Give Back in a Flash: The Bridge Center Wish List

Hello do-gooders!

In my "Give Back in a Flash" posts, I'm going to be posting a single opportunity that has recently caught my eye and is worthy of sharing ASAP.  So here goes...

The Bridge Family Center has put out its winter Wish List and by purchasing and donating something off the list, you can make a child who has been through a lot much happier this holiday season!  The Bridge Family Center is an organization that helps families in the Hartford area with counseling, group services for youths and children, and support.  The organization also runs residential programs for youths in crisis.  Many of the children helped by the Bridge Center have been abandoned, abused, or suffered horrible family tragedies. Help these kids feel better by making them feel special!

The Center's Wish List includes:

Gift cards (Marshall's, Walmart, Kohl's, BJs, Best Buy, Bob's, Target, Old Navy, AJ Wright, TJ Maxx, Burlington Coat Factory, Eblens, Westfarms Mall, Michael's, Bow-Tie Cinema, CVS, Walgreens, Border's, Barnes & Noble, FYE, Supercuts, Visa and American Express Gift Cards, Restaurants (Chili's, Ruby Tuesdays, Olive Garden, Friendly's), Supermarkets)
Long Distance Phone Cards
Sports Equipment (especially official sized basketballs)
Winter Clothing (New Winter Coats for teens (male and female), New winter hats, gloves, scarves)
New Raincoats (for children aged 3-6)
New Games (especially "Connects" building activities)
Books (Picture books for ages 0-8, books for ages 8-18)
Journals and composition books
Stamps and Stationery
Donations to send kids to Summer Adventure camp

For the full list including some bigger ticket items they are seeking like a Wii, click here!

Items can be dropped off at the Bridge Family Center main office at 1022 Farmington Avenue in West Hartford Monday through Friday between 8:30 am and 5:00 pm.  If you need assistance, ask for Judy Bierly who is in charge of the collection.

This is also a perfect organization to donate to after running a DIY drive!

Nothing like a little giving back after giving thanks!

xo Jessica

DIY do-gooders!

In light of last week's post of the Great Holiday Coat Drive List of 2010, I thought about those of you who might want to go the extra mile to create your own drive.  In my investigation, I actually found that sometimes it's even easier to create your own drive at work, at school, or at your place of worship, than it is to drop off stuff at someone else's drive and the impact is that much greater!  The reason drives can be so easy is because a lot of shelters and organizations will come and pick up the contents of your drive for you--you don't even need to transport the items.  All you need to do is advertise and store the items until there are enough to pick up!

There are lots of different drives to DIY and some are easier to do than others.  Keep in mind that coat drives require a lot of storage space in which to keep the coats until they are picked up, however, there are a ton of other types of drives that you can do which take up very little space, if storage is an issue for you. 

So here are some of my favorite ideas for DIY drives.  All you need to do is to send a group email, possibly hang up a flyer or two, and put out a collection box at your school or office!  Plus many of the drives below can be done year-round!  We tend to think about volunteering and donating most around holiday time, but there is a great need at shelters all year round.

Mitten Tree  

The description pretty much says it all.  Get a small or large Christmas tree and ask your colleagues or anyone else to bring in a pair of mittens, a winter hat, a scarf, or other winter gear and hang the items on the Christmas tree.  This is a festive and fun way to give back!  Then you can donate all of the items to a local shelter or organization seeking winter clothing donations.  Of course, you don't actually need a tree and can simply collect winter items to donate in a box.  Feel free to wrap the box in wrapping paper for a holiday touch.

Sock Drive

Though you might not know it, socks (and underwear!) are one thing that almost every shelter in is desperate need of.  Socks are also an easy and inexpensive item to collect and donate.   You can also do a sock drive all year round since shelters are always in need of clean, new socks and underwear.  All you need to do is set up a cardboard box in your office and send a few emails to get your sock drive going.  You can select which shelter you'll be donating to in advance so you know what types of socks to collect.  If it's a domestic violence shelter, you'll want to collect women's and children's socks.  If it's a homeless shelter, you might want to buy larger men's socks.  For a family shelter, all types of socks are probably needed.

Toiletry Drive

This is another drive that you can do year round and for which there is always a tremendous need.  Shelters are often in need of these basic necessities that we take for granted every day.  At night and emergency shelters, there are often communal bathrooms so think about donating spray deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, body lotion, disposable razors, shaving cream, toothbrushes, toothpaste, hair brushes, combs, and feminine products like pads and tampons.  For family shelters and transitional housing, which most shelters also have, try donating laundry detergent, toilet paper, diapers, and first aid supplies.

