Press · Bloom Swap
For journalists. Facts first, a person second.
Bloom Swap is a free clothing program of Bloom Ministries, a registered 501(c)(3) in Salem, Oregon. Below: a paragraph you may reuse, the facts that are verified, the image policy, and how to reach the Chancery.
Reusable
Bloom Swap press boilerplate.
You may reuse this paragraph as written, in whole, without asking.
Boilerplate · free to reuse
Bloom Swap is a free clothing program of Bloom Ministries, a registered 501(c)(3). People arrive, browse racks sorted by size and style, take what fits who they are, and leave with a bag. Nothing is sold, nothing is means-tested, no ID is asked for, no name is required. Bloom owns the inventory, stores it, sorts it, launders it, delivers it the day before a swap and removes it after. Swaps happen at host venues: the first was hosted by an electrology practice in Tigard; the plan is two swap weekends a year there, a network of host congregations running Bloom Swaps with Bloom’s playbook and signage, and clothing reaching unhoused neighbors in Salem and Portland through congregations and organizations. Every guest is offered the rest of the Bloom network — crisis support, the Trans Relocation Fund, six free peer groups — and none of it costs anything.
If you shorten it, keep the first sentence as it stands. “A registered 501(c)(3)” is the correct description of Bloom Ministries.
Fact sheet
The facts, verified.
Each of these is on the public record or on Bloom’s own live pages. A claim not on this list is not one Bloom is making yet.
- Bloom Ministries is a registered 501(c)(3), EIN 39-4922713, incorporated October 17, 2025, in Salem, Oregon.
- Bloom helped 47 people before it solicited any outside funding.
- Founder and officer compensation at Bloom Ministries is $0, and has been since the first day.
- Bloom’s crisis form is answered within one business day, and Bloom’s crisis pages carry a quick exit.
- Bloom runs six free peer groups: Trans Identity, Disability, Faith Deconstruction, Grief, Relocation Transition and Family Rejection.
- Bloom’s relocation support is given as grants, not loans. A relocation runs $3,000–$6,000.
- Bloom Swap partner recognition follows IRC §513(i) and Treas. Reg. 1.513-4(c)(2)(iv): acknowledgment, never advertising.
- The Oregon Child Abuse Hotline, 855-503-SAFE (855-503-7233), is printed on every Bloom Swap page.
- Crisis support is free and routed through bloomministries.org/crisis-support.
Swap figures, such as swaps held and pieces circulated, are computed from the program’s ledger and published on the impact page. Where there are no records yet, that page says “not yet counted”, and Bloom asks that coverage say the same rather than estimate.
Photographs
Image policy.
No photograph of a guest exists, and none will be provided.
Bloom Swap does not photograph guests and does not allow anyone else to. Volunteers agree to that rule before they serve, and hosts agree to it for the days of their swap. A journalist at a swap is asked to keep the same rule: no photographs and no recordings of guests.
Photographs of venues, racks, hangers, sorted stock and an empty room before a swap opens are available on request. Captions should describe what is shown and never suggest that a pictured garment went to any particular person. Logo files and organizational background are in Bloom Ministries’ media kit.
Contact
Who speaks for Bloom Swap.
The Chancery of Bloom Ministries speaks for Bloom Swap.
Write through Bloom Ministries’ contact page, and say that the message is a press inquiry about Bloom Swap, with your outlet and your deadline. The Chancery answers with facts first, and arranges an interview where one would help.
Bloom’s other announcements and statements are in the newsroom.
A few notes
Describing Bloom Swap accurately.
Five points that keep coverage accurate, and keep guests safe.
- Bloom Swap is a program of Bloom Ministries, not a separate organization.
- It is free. Nothing at a swap is sold, and no guest is asked for ID, a name or a reason for coming.
- It is for trans and nonbinary people first, and for anyone who needs clothes that fit.
- Host venues and partners are named by Bloom only once they have signed and agreed to be named. Please do not name a host or partner this site does not list.
- Plans, such as swap weekends and clothing drives, are plans until they have happened. The site says which is which.
Dated log
Corrections.
When Bloom Swap gets something wrong on this site, the correction is dated and kept here.
No corrections yet.
When something on this site is found to be wrong, the correction is dated and listed here, newest first.
FAQ
Questions journalists ask
Still asking? Write to swap@bloomministries.org and a person answers.
Can I attend a swap as a journalist?
Ask the Chancery first, before you arrive. The rule during a swap does not change for anyone: no guest is photographed, recorded or approached for comment. The room belongs to the guests.
Can you put me in touch with a guest?
No. Bloom does not record who comes to a swap and does not introduce guests to the press. Bloom Swap has no testimonials, by design.
How should Bloom Ministries be described?
As a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Salem, Oregon, EIN 39-4922713. Bloom Swap is one of its programs.
Who hosted the first swap?
The first swap was hosted by an electrology practice in Tigard. Bloom names a host or partner only after it has signed and agreed to be named.
Press
Facts first. Then a person.
Use the boilerplate as it stands, check the figures on the impact page, and write to the Chancery with anything else.
In danger right now? Bloom’s crisis support is free, and a person answers