Neighbors 4 Neighbors

A Closet Full Of Treasures

FT. LAUDERDALE (CBS4) ― Fashion is always fun, and Taylor's Closet of Fort Lauderdale is making sure young women in foster care are looking good and feeling great. Taylor's Closet is a non-profit organization started by 17 year old, Lindsay Giambatista.

"It's not like just an effort to make humanity better it's like have fun and just go shopping and just be a girl" said Lindsay.

Lindsay is a self-proclaimed shopaholic, so when she was looking for community service hours, naturally she turned to clothing. What started out as a personal donation, turned into Taylor's Closet, a place where young women in foster care can get the latest looks for free!

Lindsay described what it's like, "when I first meet them like they turn into little girls when they put on a piece of clothing and their face goes woo! And it's like secret cause they don't really know they're doing it".

Recently, Lindsay was invited to share her story on the Jim & Jade Show. She was introduced to Sela, a 17 year old who grew up in the South Florida foster care system. After spending years as a runaway and moving from home to home, she's giving back to others in foster care as a mentor for Child Net. Child Net is the lead agency that manages the child welfare system in Broward County.

"Sometimes the girls don't believe it, they're like, oh no she's lying to me, they think I'm 20 years old, and I'm like no I'm not, you know, but it's great you know what I mean because they never had this chance they're finally able to talk to somebody that's actually been through what they've been through" said Sela.

Sela credits her case workers with helping her through tough times. "I was pretty lucky, I had a good case worker since I was 13. She was always there for me, whenever I needed her. I always told her where I was every time I was a runaway" said Sela.

Lindsay was inspired by Sela's story and offered to open her special store for a personal shopping spree.

"I was really excited to meet Sela because it was a different atmosphere than in the store, and I was like this is real life...I just want to give her cute clothes, you know? Have fun, nothing too formal just let her go shopping" said Lindsay.

Lindsay says she knows the powerful connection Sela is able to make with the young people she mentors.

"I know when the girls come in here, I know there's a certain level I can't connect with them on, because I haven't been through it. So for Sela to be going through the stuff with them, that's like automatic... she's come out of it, and she's like amazing now, that's really awesome" said Lindsay.

Sela was excited to go to Taylor's Closet and check out the clothes. "I thought it was really cool, I've never heard of anything, anything like this" said Sela.

As their afternoon together came to an end, the power of Taylor's Closet became clear. It's more than just a connection over clothing, it's a sisterhood of support from one young woman to another.

Sela enjoyed her time at Taylor's Closet and knows it's an important place for other young women in foster care. "I think what she's doing is great. I think that a lot of these girls are really going to appreciate it, and I really hope that it gets out there more, so that the girls really know that they have somewhere to go."

(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

---