Auto dealerships in Conshohocken and Springfield, Delco, to serve as collection points

JUST IN TIME FOR SPRING CLEANING: A timely – and vitally needed – effort by local nonprofit Cradles to Crayons to collect new and nearly new clothing and other items for area children living in low-income and homeless situations is getting a giant-size power boost from the Conicelli dealerships in Conshohocken and Springfield.

Beginning Monday, April 15, and continuing through May 1 – in support of the joint Great Green Spring Clean and Drive initiative –Conicelli Autoplex, which includes Conicelli Toyota Scion, Honda, Nissan and Hyundaion Ridge Pike in Conshohocken, and at the Conicelli Toyota Scion dealership on Baltimore Pike in Springfield, will serve as collection points for the donated children’s items that have been forgotten, no longer fit, have fallen out of favor, or simply were never used. Dropoff boxes will be located at each location.

“Not only do we want to make it as easy and convenient as possible for local families to drop off the items they have rooted out from drawers, closets and other convenient ‘hiding places,’” said Lori Hammond, Internet director/partner of the Conicelli dealerships, “but we want to offer an additional incentive for them to bring these items to our locations: an opportunity to test drive one of our new hybrid-, electric- or natural gas-powered cars.  

“We will also be having a drawing for some great prizes on Saturday, April 20, at the Conicelli Toyota service building at our Conshohocken location and our Toyota Scion new car showroom in our Springfield, Delaware County location,” she added, “where our hybrid vehicle display and collection boxes will be located for the big drop-off day event. The prizes will include two complimentary emissions inspections as well as a $100 Whole Foods gift card. 

“It’s a natural tie-in,” Lori continued, “to the Great Green Spring Clean and Drive message: declutter your home; reduce, repurpose and recycle children’s everyday essential items – well before the end of their useful lives; and keep them out of landfills and reduce our carbon footprint. That all adds up to helping clean the environment,” she added, “which is exactly what our line of energy-efficient automobiles is intended to help do!”

Cradles to Crayons accepts items for children in-need, birth through 12, including new and nearly new infants’ and children’s clothing, socks and underwear, coats, hats, footwear, newborn baby items, baby safety equipment, books, and arts and crafts/school supplies. A more detailed list of needed items (and unacceptable ones too) is available at www.cradlestocrayons.org/philadelphia/most-needed-items.  

The Conicelli Autoplex (www.conicelliautoplex.com) in Conshohocken is located at 1200 Ridge Pike, in Springfield at 860 Baltimore Pike.

Click here for directions to Chester County Goverment Services Center

Click here for a list of most needed items.

Questions? Please contact Jeff Baxter, Outreach Manager.

MAKE CRADLES TO CRAYONS PART OF YOUR
SPRING CLEANING RITUAL!
Clean out your closets and bring your donations :
Cohasset Family Health Center Parking Lot
215 Chief Justice Hwy, Cohasset, MA
May 5, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM

In case of rain, the event will be held at the Cohasset Sports Complex, located at 34 Crocker Lane.

Donations of new or like-new children's items will be accepted to support the mission of Cradles to Crayons which provides local children from birth through age 12, living in homeless or low-income situations, with the essential items they need to thrive- at home, at school and at play. 

MAKE CRADLES TO CRAYONS PART OF YOUR
SPRING CLEANING RITUAL!
Clean out your closets and bring your donations :
Newton City Hall
1000 Commonwealth Avenue, Newton, MA.
April 28th, 9 AM - 4 PM

Donations of new or like-new children's items will be accepted to support the mission of Cradles to Crayons which provides local children from birth through age 12, living in homeless or low-income situations, with the essential items they need to thrive- at home, at school and at play. 

Charitable Campaign to Help Local Children in Need Set for April 12-21

DOWNINGTOWN, PA, April 11 – OLLY Shoes, the Downingtown, PA-based North American chain of children’s athletic, casual, seasonal and specialty footwear, has named Cradles to Crayons the exclusive beneficiary of its Spring 2013 “You Give, You Get” collection-reward campaign. This year’s drive will run in its stores throughout the Greater Philadelphia area from April 12-21.

