FORT KNOX, Ky. — With need comes help.
At Fort Knox, there is no shortage of unique ways for Soldiers and Family members to give back to the community or receive help they may require to overcome life’s challenges.
Whether at the Hansen Center Consignment Shop or the many Red Cross Helping Hands programs, humanitarian assistance comes in the form of a multitude of donation-based, discounted or free-to-use initiatives within the Fort Knox community.
Hansen Center Consignment Shop.
The Hansen Center Consignment Shop is a two-pronged program that helps individuals get rid of items they no longer need through consignment or simply donating it as well as providing a spot to shop for items at great prices.
Here one can find military and civilian clothing and accessories, children’s toys, household appliances and furnishings, electronics and more.
Clothing must be freshly washed, and all other items sanitized before being donated. Store staff assist in the pricing process and reserve the right to reject items that do not meet the store’s standards.
Anyone who is able to get onto post can shop at the consignment shop. Those eligible to sell at the consignment shop, however, are military personnel, retirees and their families, Fort Knox civilian employees and contractors with a valid common access card and retired civilian employees.
Each household is allowed one consignment account.
The consignment shop is open for consignment donations Wednesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and for shopping Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. No consignments are accepted on the last consignment day of the month.
Editor’s Note: The Hansen Shop will be part of an upcoming Hansen Center renovation meaning that all consignments are temporarily suspended. More details about these changes will be shared as plans evolve.
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Helping Hands Program.
For those who may be experiencing a financial emergency, there are also a wide range of Red Cross Helping Hands Program initiatives.
The Fort Knox Red Cross Warrior Warehouse, Lending Closet, Food Pantry, Dressing for Success and Santa’s Workshop programs were developed for local Soldiers based on needs that have been identified over the years, according to May Giulitto, director of Service to the Armed Forces, Kentucky Region.
Giulitto said these volunteer-run programs offer eligible individuals an opportunity to receive no-questions-asked assistance.
Lending Closet.
The Lending Closet is designed to help service members and their Families in need of short-term furnishings.
This program provides Soldiers completing a permanent change of station, or those who may have lost their belongings in an emergency, with basic household and kitchen items for up to 30 days at no cost to them.
“Say somebody comes in from Japan, and they say, ‘Hey, my household goods are coming on a boat, but I have a house that I have to sign for,’ we have air mattresses, we have coffee pots, we even have a microwave,” said Giulitto. “You don’t have to pay for it, and any rank can take anything from the Lending Closet.”
Items available for lending include dishes and silverware, pots and pans, various kitchen appliances, air mattresses, bedding, kitchen and shower towels, card tables and chairs, and highchairs and baby swings.
The Lending Closet is located inside C-Bay at Building 1751 and open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Warrior Warehouse.
Though similar in intent to the Lending Closet, the Warrior Warehouse provides help to Soldiers with free and cheap household goods and clothes that are theirs to keep.
“You want it, you got it. Take it and don’t bring it back,” said Giulitto. “Some of them do bring it back [though]. They say, ‘Hey, you know what? I got help, and that was really nice, so let me be nice and maybe help another person like me. I think it’s just amazing how they have a big heart.”
The warehouse has items ranging from clothing and toys for adults and children, whether military or civilian, as well as furniture and kitchen items for those suffering through hard financial times.
In critical cases, the warehouse is open 24/7 for free items, but also holds a monthly Warrior Warehouse Yard Sale free shop and pre-shop for eligible shoppers – free shop is specifically open to those ranked staff sergeant and below.
The dates for the September Warrior Warehouse Yard Sale are Thursday, Sept. 26, through Saturday, Sept. 28, with specified shopping times for groups. Giulitto said this provides an opportunity for everyone to shop while prioritizing those in need.
For more information on guidelines and specific times for eligible parties, visit the “Fort Knox Soldier Programs American Services to the Armed Forces” or “Fort Knox American Warrior Warehouse” Facebook pages.
For those who wish to donate to the Warrior Warehouse, you can donate clean items in good shape to A-Bay of Building 1750.
Food Pantry.
The Food Pantry provides a service to active-duty Soldiers, retirees and veterans in need of food and diapers, but are ineligible for off-post resources.
Giulitto said though off-post food pantries would like to help the Soldiers, they must often turn them away because of rules.
“If you’re getting a paycheck, you cannot go to the food pantry off post, because you make too much money,” said Giulitto. “So that was the beginning of, ‘We need a food pantry.’”
The next issue was keeping the pantry stocked.
Giulitto said when it came time to figure out how to keep the food pantry replenished, she started an initiative to pre-bag nonperishable items at the commissary. Shoppers then have the opportunity to purchase a bag to donate to the food pantry.
These bags – at a cost of $10 or less – provide an efficient way for shoppers to give back to the community, according to Giulitto.
Donations from the Fort Knox Boy Scouts Food Drive and Panera Bread also help supply the food pantry.
Located in C-Bay of Building 1750, the food pantry is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and 24/7 for critical cases.
Editor’s Note: For after-hours emergencies, call the Red Cross Hero Care Center at 877-272-7337.
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Dressing for Success.
The Dressing for Success Program is dedicated to helping military members and dependents seeking employment by assisting them with free business attire.
The purpose of the program is to help Soldiers and families transition back into civilian life and obtain a civilian job
Dressing for Success is open by appointment only to service members going through Expiration of Term of Service (ETS) or retiring and their spouses. Appointments can be made by calling the Fort Knox Red Cross Office.
It is located within C-Bay of Building 1750 and accepts donations for office attire, shoes and accessories for both men and women.
Santa’s Workshop.
Santa’s Workshop is a holiday program built to provide toys for military families who in need of children’s gifts or meals during the holiday season.
During the first week of December, the workshop opens to those in need based on application acceptance. Once an individual’s application has been processed, Giulitto will call to notify them of their acceptance and schedule a day for them to enter the workshop.
“We don’t pre-bag items here because, why give something to a child who already has it?” said Giulitto. “So, we set up a time for them to come and shop.”
Shopping days can be scheduled on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday after the application has been approved.
Each family normally gets three gifts, stocking stuffers and a themed family basket. Family basket items typically include games, movie or baking activities.
Giulitto said when more expensive items like bicycles are donated, they will hold a raffle to give everyone a fair chance at winning them.
In addition to the gift giving program, Santa’s Workshop partners with Boxes of Love, a nonprofit organization, to provide about 100 holiday meal boxes to Soldiers during the weekend before Christmas.
Fort Knox Red Cross officials ask that those who wish to make donations to Santa’s Workshop reach out to the Fort Knox Red Cross Office.
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Editor’s Note: For more information about these programs and eligibility, call the Fort Knox Red Cross Office at 502-624-2163, or email Giulitto at may.giulitto@redcross.org.
Visit Fort Knox News at www.army.mil/knox for all of Central Kentucky's latest military news and information.
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