Fun fact, I recently organized a toiletry drive at the Connecticut Law Review office and we have already collected almost a full cardboard box (wrapped in fun holiday wrapping paper!) of toiletries to donate to the South Park Inn in Hartford.  From experience, this is truly an incredibly easy way to give back.  South Park Inn, like many shelters, has a "Wish List" for donations.  One phone call over to South Park Inn confirmed that they were thrilled to receive a large donation of toiletries and that they would even send someone to pick up the items!

Toy Drives

Toy drives are great because again, all you need is a box to collect in order to make a child's Christmas that much brighter!  Toys for Tots is the easiest way to donate toys.  With Toys for Tots, you can arrange to become an official drop-off site or you can simply hold your own in-office or school drive and drop off the toys at at any drop-off site or any Toys R Us or Babys R Us location.  If you want to make a truly local impact, consider donating to a domestic violence or family shelter since many family and domestic violence shelters house mothers with small children.  You can place a call to any domestic violence shelter or family shelter to ask if there is a need there for toys for children, then collect and drop off!

Want to make it even easier for your colleagues to donate?  Ask them to order online at the online Toys for Tots headquarters at Toys R Us and have it all shipped to you for drop off, or use an online service to send directly to families in need!  Donate directly to the New York Cares program through Toys R Us which allows you to pick a gift from the Wish List and send to shelters serving domestic violence victims, victims of trafficking, homeless youth, and victims of sexual assault.  You can also give directly to a needy child after viewing his or her profile and wish list at JC Penney's Adopt an Angel program which goes through the Salvation Army.  So easy!

Coat Drives

Coat drives are one of the easiest ways to give back this winter, if you have the space to store the coats before they can be picked up.  Easy ways to do this, free up a closet by asking co-workers to place coats on the backs of their chairs for a couple of weeks in order to make space.  How about using that empty office that every office seems to have to store the coats?  Racks are easy and cheap to buy if you need them.  I got some at Target for under $20.  Try this one.  The easy thing about coat drives is that coats are one of the easiest things to have an organization come over with a truck to pick up so if you advertise and collect, most organizations or large drives will come to you to collect and will distribute the coats for you to those in need!

Before you start your drive, identify an organization that you'd like to donate to and make one phone call to find out the needs of the organization (many places are looking for particular sizes, for instance, Hands on Hartford is looking for Men's sizes XL to 3XL) and to arrange to have the coats picked up!  One of the best organizations to organize a drive with is One Warm Coat which even has an online guide to organizing your own coat drive!  One Warm Coat actually organizes local participating shelters, gives you information about what type of coat each participating shelter is looking for, and how to get the coats to the shelter.  To cut out your own research on a local organization and get right to it, I can't think of an easier way to organize a drive.

Finding out who needs what and when

Before putting out your collection box, it is important to have your destination site in mind.  Give one phone call to the organization of your choice to make sure that you're donating exactly what they need, what they have space to hold, and what they can easily distribute.  If you're donating clothing, find out what condition the clothing should be donated in and what sizes are needed at your site.  Find out what population frequents the shelter where you're looking to donate.  You don't want to donate a whole bunch of women's clothing if the shelter serves 85% male individuals.  One two minute phone call will answer all of these questions and you can also find out whether the shelter or organization will pick up what you've collected.  Most locations are happy to do so if you have a big enough donation!

Local Organizations in Hartford that Need Your Help...

Give a call over to these organizations when you're thinking of organizing a drive as needs change throughout the seasons.  Don't see a shelter in your neighborhood?  Leave a comment with your location and I'll find an organization in need there!

Hands on Hartford
Interval House Domestic Violence Shelter
Mercy House Shelter
South Park Inn
The House of Bread
Shelter for Women at the Village
The Marshall House Family Shelter

DIY Do-gooding

Designing your Own Drive is an easy and meaningful way to give back this holiday season and all year long!  This is one of the best and easiest ways to make a huge impact in your local community by donating directly to the people who need it.

Easier than you thought, right?

Happy Thanksgiving, do-gooders!

xo Jessica

Donate some winter warmth, do-gooders!

