HARFORD COUNTY, Md. — One organization in Harford County is dedicated to ending furniture poverty in the county by providing furniture to families at no cost.
WATCH: Nonprofit gives away free furniture to families in need in Harford County
Fresh Start Furnishings is a nonprofit that collects gently used furniture and household items, everything from couches, tables, and chairs to kitchenware and blankets.
The purpose is to help families who are in need of these items but can't afford them.
"In Harford County right now, there are approximately 8,500 homes experiencing extreme poverty and 27,000 households working paycheck to paycheck; those are the homes that don't even have the $500 savings account," Hamilton said.
Alicia Hamilton says the county is facing severe furniture poverty.
"It's basically a person's or family's inability to purchase the basic essentials they need to turn their empty house into a home," Hamilton said.
For the last 10 years, the organization has been doing what it can to fight against it.
"Furniture and home goods are an additional expense on top of your rent and your utilities, those sort of critical services, and when people are just struggling to pay those essential services, they don't have any money left over to save for the essential items they need," Hamilton said.
Hamilton says the organization also helps families who are looking to get rid of furniture for any reason.
She says Fresh Start Furnishings has even been able to help families who lose loved ones and need to do something with the property that is left behind.
"It's a tough time that they are going through and a lot of times it's adult children that are managing the estate and we found that being able to donate to us and for people to know that those items are not going to be resold but their loved ones goods are really going directly to giving someone else a fresh start, it really helps with the healing process and we love being a part of that too," Hamilton said.
Hamilton wants more people in Harford County to know that if they are in need of furniture of any kind and can't afford it, they may be able to find just what they need for free.
Although they only give away furniture to families in Harford County, they accept donations from all over the state.
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