The basement at the Lutheran Church of St. John in the Heights, Jim Thorpe, has enough clothing, shoes and other goodies to rival Macy's, but better yet, it's all free and it's to help a good cause.

The church's annual clothing giveaway for the needy will begin Thursday, Aug. 4 and will run for three weeks.The church's makeshift clothing store will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 4, 11 and 18; from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Aug. 5, 12 and 19; and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Aug. 6, 13 and 20.The church has been collecting clothing since July and has received enough donations to fill 20 tables, which is even more than last year.Donations came from St. John's congregation, as well as other churches that wished to help out the cause, now in its 15th year."Everybody is welcome," said Miriam Borosh, one of the church members who helps organize the giveaway."People come from all over. Last year, we had people from as far away as Wilkes-Barre."Other church members who helped organize the giveaway are Bonnie Hoffman, Mary Strohl, Beverly Vincter, Faye Kohler, Jo Bozza, Tom Strohl and Leta Thompson.The church has a large selection of men's, women's and children's clothing in all sizes. All of the clothing is sorted by size and is free from any stains."We discarded all of the soiled clothing," said Borosh. "All the clothing is clean and some things are even brand new."All clothing that is not selected by the end of the giveaway will be taken to the men's mission and homes in Allentown.For a map to the church, visit

http://www.stjohnsinjimthorpe.org or call the church at (570) 325-4255.