One of the absolute easiest ways to do good over the winter months is to donate a coat. I have compiled the "Great Holiday Coat Drive List of 2010" so that whether you live in the West Hartford area, Southern Connecticut, New York City, Boston, or Philadelphia, there is an easy place for you to donate!

The shelters and other service providers who will be receiving these coats vary in the types of services they provide and to whom the coats will be distributed. Feel free to tailor (!) your donation to the type of recipient you would like to benefit most. Before you decide not to donate a coat this year, just a few quick facts. The homeless often lose their coats during the summer since they have no place to keep them, so many homeless individuals need a new coat as the winter cold sets in. Victims of domestic violence often leave their abusive homes with nothing but the shirts on their backs. Many children have parents who can't afford to purchase a new coat for them as they grow out of the old ones each year. Someone without a coat during the bitter Northeast winters faces a host of illnesses and even death. Donating a coat is a small thing that you can do to help make someone's winter a little warmer, and, hopefully, I'll make it really easy for you to donate this holiday season!

Let's be honest, we all have a coat that maybe doesn't fit quite right or maybe we liked the style when we bought it but now we want something new with all of the holiday sales coming up. As long as the coat is in good condition, donate away! Of course, if you wouldn't wear it because the lining is ripped or it's so worn out that it isn't warm anymore, or it is pilling all over the place, it's best to toss that coat instead. So clean out your closets and make some space for all the cozy sweaters and winter clothes you're ready to pull out. If you go shopping and want to buy a new coat to donate, even better!

All of the places to donate ask that the items be gently used or new, and most ask that they be clean. So, do gooders, I present to you, the Great Holiday Coat Drive List of 2010!

CONNECTICUT

Connecticut do-gooders, look no further than Best Cleaners for your one-stop coat donation shop! Best Cleaners will actually dry clean your coats before taking the donations over to the Salvation Army. That's right, they will take the coat that's been sitting in your hall closet for a couple years and dry clean it so that it is fresh and crisp for its new owner. This is the easiest coat donation system I've ever seen. Plus, you can drop the coat at any of the Best Cleaners locations in Connecticut. Best Cleaners has locations in Berlin, Bristol, Canton, Glastonbury, Farmington/Unionville, Middletown, North Haven, Plainville, Rocky Hill, and Windsor.

Another great coat drive is the West Hartford Chamber of Commerce Toy and Coat Drive. This is one of my favorite picks because it's a type of what I like to call "combination giving." The drive is combined with the Chamber's Annual Holiday Business After Hours Party on December 9, 2010 from 5:30-7:30 at Companions for Living & Hartford Dental Associates at 1216 Farmington Avenue in West Hartford. Come meet, greet, and network with over 75 West Hartford professionals for hor d'oeurves and beverages! Admission is free for members of the West Hartford Chamber of Commerce and $20 for non-members and all party attendees are asked to bring unwrapped toys to benefit The Town that Cares Fund and new or gently used coats for donation to Button Up Connecticut. Can't make it to the event? The Chamber is accepting unwrapped toys and new or gently used coats at their offices at 948 Farmington Avenue, West Hartford, between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. through December 17, 2010!

One of my favorite organizations, Hands on Hartford, is in desperate need of coats to give out this winter, so make room in your closet by donating to their Annual Coat Drive!  Drop off your clean, gently used or new coats in the basement of South Church.  The entrance is at 1 Buckingham Street.  Drop off coats Monday through Thursday between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. or Friday between 9 p.m. and 3 p.m.  I spoke to Rosa at Hands on Hartford this morning and she said that they need to fill the coffers and haven't received nearly enough coats this season.  They are especially in need of coats in Men's sizes XL to 3XL. 

Button Up Connecticut has lots of opportunities for coat donation throughout the State of Connecticut! Towns that you can drop-off in are New Britain, Bloomfield, Glastonbury, West Hartford, Tolland, Wethersfield, Granby, and Meriden. For a list of drop-off locations and times, click here! My pick for donating through Button Up in West Hartford is Effie's Place Restaurant at 91 Park Road because you can drop off there seven days a week! Drop-off anytime Monday through Friday 6:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Want to donate a coat in Southern Connecticut? Look no further than One Warm Coat! One Warm coat has drop-off locations in Madison, New Haven, and Stamford. For Madison and Stamford donations, you have to act quickly because they are only collecting until November 20th! New Haven is accepting donations until December 31st, so plenty of time to donate. Click the links for your town for drop-off times and locations!