OLLY Shoe customers who donate gently worn footwear at any local OLLY Shoes store will receive discounts as much as more than 25 percent off any purchase made.

Cradles to Crayons addresses the acute effects of childhood poverty by collecting and providing new and nearly new daily essentials – clothes, footwear, books, toys and school supplies – to local low-income and/or homeless children, birth through age 12.

“We started our ‘You Give, You Get’ program as a response to the need of families in our store communities that could not afford to provide their children with footwear essentials,” said Kirby B. Lohff, OLLY Shoes president and chief executive officer. “We collect thousands of gently used pairs of footwear, which we provide to area charitable organizations. This spring,” he continued, “we are proud to continue our partnership with Cradles to Crayons.”

OLLY Shoe stores are located throughout in the Greater Philadelphia region in Ardmore, Collegeville, Exton, Newtown, North Wales, Paoli, Plymouth Meeting, Springfield (Delaware County) and Warrington in Pennsylvania, and in Cherry Hill and Mt. Laurel, New Jersey. 

For more infomation please contact our Community Outreach Manager Jeff Baxter - jeff@cradlestocrayons.org

OLLY Shoes, the Downingtown, PA-based North American chain of children’s athletic, casual, seasonal and specialty footwear, has named Cradles to Crayons the exclusive beneficiary of its Spring 2013 “You Give, You Get” collection-reward campaign. This year’s drive will run in its stores throughout the Greater Philadelphia area from April 12-21.

OLLY Shoe customers who donate gently worn footwear at any local OLLY Shoes store will receive discounts as much as more than 25 percent off any purchase made.

“We started our ‘You Give, You Get’ program as a response to the need of families in our store communities that could not afford to provide their children with footwear essentials,” said Kirby B. Lohff, OLLY Shoes president and chief executive officer. “We collect thousands of gently used pairs of footwear, which we provide to area charitable organizations. This spring,” he continued, “we are proud to continue our partnership with Cradles to Crayons.”

OLLY Shoe stores are located throughout in the Greater Philadelphia region in Ardmore, Collegeville, Exton, Newtown, North Wales, Paoli, Plymouth Meeting, Springfield (Delaware County) and Warrington in Pennsylvania, and in Cherry Hill and Mt. Laurel, New Jersey. 

CLICK HERE FOR A LISTING OF PARTICIPATING PA & NJ STORES

For more information please contact our Community Outreach Manager Jeff Baxter - jeff@cradlestocrayons.org 

Join Cradles to Crayons’ Young Friends at the Great American Pub in Conshohocken from 3-6pm on Sunday, May 19, for “Sunday Funday” – an afternoon of music, beer, classic Philadelphia snacks — cheesesteaks, hoagies, soft pretzels, and Tastykakes — and a chance to win Philadelphia Union tickets, signed sports memorabilia, gift baskets, and other great raffle items. Best of all, spend a fun afternoon with friends, new and old, while contributing to the Cradles to Crayons’ mission of ensuring that no child goes without the everyday essential items they need to thrive – at home, at school, and at play.

Young Friends of Cradles to Crayons is a group of professionals, age 21-40, that promotes the mission of Cradles to Crayons through monthly volunteer nights at our warehouse in West Conshohocken and through raising money to support the organization’s growth.

Your ticket price (partially tax deductible) covers your food and drink, and provides one child in the Philadelphia area with a KidPack: a customized package containing a week’s worth of everyday essential items, including clothing, shoes, books, school supplies, toys, and baby equipment. Last year, Cradles to Crayons provided 15,665 of these KidPacks to local children, but we need your help to reach 17,800 children this year.

$35 for food and two domestic beers, $40 for food and unlimited domestic beers

CLICK HERE for ticket info - The first 50 people to purchase tickets will receive a free beer mug with a “Sunday Funday” logo on it, so get your tickets now!

For more info please contact Maureen Saraco at Maureen@cradlestocrayons.org

Cradles to Crayons is a beneficiary of this year's 8th Annual Oy Vey 5K & 1 Mile Walk. To sign up online, go to http://bit.ly/oyvey5ksignup or download a brochure. For race details, visit www.bethor.org.

