About Blake
My name is Blake Carnes and I am the founder of Blake's Closet. I founded Blake's Closet back in 2010 at the age of 14 after the local clothing closets were shut down. I was a volunteer at the Blue Valley Multi Service Center at the time, and have been for over 8 years now. When the clothing closets were terminated, I knew it was my chance to make a difference. I have always been a person who puts other people first and someone who loves community service, and I decided that Blake's Closet would be the way I could continue doing both of these.
In 2010, the first Blake's Closet was held and was a huge success. We were able to serve 700 people which is more than we had expected. After a successful first distribution, my family and I decided that we would turn Blake's Closet into a 501(c)3 and hold annual distributions. Our 2011 distribution nearly tripled the size of the prior Blake's Closet event. We collect over 8,000 pounds of clothing articles and were able to distribute them to people from all over the area. In 2012, the size of Blake's Closet was overwhelming as it we handed out 1400 bags of clothing! I cannot wait to see what the 2013 distribution holds.
In order to make Blake's Closet possible it takes many hours of planning and organization from multiple people. It takes countless volunteers and a lot of patience to make possible. Blake's Closet would not be the success it is today without the help of these volunteers and my family. My family has been very supportive over the last few years, and I could not have done this without them. My family and I have put in countless hours to make this distribution the success it is today. I am very proud of how Blake's Closet has grown over the last few years. I never expected it to make the impact it has on the community. I have many great memories from working at Blake's Closet. My favorite part is getting to interact with the clients and hearing their stories. Seeing their smiles makes every bit of effort put into the closet worth it. The distribution is the highlight of my year, and I look forward to it all year long.
Before I had Blake's Closet clothing distributions, I was only organizing food drives on a yearly basis. I organized my first food drive when I was in fourth grade. At first, the food drives were just in my neighborhood and I would walk door to door asking for food. I would hang grocery bags on my neighbors' doors with letters asking for food, and then I would go back the next week and pick up the food from their front porch. Over the next few years, the drives began to grow and I began to hold food drives in local schools that would benefit the BVMSC. The food drives have been a huge success, and I am excited to see the turnout of the drive for 2013!
Outside of Blake's Closet I am a very social person. I am 17 years old and a freshman at the University of Missouri where I am majoring in Health Sciences. I plan on being very involved in my school and extracurricular activities. I hope to play intramural sports, as well as getting involved in campus activities. Even though I will be attending an out of state college, I will still continue Blake's Closet with the help and support of family and friends.
I attended Blue Valley High School my senior year and Blue Valley West High School as an underclassman. I was very involved during high school. I was a varsity tennis player, a member of the varsity swim team, the manager of the varsity boys swim team, and was a Blue Valley West Cheerleader for three years . I also was on the leadership committee of REbel, in National Honor Society, Spanish National Honor Society, National Honor Society of Sports Medicine, and National Society of High School Scholars. In 2013, I was recognized as the Prudential Spirit of Community Distinguished Finalist which is an award for being a leader in the community. I also was awarded the Nick and Jake's Community Service Scholarship for all the service I completed during my high school career. For the last 3 years, I have been awarded the Presidential Community Service Award, and was recognized with an award for being one of the students who had completed the most community service hours in Blue Valley. During the summer of 2011 I got the chance to go to Houston, Texas and participate in a medical scholars program through NYLF. I was presented with the opportunity to shadow doctors, stand in during surgeries, and experience what the medical field has to offer. During the summer of 2012, I attended a medical forum in Chicago through the same program and I got the opportunity to be the commencement speaker of the program. My senior year, I also attended the Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) which is a facility run by Blue Valley. At CAPS, I was enrolled in the Sports Medicine program which helped further my education in science and the medical field. From my experience in the program, I went on to become a student athletic trainer for my high school.
All of my activities keep me very busy, but when I have free time I enjoy spending it at the lake with family and friends. I have an incredible family and I am so blessed to have them. My father, Mark Carnes, is a Certified Financial Planner and my mother is Kim Carnes. I have two sisters Bethany and Katie. Without them, Blake's Closet would not be what it is today.
In 2010, the first Blake's Closet was held and was a huge success. We were able to serve 700 people which is more than we had expected. After a successful first distribution, my family and I decided that we would turn Blake's Closet into a 501(c)3 and hold annual distributions. Our 2011 distribution nearly tripled the size of the prior Blake's Closet event. We collect over 8,000 pounds of clothing articles and were able to distribute them to people from all over the area. In 2012, the size of Blake's Closet was overwhelming as it we handed out 1400 bags of clothing! I cannot wait to see what the 2013 distribution holds.
In order to make Blake's Closet possible it takes many hours of planning and organization from multiple people. It takes countless volunteers and a lot of patience to make possible. Blake's Closet would not be the success it is today without the help of these volunteers and my family. My family has been very supportive over the last few years, and I could not have done this without them. My family and I have put in countless hours to make this distribution the success it is today. I am very proud of how Blake's Closet has grown over the last few years. I never expected it to make the impact it has on the community. I have many great memories from working at Blake's Closet. My favorite part is getting to interact with the clients and hearing their stories. Seeing their smiles makes every bit of effort put into the closet worth it. The distribution is the highlight of my year, and I look forward to it all year long.
Before I had Blake's Closet clothing distributions, I was only organizing food drives on a yearly basis. I organized my first food drive when I was in fourth grade. At first, the food drives were just in my neighborhood and I would walk door to door asking for food. I would hang grocery bags on my neighbors' doors with letters asking for food, and then I would go back the next week and pick up the food from their front porch. Over the next few years, the drives began to grow and I began to hold food drives in local schools that would benefit the BVMSC. The food drives have been a huge success, and I am excited to see the turnout of the drive for 2013!
Outside of Blake's Closet I am a very social person. I am 17 years old and a freshman at the University of Missouri where I am majoring in Health Sciences. I plan on being very involved in my school and extracurricular activities. I hope to play intramural sports, as well as getting involved in campus activities. Even though I will be attending an out of state college, I will still continue Blake's Closet with the help and support of family and friends.
I attended Blue Valley High School my senior year and Blue Valley West High School as an underclassman. I was very involved during high school. I was a varsity tennis player, a member of the varsity swim team, the manager of the varsity boys swim team, and was a Blue Valley West Cheerleader for three years . I also was on the leadership committee of REbel, in National Honor Society, Spanish National Honor Society, National Honor Society of Sports Medicine, and National Society of High School Scholars. In 2013, I was recognized as the Prudential Spirit of Community Distinguished Finalist which is an award for being a leader in the community. I also was awarded the Nick and Jake's Community Service Scholarship for all the service I completed during my high school career. For the last 3 years, I have been awarded the Presidential Community Service Award, and was recognized with an award for being one of the students who had completed the most community service hours in Blue Valley. During the summer of 2011 I got the chance to go to Houston, Texas and participate in a medical scholars program through NYLF. I was presented with the opportunity to shadow doctors, stand in during surgeries, and experience what the medical field has to offer. During the summer of 2012, I attended a medical forum in Chicago through the same program and I got the opportunity to be the commencement speaker of the program. My senior year, I also attended the Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) which is a facility run by Blue Valley. At CAPS, I was enrolled in the Sports Medicine program which helped further my education in science and the medical field. From my experience in the program, I went on to become a student athletic trainer for my high school.
All of my activities keep me very busy, but when I have free time I enjoy spending it at the lake with family and friends. I have an incredible family and I am so blessed to have them. My father, Mark Carnes, is a Certified Financial Planner and my mother is Kim Carnes. I have two sisters Bethany and Katie. Without them, Blake's Closet would not be what it is today.
