MDN File Photo Mrs. Field’s Closet’s second location is in the guidance office at Central Campus Middle School.

In a time of rising prices and expenses at home, a local nonprofit is expanding its outreach to help students get life’s necessities at Minot schools.

Mrs. Field’s Closet was created by Tammy White, Longfellow Elementary second grade teacher, in April 2019, and provides essential necessities to students like school supplies, new clothing and hygiene products.

White said she created the nonprofit to honor the legacy of Becky Field, elementary school counselor who died in 2018. White met Field when she started student teaching at Longfellow, and described her as an honest and frank person who had genuine love and connection with her colleagues and students.

“She had connections with them I wanted to have. When I became a second grade teacher at Longfellow, she was just that person who motivated you. Even if you had the worst day, you could go into her office and she would say, ‘You’re doing a great job. You’re doing just fine. Just hug them and love them no matter what,” White said. “She taught the students to be good humans. I saw her go above and beyond for her students all of the time. She told me, ‘That’s where you start. Build those relationships first and the learning will come.'”

White said Field’s sudden passing impacted her, the school and its students significantly. A few months later, White decided to follow Field’s example and brought her vision for Mrs. Field’s Closet to her principal. With the support of her school’s staff, White got the ball rolling at Longfellow Elementary with items donated by the Minot Area Homeless Coalition.

“I missed my friend, so I was being kind of selfish, and I didn’t want her to be forgotten. I was just going to keep it in my school, but there was some power within me that said, ‘You could do so much more here. So here we are,” White said.

In the years that followed, 2,577 students have been served from 11,620 available items. A second closet opened up at Central Middle School in 2024, and two additional closets will be available to students in the upcoming school year at Minot North High School and Erik Ramstad Middle School.

White said that with the addition of closets to Ramstad and Minot North, students who attend Longfellow will be able to benefit from them from kindergarten through graduation.

“If you’ve got kids who don’t use it, great. But by the numbers, I have a lot of kids that are using it. At first I thought middle school kids would be leary of using it. That’s why I didn’t get into a high school at first, but those kids aren’t afraid. That tells me they’re in need,” White said. “I have tons of stories since 2019 where I just did this at my school to see if it worked, to see if the kids needed it, and they do. One hundred percent. That’s what keeps me going in this, because I know it’s worth it.”

White is hopeful further community support for the nonprofit’s mission to sustain the existing closets, and allow additional schools in Minot and beyond to open their own to provide relief to students far into the future.

“I have a huge passion for it. I love kids, and I’m a teacher obviously so I’m with them all the time. I see their needs every day, and it’s hard. This is my way of giving back to make it better,” White said.

The counselor at each school oversees each closet and works with the students and families utilizing them to determine what their needs are.

White said the nonprofit provides the initial items to get the closet started at each school, and replenishes it throughout the year. The nonprofit’s website, mrsfieldscloset.org, also includes a wishlist for each participating school highlighting specific items requested by the school’s counselor.

Members of the public can then donate the specific items like hair care products for African-American students to the school in question in lieu of a cash donation. Items can also be purchased and donated directly to each school directly through Amazon, which White said is a huge boon for students in need of new clothes.

“One thing I learned about kids, is that the first thing they do when they come in the closet is look for a tag. I didn’t understand it at first, but now I do. Often those kids get second-hand things. They want something new. Everyone feels better when they get something new,” White said. “At Longfellow, we have a whole rack with new jackets and snowpants, and I keep the tags on so it feels like they’re going to a store.”

White said the most significant outcome from Mrs. Field’s Closets is students and families are given a sense of safety within their schools and reminded that their community cares about them.

“Being a teacher of 21 years, I know what’s happening in our schools right now, and it hasn’t changed. That’s why I’ve taken my time with it so we could grow it, because the kids need it. I wish they didn’t, but they do,” White said. “Kids just need to know people care about them. People go through tough seasons, and they just need someone to show them they don’t have to stay in that season, whatever that may look like.”

White said any school interested in starting their own Mrs. Field’s Closet can reach out to the nonprofit online.

An open house for the Minot North High School Mrs. Field’s Closet will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 15.