The race organizers are asking every participant to also bring a new pair of socks and underwear to the race to be donated to Cradles to Crayons. 

The Newtown Square Petticoat League (NSPL) will mark its 2013 Family Day, Saturday, June 1, with a grand-slam program of music, food, inflatable moon-bounce, and softballs games –  highlighted by a collection of clothes and other everyday essentials for disadvantaged area children, birth through age 12, served by local nonprofit Cradles to Crayons.

The event will be held from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Newtown Square Petticoat League fields, 400 Bishop Hollow Road, Newtown Square. Rain date is Sunday, June 2.

NSPL is a 40 -year-old girls (ages 4-18) softball league serving the  Broomall,  Edgemont, Media, and Newtown Square communities.

“This is the first year that we have designated Cradles to Crayons as the recipient of our collection,” said, Rick Thompson, NSPL president.

“Their efforts to collect and provide new and nearly new clothes, footwear, books, baby equipment, toys and school supplies to local low-income and/or homeless children, adds an important dimension to our program, providing our girls afirsthand understanding of the effects of poverty on children less fortunate than they.”

“A number of the NSPL moms have volunteered at Cradles to Crayons, and we understand their needs,” said Holly Atkins, an NSPL parent and Cradles to Crayons’ volunteer. “With girls as young as four years old (boys, too, in a companion league), we thought this would be perfect to hopefully collect so much of what is vitally needed by Cradles to Crayons. The girls are from a number of communities throughout Delaware County, Atkins added, “so we have an opportunity to reach out to so many people.”

The Newtown Square Petticoat League  (www.nsplsoftball.com) is dedicated to helping girls enjoy the game of softball, developing their skills, learning about good sportsmanship, making new friends and having fun in a healthy, outdoor, athletic setting. The aim is to accomplish this through positive reinforcement and fundamental training such that it builds confidence and positive attitudes.

For more info on Family Fun Day - Click Here

Contact Holly Atkins for more info on the collection - atkhollypaul@verizon.net

Cradles to Crayons will be collecting baby items at this year's Annual Brave Hearts for Strong Minds Walk. To sign up online, go to https://www.braveheartsforstrongminds.org/registration.php or download a brochure. 

True to their company name, more than 30 employees of Pep Boys’ offices and service centers in the Greater Philadelphia region are still full of zing and zip following a busy five-hour session at Cradles to Crayons’ warehouse in West Conshohocken, where they helped the local nonprofit perform its semiannual Herculean task of switching its entire 17,000-square-foot warehouse from fall-winter seasons to spring-summer seasons.

“A huge thank you to Pep Boys President and CEO Mike Odell and the entire organization – including its ‘very lively’ namesake trio of Manny, Moe & Jack,” was offered by Cradles to Crayons Executive Director Michal Smith – “for turning winter into summer, and helping us to continue to provide children, birth through age 12, living in homeless and low-income situations in this area, with season-appropriate clothing and other everyday essentials.”

Pep Boys also coordinated a drive to collect some of Cradles to Crayons’ most-needed items, including large numbers of baby strollers, Pack ‘n Plays, and car seats.

“There is so much to thank the managers and men and women of Pep Boys for this vitally needed help.”

Since 1921, Pep Boys (www.pepboys.com.)has been the nation’s leading automotive aftermarket chain. With approximately 7,300 service bays in more than 750 locations in 35 states and Puerto Rico, Pep Boys offers name-brand tires; automotive maintenance and repair; parts and expert advice for the Do-It-Yourselfer; commercial auto parts delivery; and fleet maintenance and repair.

CRADLES TO CRAYONS: Down with the old, Up with the new– That’s the message that volunteer groups from Arcola Intermediate School National Junior Honor Society, in Norristown, and Sesame Street, the Langhorne, Pa.-based theme park, are helping to send to the Greater Philadelphia region on behalf of the local nonprofit.

Cradles to Crayons’ new look is part of a graphic makeover for the six-year-old organization, which provides area children in need with the daily essential they need to thrive - at home, at school and at play.

