Two months ago, Luling resident Lisa Bilich stumbled upon several buy/sell/trade Facebook sites while trying to get rid of an old dryer. Though she soon found a prospective buyer, Bilich said God put it in her heart to give the dryer away for free.
”I began asking myself why I was trying to make a quick buck on things I no longer needed but someone else might, and why people threw away perfectly good items,” Bilich said. “I knew what I had to do.”
Bilich turned to longtime friends Jerri Cooper and Carissa Oxford in order to create a Facebook page where people in the community could donate items to those in need. The page, “Pay It Forward–St. Charles Parish,” started shortly before Christmas and already has more than 900 members.
The Facebook page allows members to post items they are looking to give away and connects them with needy people in search of those items. Women’s clothes are among the most common items posted, but other postings have included silver champagne flutes, guitars, blood sugar monitoring supplies and more. A recent post re-emphasized that the group was only for those offering free items and that “no selling or trading is allowed.”
“We have to watch for spammers and be sure everyone is being a blessing,” Oxford said. “[But] basically, everyone on the page is there for the right reasons, so it doesn’t get out of control.”
Oxford said at times people post free services, such as a massage at Merle Norman.
“Someone else just offered to go and clean for an elderly or needy person,” Oxford said.
In addition to the Pay It Forward page, Oxford also administers a page for families dealing with the rare brain disease Adrenomyeloneuropathy, or ALD, which affects her 11-year-old son. She said that page is comparatively more challenging to administer than Pay It Forward, as the disease is fatal.
“Imagine the emotions there,” Oxford said.
The group is now attempting its first collection event in time for prom season. Dubbed “All About Dat Dress,” members of Pay It Forward are collecting dresses, shoes and accessories from throughout the community. On Feb. 28, students from Hahnville, Destrehan and Central Lafourche will be able to visit the Lord’s House Community Church in Luling from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. to either swap an old dress or donate a non-perishable food item in exchange for a dress.
Bilich said the dress swap was modeled after a similar Houma-based event, “Princess to a Queen.” Initially, Bilich said, the goal was to collect dresses to donate to the Houma event, but after posting the idea on Pay It Forward-St. Charles Parish, it garnered attention from member Audrey Raziano, who put a local spin on the prom theme.
“In no time at all we have a donation collection area set up, and an event location donated by Lynelle Adams. Others offer to do hair and makeup for girls who sign up at the dress swap event,” Bilich said. “I was amazed at how it took on a life of its own and grew exponentially over just a few days.”
Representatives from Paul Mitchell will also be at All About Dat Dress to offer hair and makeup tips.
Those interested in donating to the dress swap can drop off their dresses at First National Bank USA, located at 13386 Hwy. 90 in Boutte, between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Anyone interested in joining “Pay It Forward – St. Charles Parish” can do so by searching for the group on Facebook and clicking “like” on the group’s page.
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