Long Beach State Students organized a “Thriftmas Exchange” event Dec. 7, where thrifted clothing items will be sold with profits donated to Toys for Tots.
The idea behind the event was made by Julianna Somaini, a third-year communications student at CSULB, for her COMM 337 planning class taught by instructor Reyna Velarde. One of the class’s main assignments is to design, plan and execute an event.
She said that seeing events like Smorgasport, the free on campus carnival, inspired her to put together an event with her classmates that brought people together.
“I wanted another event like that [Smorgasport] on campus. Almost to create that sort of community,” Somaini said. “I figured why not get rid of something that you don’t want anymore and get out of your house.”
She chose to donate the funds of the event to Toys for Tots due to frequently seeing their donation boxes. Toys for Tots is a charity which was founded by Major Bill Hendricks in 1947.
Toys for Tots’ goal is to provide toys and provide services for economically disadvantaged children. The United States Marine Corps Reserve has been officially running the organization since 1991.
Classmate and team member Emily Brown, a third-year communications studies major, found the entire process of creating this event to be a valuable learning experience.
“It’s been a lot of communication, teamwork to figure out an event like this,” Brown said. “We’ve never had to contact the school about this stuff and figure out how event request forms work.”
Brown hopes with the end of the semester and finals approaching, that students can find some relief by going shopping and supporting a charity at the same time.
Simone’s Donuts offered to donate some donuts to the event. Samantha Rivas, member of the team, reached out to the bakery through her family’s thrift shop, Used Work Clothes, located in Long Beach.
The aforementioned class has already completed their donation clothing drive, where students dropped off new and used clothing in the later half of November at CSULB’s Student Resources and Wellness Center.
The exchange will take place Wednesday, Dec. 7 at the CSULB Quad from 12 to 7 p.m.