Following four days of community members dropping off donations in early December, the 611 Free Store’s opening day is Dec. 10.

Located at 611 South Blvd., the initiative is a collaboration between Evanston Community Cares and Evanston Community Fridges, among other local mutual aid organizations. 

The idea for the store began in October, as the community grappled with increased federal immigration enforcement and cuts to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, organizer Fuschia Winston-Rodriguez said.

“I was like, ‘What else can be done to offset some of the things that people would normally spend money on?’ because we have so much job insecurity, food insecurity, housing insecurity,” Winston-Rodriguez said. “We live in a place that’s well-resourced. A lot of people are able to give.

Sign-ups to volunteer and shop at the store are available on Evanston Community Care’s website. Eight shoppers are allowed in at a time for 45-minute slots. Such rules, along with limits to how many bags each shopper can fill, are in place to make sure there’s something for everyone wanting to shop at the store, Winston-Rodriguez said. 

Inside, the store has sections for kitchen items, cleaning supplies, toys, clothes, accessories, books and trinkets, among other items. 

“We want people who are shopping here to have the same dignity anybody would have shopping at any store,” organizer Valerie Kahan said.

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