CATONSVILLE, Md. — A recycled shipping container at Westside Men's Shelter now offers residents professional clothing for job interviews and work.
WATCH: Westside Men's Shelter unveils new closet in shipping container
The shelter held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to unveil its new clothing closet, housed in the unique waterproof and climate-controlled container.
The project addresses a long-standing challenge for the facility's approximately 150 residents.
"We needed something right here so we could fulfill the needs quickly, especially when it came to job interviews, and they needed to have those clothing right away so they'd be prepared," said Andrea Ratajczak, executive director of the Lazarus Caucus.
Volunteers with the Lazarus Caucus have been assisting the shelter's clients with clothing for 20 years, previously storing apparel off-site because there was no spare room in the building.
Guests request items through their case manager.
"We want to level the playing field so they are received by a potential employer as anyone else would be received," Ratajczak said. "And then when they get on the job, we want to make sure that they have clothing that will sustain them on the job so they have multiple sets of all the things that they need so that they can look sharp every day and stay employed."
For William Shaw, a shelter resident who lost his place after a layoff, the resource comes at the perfect time.
Shaw recently secured a new job unloading tractor-trailers and needs appropriate work gear.
"It's a blessing. It's not expected. I wasn't expecting it of them, but I'm grateful that they're gonna do it," Shaw said.
The Lazarus Caucus received a $25,000 Envision Grant from Catonsville Presbyterian Church to fund the project.
Bill Wells, the shelter operator, highlighted the symbolic nature of the repurposed container.
"It's a really great sort of visual or idea that this container has traveled the world and served one purpose for much of its life, and now it's been repurposed and it's here to provide a new life and new opportunities for the gentlemen who live here," Wells said.
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