Nicholls’ Colonel Closet Received $10K Grant from Bayou Community Foundation

Nicholls receives a $10,000 grant from Bayou Community Foundationto support its Colonel Closet in purchasing a new Colonel Card reader, enabling more efficient tracking of the quantity of customers along with relevant demographic information for grant purposes. The remaining grant funds will be used to purchase perishable and non-perishable food and drink items, personal hygiene necessities, household goods, bedding, cleaning supplies, and bath supplies that will continue to be provided at no cost for students, faculty and staff in need.

Created through the Nicholls Office of Student Affairs, Colonel Closet became a vision of hope following the ever-growing concern for the basic needs of students impacted by circumstances beyond their control. The mission is to reduce the environmental impact of wasted goods by providing students, faculty and staff in need at Nicholls with access to donated reusable basic necessities including clothing, household goods, small furniture items and school supplies at no cost.

“We are so very grateful to the members of the Bayou Community Foundation for the support they provide to address the needs of the greater community as well as their support of the Colonel Closet project. With their support, the Colonel Closet will be able to improve and expand services that are being offered to our university community. Every step forward helps ensure that the Colonel Closet project will continue to be a sustainable resource at Nicholls State University for generations to come,” said Andi Sonnier, LMSW, Nicholls Student Affairs case manager.

As the project progresses, the Colonel Closet has become a platform for incorporating service hours for university organizations, inclusion with work-study student employees, internship opportunities for recipients in the Bridge to Independence program, and program expansion with business major internships. Future plans to secure long-term sustainability efforts of the project include partnerships with community and university organizations.

Redistributing usable items to others directly reduces landfill waste, preserves water, reduces chemical pollution and ultimately, reduces Nicholls’ carbon footprint while helping each other. Donations of quality, clean items with reuse potential from students, faculty, staff and the community are accepted all year during the Colonel Closet’s operational hours.

Contact colonelcloset@nicholls.edu or call 985-493-2529 for information on how to provide financial contributions. Surplus items are donated to local non-profit organizations.

The Bayou Community Foundation was created in 2012 by a group of business leaders and philanthropists from Lafourche and Terrebonne Parishes, solely serving Lafourche, Terrebonne, and Grand Isle, Louisiana. BCF’s vision is to strengthen its local capacity to create a compassionate and sustainable coastal community for generations to come through strategic investments in education and preservation of its coasts and human services. To learn more, visit www.bayoucf.org.