“It’s the first step in our plan to roll out our new look locally,” said Cradles to Crayons-Philadelphia Executive Director Michal Smith, “beginning with updated stationery, marketing materials, warehouse signage, and a website revamp.

“The new look,” she continued, “is a reflection of our organizational maturity as we enter our sixth year of providing the essentials for children in need, and the fact that we not only serve young children but also children up to the age of 12. It is just one of the exciting new developments that will highlight 2013 for us locally.”

Cradles to Crayons provides children, 0-12, in homeless or low-income situations in the Greater Philadelphia region, with essential items to alleviate the acute effects of poverty, supplying these items year-round without charge by connecting communities that that have with communities that need– concurrently fostering social change by providing meaningful, tangible volunteer experiences for adults and children.

June’s Gear Up For Baby Collections 

During the month of June there will be a number of baby-centric events: a diaper drive in conjunction with the Foundation for Babies* and multiple community collections for most-needed baby items.

CLICK HERE to find a listing of local Adopt a Drop sites managed by local volunteers near your area.

June 3rd to 7th

Brandywine Realty Trust Building Lobby

101 West Elm Street, Conshohocken, PA 19462 - CLICK HERE FOR DIRECTIONS

401 Plymouth Road, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462 -CLICK HERE FOR DIRECTIONS

June 15th - 11am to 3pm

9th Ave, Conshohocken, PA 19428 - Volunteer Fire Company #2 - CLICK HERE FOR DIRECTIONS

June 27th - 8:30am to 1pm 

*Look for our donations tent/truck in the office complex lot

2 Walnut Drive, Horsham, PA 19044 -CLICK HERE FOR DIRECTIONS

1250 Virginia Drive, Fort Washington, PA 19034 - CLICK HERE FOR DIRECTIONS

2250 Hickory Point, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462 - CLICK HERE FOR DIRECTIONS
 

Contact Jeff Baxter, Community Outreach Manager at Jeff@cradlestocrayons.org if you have any questions regarding the collections.

For the month of June, there are Cradles to Crayons collection toters located in the Neighborhood House lobby directly behind the Church - CLICK HERE FOR DIRECTIONS

For more information on the collection - CLICK HERE to contact our Community Outreach Team.

Recognizing the specialized needs of the youngest children it serves, Cradles to Crayons today announced plans to mount an intensive month-long Gear Up for Baby drive throughout the region during June to collect everyday essentials for babies in their first, vulnerable years of life.

“There are nearly 100,000 children, aged 0 to 24 months,living in our community in poverty-stricken situations,” said Michal Smith, executive director of Cradles to Crayons. “The goal of our Gear Up for Baby drive is to be able to provide them the everyday essentials – diapers, baby hygiene items, wipes, infant socks, baby safety equipment, and so much more – that they need to survive and thrive.”

During the month of June there will be a number of baby-centric events throughout the region, including a diaper drive, a baby-bundle packing event, and multiple community collections for most-needed baby items.

Foundation for Babies is joining with Cradles to Crayons in the 2013 drive for diapers and other infant and toddler items, a partnership that Smith said her organization was thrilled to embrace. “Foundation for Babies,” she said, “is the standard by which all diaper drives are measured; we welcome them in a mutual effort to help the youngest children in this area.”

For a familyliving in this area, it costs more than $10,000 to support a child in her/his first year of life. “With such expensive requirements,” Smith declared, “many of the families we serve are unable to afford to adequately care for their children.

“Of the 16,500 children Cradles to Crayons will serve this year, more than one-third are under the age of two. Sadly, we are always short of items for this most vulnerable population. For example,” she said, “last year, we were able to supply just half of the 1,700 strollers ordered by our social services partners for children in need.

“While not having diapers prevents a mom from placing her child in daycare, they are of no value if there is no stroller or car seat to transport the young child. The result: Mom is homebound, which means she cannot go to school or work to break the cycle of poverty in the family.

“Our Gear Up for Baby drive,” Smith concluded, “will encourage everyone to get involved, by making donations, hosting collection events, or by donating essential items.”

CLICK HERE for more information