Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1536052
some people chose to browse on their own, the Local 705 and Local 892 volunteers in attendance provided support and acted as a personal stylist if the shopper desired. Sorting through shoes, finding clothing sizes and styles, bagging up finds in bags, duffels, suitcases—whatever suited the shoppers' needs best. "We were able to help so many people," Finished Costumer Brandy Lusvardi said. "There were a couple shoppers who came through that I helped and had mini-fittings with. It was so good to form this connection with them, and they were so happy. One guy who lost everything was going to his film premiere at South by Southwest, and we were able to find him a great outfit to wear. He was so grateful. It was so nice to use my skills in a relevant way." Soon it became clear that while the drive was instrumental in helping to rebuild lives, its time was coming to a close. "We had continually been in contact with our members, members of other locals, and the Teamsters who had lost their homes and felt like we had serviced as many people as we could," Matwijkow explained. "We also needed to go back to the business of being a union, which included reclaiming our building." A final swap meet with all proceeds going to future fire-relief efforts was planned for a weekend in mid-February, a little more than a month from when the drive first opened. Volunteer efforts were split between helping shoppers, who still streamed in on the last few days of the official drive, and preparing for the sale. Men's clothes took up the interior of the building, with a small boutique—filled with Annette Bening's donations, as well as designer items (vintage Versace, YSL, Gucci)—off to the side. Women's and children's clothing spread out in tents sprawled across the parking lot. By the end of the swap meet, all the boxes over at Local 871 were finally unpacked and hung. At the end of the drive, Matwijkow estimated that more than 1,200 people had come to shop for new clothes and $54,000 was raised through the swap meet for continued fire relief. He identified the key players as Brigitta Romanov, Briana Murphy, Nanrose Buchman, Athena Lawton, Maggie Walsh, and Dee Graham for organizing the drive. "What a beautiful experience and a coming together of not only Local 705 members, but of all the locals that came to pitch in and help. It was really a wonderful sense of community," Matwijkow said. And that was the biggest takeaway: the sense of community that pervaded throughout these efforts. "I was only able to help out on one of the swap-meet days, but it was great to connect with fellow 705 and 892 members, as well as the broader community," Key Costumer Katie Gavin Elford said. Fell agreed: "All we have is each other, and that's something to lean into. Take care of your people."