Houston Furniture Bank reopens, set to help 500 families a month

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A brand new Houston Furniture Bank building is set to help 500 families a month in the Bayou City.

For the people who work at the bank, it is more than just a job. They are changing people's lives who live with so little.

The new facility is stacked high, from the front to the back, with furniture and mattresses. Employee Sam McClenton delivers most of it around town.

"My back hurts sometimes, I don't make a lot of money," McClenton said.

But, McClenton is not complaining.

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He has worked at the Houston Furniture Bank for about nine years. He provides donated furniture to people who do not have much in their homes. What he sees at work is tough to forget.

"When I go to these apartments and I see these people have all these children and nothing to sit on and nothing to sleep on," McClenton added.

So, when the original bank burned down in 2015 from an arson related fire, that meant people who were desperate for a bed or chair in their home had to wait. Everything in the 10,000-square-foot building was gone. The delivery trucks and the donations were a loss. Now, less than two years later, through donations and sponsors, the bank is back and bigger.

The building is now 75,000-square-feet on Mosley Street in southeast Houston.

Volunteer Tanisha Harris attended the grand opening and shared her thoughts.

"It really touches your heart because we can get caught up in our day-to-day life knowing that a lot of us have those opportunities, privileges and others don't," Harris said.

Despite the aches and pains, McClenton shakes it all off. He says the job is worth it to him because people need him.

"It's bad and we don't realize how bad are hurting out there. People are hurting," he said.

The furniture deliveries will start again out of the new building on Friday. Local agencies refer people to receive the deliveries. The facility is also accepting donations everyday and sells furniture from its outlet center to support itself.

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