More combination giving, this time in Southern CT! Want to save 10% off of your entire purchase storewide at any Trailblazer store? All you have to do is donate a clean, new or gently used coat at the Trailblazer Coat Drive. Trailblazer has locations in New Haven, Branford, and Uncasville, CT and is accepting donations at all their stores. Donations to the New Haven store will benefit Harbor Health Services Clothing Drive, donations from the Branford store will benefit Columbus House, and donations from the Uncasville store will benefit Norwich Human Services. Trailblazer is accepting donations between November 15th and December 28th. This is an easy way to give back and get back!

NEW YORK CITY

New York Cares is one of my favorite organizations, period. Talk about an organization that makes it easy to give back! So, it is no surprise that the 22nd Annual New York Cares Coat Drive is a really, really easy way to donate a coat this holiday season with tons of drop-off locations throughout the city. After 22 years, it seems that they have this down to a science. So just the basics here, donate your new or freshly laundered gently used coat December 1-31st.

New York Cares is accepting donations during your morning commute between 7:30 and 9:30 a.m on weekdays at Grand Central Station in the Graybar Passage, in Penn Station at the Amtrak/NJ Transit portion of the terminal, and at Port Authority in the Main Concourse at the 42nd Street entrance. Can't make it during the morning commute? My pick for drop-off is the Pond at Bryant Park which is accepting donations anytime. Just think, ice skate and donate! You can also drop off anytime with New York's Finest at your local NYPD precinct or if you'd rather look at home furnishings and paint colors, just drop off at any Janovic Paint and Decorating Center, click here for locations throughout NYC, or drop-off anytime at all locations of Oz Moving and Storage.

If you happen to be heading to Madison Square Garden for a Rangers game, here's an easy way to give back (and if you have an extra ticket, feel free to invite me!). The New York Rangers and the Garden of Dreams Foundation are holding their 5th Annual Children's Coat Drive. Bring a new or gently used coat to the game with you until December 3rd and you get a commemorative Rangers item! Collection bins are set up in the mall area outside the Garden Box Office and also the suite lobbies on the 9th and 10th floors. Can't make it to the Rangers game? Here's a list of ice skating rinks where the team is also collecting coats!

GREATER BOSTON AREA

My pick for the Greater Boston Area coat donations is One Warm Coat. They have a ton of drop-off locations throughout the area. In Boston and Cambridge, the easiest drop-off location during the month of November is City Sports. Every City Sports store is accepting coat donations for One Warm Coat and if you like their page on facebook, they will donate $1 for each like to One Warm Coat. City Sports has locations in BU, Back Bay, Downtown Crossing, Harvard Square, Porter Square, Chestnut Hill, and Legacy Place.

Outside the city? Check out the One Warm Coats drop-off location page for drop-off spots in Abington, Auburn, Billerica, Braintree, Bridgewater, Chestnut Hill, Danvers, Dartmouth, Dedham, Dorchester, East Boston, Fall River, Hingham, Holyoke, Hyannis, Kingston, Lanesboro, Mattapoisett, Milford, Millbury, Natick, Plymouth, Providence, Quincy, Revere, Shrewsbury, South Attleboro, South Grafton, Springfield, Stoughton, Tauton, and Worchester. Just click on Massachusetts on the map.

GREATER PHILADELPHIA

Greater Philadelphia Cares is accepting coats from now until Martin Luther King Jr. Day for their 15th Annual Winter Coat Drive! Greater Philadelphia Cares has made it extremely easy to donate with a host of donation drop-off locations. There are five different locations in Center City for drop-off including Applebee's on South 15th Street, the Sheraton at Society Hill, or the Conestoga Bank at the Chinatown, Arch Street or their two Market Street locations.

Not in Center City? Greater Philadelphia Cares also has locations in Northwest Philadelphia, Northeast Philadelphia, South Philadelphia, Bucks County, Chester County, Delaware County, Montgomery County, and in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey!

And for a fun night on the town combined with giving back, this is one of my favorite picks for Philly! On December 10th from 8 p.m. to midnight, members of the Mazzoni Center's Care Services team will be taking over the bar at the Bike Stop at 206 S. Quince Street for their Winter Coat Drive Event. There will be beer, jello shots, and cupcakes! Bring new children's coats, mittens, hats, scarves, and presents to benefit children living with HIV/AIDS.

