In Hawkesbury, a group of very dedicated ladies make sure everyone in the community has good clothes to wear and attractive furnishings in their homes.
Led by Lucie Latreille, there are 14 volunteers who devote many hours each week to sorting, cleaning, and displaying clothing and home décor items at Boutique Madeleine at the Hawkesbury Central Food Bank. The boutique opened in February of 2022 and is named after the late volunteer Madame Berthelot. The boutique is open to food bank clients only and does not operate as a regular, retail thrift store.
“We give everything free at no charge,” Latreille said.
Latreille said most of the boutique volunteers are senior citizens and range from 60 to 85 in age. The boutique has a washer, dryer, and steamer on site to ensure everything is nice and clean when it goes on display. She said most volunteers choose a designated day to work, but many show up on additional days.
“I work more here than I used to work at my job!” Latreille commented happily.
Latreille’s previous work experience includes past Hawkesbury clothing retailers Ben Younger and Kastner’s. She tries to use that experience to make the display areas of Boutique Madeleine look attractive to clients.
At Boutique Madeleine there are all styles of children’s, women’s, and men’s clothing for every occasion, along with toys. However, Latreille said the home décor items are the most popular.
“They go right away,” she remarked.
Donations and needs
The boutique is entirely sustained by donations from the public and clearance items that stores such as Walmart are unable to sell. Any clothing donations the boutique receives which are not suitable to give to clients are torn into rags and sold for $10 per bag to garages and workshops. Latreille said a cash donation was also received at the beginning of the year which allowed for the purchase of men’s gloves to help keep hands warm during the winter.
Latreille said other items are still needed at the boutique.
“We need bedding, towels, hygiene products, and small decorations,” she said.
According to Latreille, the use of Boutique Madeleine has exceeded initial expectations. In December 2022, there were 437 client visits at the Hawkesbury Central Food Bank, and 90 per cent of those clients used Boutique Madeleine.
The Hawkesbury Central Food Bank is located at 419 Cartier Boulevard. It is open from Tuesday to Thursday each week from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, contact the food bank at 613-636-0666.
Photos from Boutique Madeleine by James Morgan
