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Goodwill headquarters

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Instead, Helms was offered a struggling inner city mission in Boston’s South End, Morgan Chapel, established a generation earlier by Henry Morgan. The young minister was appalled at the conditions faced by immigrants who found themselves in a new country without jobs and sometimes desperate for food, clothing and shelter. Helms began going door-to-door in Boston’s wealthiest districts asking for donations of clothing and household goods. Goodwill differed from many charities of the day, operating a business model where donated goods were repaired and restored, then sold for profit. The profits were used to pay workers who helped refurbish those goods. Helms hired people in need — many of whom were considered unemployable — to do this work. Employees were paid $4 a day. When money was scarce, workers were given $5 clothing vouchers.

Although it wasn’t until 1915 that the term Goodwill Industries was coined, 1902 became known as the year Goodwill was born. With the help of Methodist Church funding, Helms went on to help establish Goodwill Industries

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Yesterday and Today: Goodwill History

Goodwill’s history extends back over century ago when Reverend Edgar J. Helms founded the first Goodwill in 1902 in Boston. The Methodist minister collected used clothes and household goods, and then trained and hired the poor and immigrants to fix them. By doing so, he developed a method to help men and women in need by giving them hope, dignity and independence.  The items were then resold or given to those who repaired them. The system worked, and the Goodwill philosophy of “a hand up, not a hand out” was born.

Today, there are 185 Goodwill Industries members or affiliate organizations worldwide. Each Goodwill is an independent, non-profit organization, and a part of Goodwill Industries International (GII).

Goodwill Industries of Atlanta was started in 1925 as a 501(c)(3) by a group of local citizens. The group worked in a small house, collecting used goods with a horse and wagon and mending clothes on pedal operated sewing machines. In an attempt to find the right location, Atlanta’s Goodwill moved its operation

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History

A history of providing opportunities in Western and Northern Connecticut

Goodwill has been supporting the power of independence since 1950.

Our legacy, however, extends back to 1902, when Rev. Edgar Helms founded Goodwill in Boston. Wanting to offer a “hand up, not a handout,” Helms collected used goods and clothing. He then hired and trained those in need to mend and repair them, and sold the items to help fund the operation. To this day, that ideal informs all Goodwill programs and services delivered to the local community.

Today, Goodwill Industries International is a $5.87 billion nonprofit, secular organization with more than 150 independent chapters.

Humble beginnings, heartfelt support

Goodwill Industries of Western and Northern Connecticut is celebrating 74 years of service to the local community.  In 1950, the Rev. Joseph Pouliot organized Goodwill Industries of Western Connecticut at the Christian Union on Main Street in Bridgeport. In 1969, Goodwill merged with the Sheltered Workshop and moved to its present barrier-free bu

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