Downtown Medicine Hat store helping vulnerable women through clothing sales

Owner Stephanie Sissons said free clothing from the donations is also being given to women in need.

“We also give vouchers for ten pieces of clothing or any sort of item they need to the women’s shelter, to any sort of charity that is helping vulnerable women,” Sisson said.

Sisson had a few examples of scenarios where this has been a rewarding experience, including a woman who only had what she was wearing.

“She left her home with only the clothing on her back,” Sissons said.

“She came here, she was given a voucher, she got everything she needed, and she was able to go to court and fight for her kids in an outfit that made her feel confident.”

Another scenario involved a lady looking for a job.

“She wanted to get that job, she felt scared and nervous when she came in,” Sisson said.

“She felt confident when she left, and she got the job on the spot,” she added.

“We’re just trying to do our little bit for the community and for the women, the vulnerable women in this community. We want to help them.”

Natasha Carvalho, executive director of the Medicine Hat Women’s Shelter Society, said they are so thankful for the service being provided to women in need.

“They’ll help them pick out colors and what looks good on them and do a little fashion fun, you know what I mean, and have a good time doing that,” Carvalho said.

“That’s wonderful because you can appreciate our women are limited budget or no budget really for those kind of extra things,” she added.

“To be able to take care of themselves is just amazing with the thrift shop items that are available.”

Sissons was happy to showcase an entire outfit setup which even included a purse for under $30.

There are options for those on different levels of income.

“We have a lot of customers that bring us consignment items and there’s a lot of leftovers,” Sissons said.

“You know, stuff that maybe isn’t good enough to be sold upstairs and I watch it walk out the door. They donate it to another place,” she added.

“Not that those places don’t need that item, but I just knew that we could do good with it. And so, we wanted to support the women’s shelter.”

Sissons has been able to make donations of approximately $200 in her first month and about $400 in her second month to support the women’s shelter.

Along with helping support those in need with her vouchers and enabling them to have a little fun in their lives.

by Jesse Gill

Downtown Medicine Hat store helping vulnerable women through clothing sales

Our Community