NORFOLK, Va. — Even the biggest of changes can come from the smallest of places.
“Very small things make such a big difference. Not everything needs to be so formal," said Brittany Jane.
Jane, a Hampton Roads native turned graduate student and entrepreneur, knows what it’s like to build something from the ground up.
“Clothing is a basic necessity, we all need it," Jane told 13News Now. "A couple of people I knew asked, 'Hey I have some clothing to get rid of, do you know what to do with them?'"
For most of 2021, she began collecting clothing donations from across Hampton Roads and storing the donations inside a personal locker at Life Storage in Norfolk.
“Driving around collecting the clothes, the most time-consuming part of what I do. City-to-city picking it up, sorting it out," Jane said.
It's a pivot from her years working in the professional world of government contracting.
“Something that’s evolved, now it’s kind of like my baby now," Jane said.
Now, the clothes inside her storage have a newfound purpose. This January, she developed a 'community closet' partnership with the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore's Jordan-Newby food pantry in Norfolk, a community partnership that allows Jane to distribute donated clothes to people who may need them every Saturday during the food pantry's regular operating hours.
“Something I want to give to them, to make it accessible. I want people to feel they have what they need, not show up somewhere where they need to do paperwork," Jane said.
From coats to professional clothes, Jane said she accommodates all. The partnership is still in its infancy, with only a few initial drives since the partnership's start. But Jane hopes to add more and improve the program every week.
“As big as life lets me, really. I guess I’ll just keep going," Jane said.
People can find this new clothing drive every Saturday from 8:30 to 11:30 at the The Community Feed at Jordan-Newby at 961 Park Avenue in Norfolk.
More information on Jane's community closet initiative can be found on the program's Instagram page.