Cheryl Tanner a Great Neighbor

Some people in our area are in need of basic items like clothing and furniture, but can’t afford to buy them. Then there are generous people who’d be willing to donate to those in need, but don’t know how to find them. That’s where Cheryl Tanner comes into the picture.

Cheryl started the Facebook group A Matter of the Heart in SE Idaho, or AMOTH. It began last October when she came across another Facebook group where a single mother was in need of clothing, and plenty of people were willing to sell her their used clothing, but Cheryl had a better idea.

“You don’t pay for it. You give it,” she said.

There are two components to the Facebook group page: Those in need can post their needs, and those who want to give can post their things, too. Cheryl connects them.

“Say I had something I wanted to give away,” she said. “I could take a picture of it and put it on there and just say this is for free. If I needed something I could go in there and say, ‘I’m in search of towels, and people will comment and say, ‘I have those,’ and then they send them my way.”

Since she started it in October, the Facebook group has grown to 1,200 members, givers and receivers.

In addition to her full-time job, Cheryl found herself working six hours a day on the group page coordinating things, but then group members started offering to help.

“I can take up to eight hours a day to do this,” said Marci Mecham, who volunteered her garage as one dropoff point. She also sorts items from clothing to furniture to other things.

There are drop-off hubs in Rexburg, Pocatello and Burley. Cheryl’s husband, Tom, delivers items from one hub to the other depending on where the need is. So why does Cheryl spend so much time and effort on the project?

“Because it feels good. Because people need help,” she said.

You can find the Facebook page at http://goo.gl/no396.