DIY COAT DRIVE

It's really easy to organize your own coat drive too.  Many organizations will actually come and pick up all of the coats for you!  Look for more information in an upcoming post.  Want to start your drive sooner rather than later? Post a comment or email me and I will send information your way.

Didn't see your area represented above and want to donate a coat?  Post a comment with your city or town and I'll find the easiest way to donate in your neck of the woods and share it with you!

In the meantime, I hope that I've made it easy for you to donate a coat this winter and to share warmth with those less fortunate this holiday season with the Great Holiday Coat Drive List of 2010!

Happy Holidays!

xo Jessica

Happy Holidays Do-gooders!

Someone recently asked me what projects were available to get face-to-face with others during the holiday season.  That's a great question because there are so many great, easy ways to get involved and to bring others some holiday cheer!

So if you're looking for a great upcoming holiday volunteer opportunity, I've selected my picks for the projects that will keep you warm with goodness all winter-long and which will warm the hearts and bellies of some of your fellow Hartford-area residents too!

One of my favorite upcoming holiday opportunities is to serve a Thanksgiving meal to the homeless.  This opportunity requires you to be at the soup kitchen from 9:30 am to 2:00 pm on Thanksgiving Day so there's still plenty of time to celebrate with your own family all afternoon!  There are six slots still available but don't worry if you can't make this one, you can always volunteer to serve a Christmas meal at South Church on Christmas Day!  Talk about getting in the Christmas spirit!  Can't make either one?  There is always a need to serve in the soup kitchen each week or feel free to volunteer to serve another holiday meal to come in the Spring since Hands on Hartford serves 12 holiday meals annually.

Maybe you're more interested in helping out with children this holiday season.  How about volunteering for the Annual Toy Shoppe Holiday Party on December 15th where low income kids get to spend the day doing holiday arts and crafts and other fun activities while their parents "shop" for holiday gifts for them (the gifts are free of charge)?  Hands on Hartford is looking for volunteers to gift wrap, help with arts and crafts projects, and help with refreshments and clean up.  I can't think of a better and easier way to bring holiday joy to kids and their parents.

Want to help out but don't see what you're looking for in this post?  Check out an overview of Hands on Hartford's projects for the coming weeks on the Hands on Hartford Project Calendar.  Each opportunity lists the number of volunteers needed, the hours you'll need to put in, and the location where you'll need to be and when, plus you can literally search for volunteer opportunities by date and by area of interest so you'll be sure to find something you want to do.  Some of these opportunities are face-to-face like serving at a soup kitchen but others involve packing children's backpacks or being a point person to collect coats for Hands on Hartford's Winter Coat Drive (which I will write about in an upcoming post!).

So, as you can see, there are tons of ways to give back this holiday season whether you want to get face-to-face or not.  Click on the links above to get started giving back!

Seasons Greetings!

Isn't that easy?

xo Jessica

Welcome potential do-gooders!

Hi everyone,

Welcome to Giving Back is Easy!

My goal is to make helping others as easy as possible so that you can begin today to make a difference in someone else's life.  Giving back has benefits that extend far beyond the physical act of giving--there is something unique about how it affects your heart and mind.   With no time already in our own lives, how are we ever supposed to make time to help others? We're all very busy, but there really are easy, quick ways to pitch in.  My goal with Giving Back is Easy is to compile lots of opportunities right here in the Hartford area (and for my New York City friends too and anyone else that I can) that are easy, fast, and, most of all, rewarding.  

So, please read on, comment, write to me, let me know of opportunities that I may have missed, ask questions, and let me help you to help others.

For my first post, I'd like to share a really, really easy thing that you can do to help out this week!  This great opportunity is with Foodshare's Turkey and a Twenty Program.  All you have to do is get a turkey from any grocery store of any size and bring it to the West Hartford Town Hall this coming Thursday, November 18, 2010 and drop it off.  Foodshare can use this turkey to help out low income families in the greater Hartford area who might not have the means to have a Thanksgiving celebration on their own.  Then when you donate a $20 bill to Foodshare when you drop off the turkey, you can help Foodshare to help these low income families for the rest of the year!  

Can't make it to the West Hartford Town Hall this Thursday?  Here are many other places that you can drop off a turkey on several different dates in our local area.

Too expensive to get a turkey and drop a $20 on your own?  Why not chip in with a group of friends?  That's what I'm doing!

How easy is that?

xo Jessica