Host a Drive for Cradles to Crayons

Support kids in need.

Your family can work together to raise funds and collect children’s items to send to the remarkable organization, Cradles to Crayons, a group dedicated to providing the essentials for childhood.

Possible Recipients

This project supports the work of Cradles to Crayons, a poverty relief organization that connects kids with the essentials they need, free of charge.

Volunteers will assemble your donations into KidPacks that are hand-selected with care to meet a local boy or girl’s specific needs and wants. These KidPacks will then be distributed to local disadvantaged children through a collaborative network of diverse service partners.

What You'll Need

Cradles to Crayons accepts donations of a wide range of new and gently-used goods that are appropriate for use by children from newborn through age 12. Browse Cradles to Crayons’ Giving Recipes and choose one of the creative initiatives listed below:

• Be a Birthday Star!

• Pajama Party Project

• Quality = Dignity Clothing Drive

Alternatively, you may want to raise funds to purchase items from the Cradles to Crayons Amazon Wishlist.

Instructions

• Choose a theme from Cradles to Crayons’ Giving Recipes.

• Create fun “advertisements” to let friends and neighbors know that you are gathering donations.

• Collect donations and offer reminders to potential donors throughout your drive.

• Submit financial donations for Cradles to Crayons here.

• If you are located near one of Cradles to Crayons’ three major locations - Boston or Philadelphia or Chicago - drop off your donations.

• Or mail donations to the Cradles to Crayons offices in

  Boston
  155 North Beacon Street
  Brighton, MA 02135
  
  Philadelphia
  4700 Wissahickon Ave.
  Philadelphia, PA 19144
  
  Chicago
  4141 W. George Street
  Chicago, IL 60641

• Thank your donors and celebrate your family act of giving.

• If you are located near one of Cradles to Crayons’ three major locations - Boston or Philadelphia or Chicago - volunteer to spend a day assembling donations into kid-specific packages.

Reflections

• How can we tell the difference between what we need and what we want?

• Can you think of a time when you weren’t able to get something you wanted? Can you think of a time when you weren’t able to get something you needed? How do those two scenarios feel different (or how would they, if you can’t think of a time you’ve had this experience)?

• What are some things we can do to remind ourselves to be satisfied with the good things in our lives? (For example, make time each day to notice what we’re grateful for.)

• If you could donate anything to the kids helped by Cradles to Crayons, what would you give them?

Resources

• Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts
  Jeremy wants a pair of shoes just like everyone else has, but according to his grandmother, he must learn to separate his needs from his wants

• The Quiltmaker’s Gift by Jeff Brumbeau
  A talented seamstress makes beautiful quilts for the poor and the homeless. When the king who has everything decides he must have one of her creations, she tells him he must give away everything; then she will give him a quilt. In the process of shedding his many possessions, the king finds true happiness. No summary can do justice to the mesmerizing, fairy-tale quality of this beautiful story.

Take it Further

• Raise money to buy items of the Cradles to Crayons Amazon Wish List (link) by hosting a bake sale or yard sale, or by doing extra chores.

• Inspire others to support this organization by sharing your family’s giving story on social media or submitting your story to Doing Good Together’s Good Stories collection.

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The recommendations we offer are based solely on our mission to empower parents to raise children who care and contribute.