NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. – At Chandler’s Hope Clothes Closet, volunteers sort donations, find sizes and welcome visitors looking for something to wear as they take their next step.
For founder Michele Holbrook, giving people the chance to choose their own clothing is an important part of the work.
“I want them to have that shopping experience to say, ‘Oh my goodness, I have this beautiful outfit,’” Holbrook said.
This week’s Positively JAX winner grew from a collection of clothes that began taking over the home she shares with her husband, John.
“John came in the house one day and said, ‘How am I getting to the bedroom?’ And I said, ‘Well, I’m really not sure. I’m on this side. So you have to figure it out,’” Holbrook recalled.
Today, the closet has a receiving room where volunteers check donations and racks where visitors can browse and select what they need.
During a recent visit, a group from a Nassau County sober living program came to shop. For Oliver, who was visiting with the group, the support offers something beyond clothing.
“When we hit our bottom, we’re hopeless. We don’t think there’s another day, another opportunity. No one’s gonna give us another chance,” he said. “And then you come to a place like this where you have loving, caring individuals who just want to see you do better. Get that sense of hope.”
Holbrook also takes the work beyond Nassau County. At Operation New Hope in Jacksonville, her team sets up clothing for people preparing for life after incarceration. The organization helps people reconnect with employment and their communities.
The reason behind Holbrook’s work is reflected in a photograph on the closet’s wall.
“This is Chandler,” she said. “April the 21st, 2020, he lost his life to a fentanyl heroin overdose.”
Chandler Cook was Holbrook’s only child. She remembers his humor and generosity, even as he struggled with addiction.
“He would’ve given the shirt off his back, even when he was on the drugs,” she said. “He just didn’t know how to fight it.”
Now, his name lives on through a clothing closet built around helping others. Holbrook says her husband, family and volunteers help her carry that work forward, especially on difficult days.
Messages from people who have found what they need remind her why it matters.
“When you receive a picture saying, ‘I got the job because of this outfit,’ that’s important,” she said.
There are still needs to fill. Holbrook pointed to children’s shoes and men’s dress pants as items the closet could use.
Each donation gives another person a chance to find something that fits their life, whether they are preparing for an interview, rebuilding after a difficult chapter or simply getting ready for the day ahead.
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