Linda's Closet

From Client to Volunteer to Beyond

Tracey has been a volunteer at Linda's Closet for several years and currently serves on our board of directors. But her experience as a client is what she holds most important, and what ultimately inspired her to want to do more. Tracey describes her first visit to the Closet many years ago as an encounter with some of the most kind and encouraging women she has ever met. As a musical performer, Tracey found herself in need of some extra-special outfits for an upcoming performance event. Being a newly single mom, funds were tight at the time, and a friend suggested she stop by to check out the “fancy dress room” at the Closet. Upon doing so, Tracey found herself welcomed with open arms, with no feelings of awkwardness or judgement – two things she had been concerned about. One of the volunteers even offered to bring in a few items from her own closet for Tracey to borrow for the event. Not only did she find what she needed in the way of clothing, she walked away from the experience with a boost to her self esteem and the feeling that she was not alone in her situation – something she had been feeling for a long time. It was life-changing, and she knew that when her circumstances improved she would return to the Closet as a volunteer so she could do for other women what those kind volunteers had done for her that day. Today, you can find Tracey working in a successful career, still performing music, and helping women find empowerment through their encounters with her and the other volunteers at Linda’s Closet. Like Tracey, many of our clients and volunteers come from all walks of life and their life circumstances vary greatly. But there is a common thread that was recognized by the woman that inspired our work, Linda Oliver.

One Woman’s Vision

Linda’s Closet is a living memorial to the late Linda Oliver, who was a career professional with the NH Department of Health and Human Services. Linda recognized a need in the region for women who were in her words, “trying to set goals for themselves”.  She envisioned providing clothing to women trying to enter the workforce and asked her family and friends to develop a free clothing resource using her own clothing.

For over twenty years, Linda’s Closet has been dedicated to keeping Linda's vision alive.  We are an all-volunteer, non-profit organization providing free women's clothing to individuals in need, in and around the Monadnock region.  In some cases, clothing may be needed to enter the workforce, attend school, a special occasion, assist in times of crisis, or just to help make ends meet. All clothing is donated by members of our generous community. The population served ranges from teens to seniors and includes women from all walks of life. Since its beginning, Linda's Closet has evolved from a small mobile clothing service to the cozy permanent boutique space in downtown Keene where we are today.

Monetary donations to Linda’s Closet help to defray costs associated with providing our warm and welcoming boutique-like space, where our volunteers greet and welcome clients and often provide them with career and fashion advice.  Linda’s Closet strives to offer an experience where women can feel supported by other women while doing something fun for themselves.  

Linda’s legacy has evolved over the years. Our focus on Women Supporting Women includes a volunteer appreciation program that encourages support of the women-owned and operated businesses in our community. This program not only recognizes our own wonderful volunteers, it also shines a spotlight on some of the amazing things women can do when they feel supported and empowered. Another area of focus for our work is sustainability. Every piece of clothing that comes to Linda’s Closet is used in our shop or sent to another local organization in need. Some of the other places we support include the Keene Senior Center, Keene & Monadnock High Schools & Keene Middle School, Salvation Army, and Keene State College career programs, to name a few. By helping each other, we can all become better!

Thank you for considering a donation to Linda’s Closet, which will allow us to continue to help women in our community reach their goals by providing this valuable resource.