks we now employ. We partner with the Humanly° app to help our donors see the world they’re changing.
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April 1, 2020New Name, Old Mission
It’s been over ten years now and we’ve grown in our understanding of how all forms of poverty are connected. Out of a desire to respond to the suffering we’ve witnessed, we’re changing our name from “Clothe Your Neighbor as Yourself” to “Neighborly” to give you the opportunity to write, feed, heal, welcome, free, and as always, clothe your neighbor.
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