Shopping??? Why Yes I will.

A Look Inside a Shopping Trip to Deseret Industries

For the past five months I have had the privilege of accompanying our clients on a shopping trip to Deseret Industries (DI) located on SE 82^nd Ave. The information below is a glance at what the average trip entails as well as the barriers and laughter that weave themselves in the experience. 

Upon arrival at the DI store, our clients are briefed on what to expect. For many, this is the first clothing store they have walked into for quite some time. Furthermore, the main point we have to communicate is that this shopping trip is free for them, provided through the generosity of The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The amount of money allowed depends on family size, need and what items they might require in addition to clothing. Once those minor topics are explained, the fun begins.

For many of our refugees, clothing and shoe sizes don’t match up to what we have come to know here in the United States. Depending on the country or regions from where they came, they may have different notions of how to gauge size. Therefore, trying to find out each client’s size has come to be a rather intriguing process.

I have seen the patented hold-it-up to-my-body method, the check-my-pants-tag method, and the rarely used method of using the dressing room to try the clothes on.  There is always laughter that breaks out when pants are way too small or shoes way too tight, or when the cart overflows or gestures are misinterpreted.

My time spent shopping with our clients has been one filled with a grateful outlook.

I have come to know a lot of the employees by name, and they have always greeted us with a smile and a helping hand, knowing full well that there will be many translations lost in the experience. Through Deseret Industries we have helped over 135 of our clients obtain necessary clothing, books and household supplies. We would like to thank them for their constant support and flexibility during the first year of our grant, and we look forward to working with them in the future.

If you are working with a family that needs clothing please feel free to give me a call at 503-688-2684. 

Happy New Year, 

Shane Young