Holiday shopping isn’t just about giving gifts to your loved ones, it’s also about giving back. That’s the implicit message from a downtown Los Angeles nonprofit that helps homeless women get off the streets.
The Downtown Women’s Center was founded in 1978 to focus on “serving and empowering women experiencing homelessness.”
To this end, the organization sells everything from homemade soaps and candles to cafe food to those on their Christmas lists. All of these are made by women who have transitioned from unhoused environments.
“I was in a tent on the street at Fifth Avenue and San Pedro,” said Alexandria Pineda, who oversees a staff of candle makers at DWC’s S. Los Angeles Street boutique. The store features apparel, handmade soaps, and decorative items, many of which are made in Pineda’s office in the back.
“Your purchases and donations help women get off the streets and into job training,” she said as she carefully cut out the wicks of candles from the boutique’s “Joshua Tree” line.
Pineda’s backstory is pretty common. She moved to Los Angeles from Texas in 2021 and quickly realized she couldn’t find a bartending job in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. After spending all her savings, she ended up living in a tent on Skid Row for three months.
“I just treated it like an active combat zone,” Pineda said. “Because that’s how it felt to me.”
“It’s especially difficult for women,” she added.
DWC provides a variety of services to people in Pineda’s situation, including a health clinic, temporary housing, and food service on Skid Row. But it was the candle-making opportunity that intrigued her the most.
Madelon Wallace is DWC’s Social Work Director and oversees the women and their crafts. She called what they do, especially during the holidays, a “labor of love.”
“It gives them those skills and helps them move towards where they want to be,” Wallace said.
Now, Pineda is encouraging Christmas shoppers to visit the boutique or the website MadeByDWC.org. She said her products not only make perfect gifts, but also give back to the community.
“Instead of asking for benefits,” Pineda said. “I can now take care of myself!”
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