Clothe a Kid, Change a Life
CTKF would like to recognize a very special volunteer, Nadine Baccellieri. Nadine is CTKF’s Volunteer Coordinator. She organizes and supervises other volunteers, assists groups with clothing drives, handles administrative tasks for CTKF, and does a fabulous job of keeping us organized! Nadine is very dedicated to the CTKF mission, and we are lucky to have her on our team! Thank you for all that you do for us, Nadine!
Morgan Stanley Volunteers were hard at work sprucing up our storage space! Our storage room, which is the primary home for donations that await their debut on our store racks, has been in need of a makeover, and the Morgan Stanley volunteers accomplished just that! The volunteers carefully took their time to paint the room, giving it a fresh, new look! A big thank you to the amazing Morgan Stanley volunteers for making CTKF a little brighter!
This spring, the Boys & Girls Club of Stamford held a fabulous night of fashion! The fashion show is a special annual Boys & Girls Club event that the members look forward to each year. Children ages 5-10 years were among the future runway models participating, and wore clothing proudly provided by Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County. With so many great options donated by our supporters, the children were able to show off their unique, individual styles while wearing clothing they felt comfortable and confident in. Not only were they able to walk the runway wearing awesome clothing, but they were able to take their selections home to keep as new wardrobe items!
We love seeing our clients’ reactions when leaving the store with wardrobes of great quality clothing! Thank you to our generous donors below for hosting drives, your good work is changing lives!
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Do you love to shop for bargains? If so, then becoming a Garage Sale Donation Finder for Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County could be the perfect project for you! CTKF has fun upcoming volunteer opportunities this spring and summer for anyone who loves to shop for a good deal!
Cynthia Iriondo, a CTKF volunteer from South Windsor CT, is a tag sale shopping expert. Check out this photo of just some of her awesome finds for CTKF! Cynthia identifies local tag sales in her neighborhood, and selects gently used or new clothing for CTKF’s inventory. Get involved this spring and become a Donation Finder like Cynthia.
Contact Volunteer Coordinator Nadine Baccellieri for details.
CTKF has set up collection baskets at several Starbucks locations in Fairfield County, and we are looking for volunteers to help us continue to organize drives at Starbucks across the county! New packages of underwear, boxers, and socks are accepted in baskets on behalf of CTKF clients inside Starbucks stores. Items ranging from youth to adult sizes are collected for both boys and girls, ages 5-18 years old! If you are a frequent Starbucks customer, or have a desire to help children in need have access to these necessities, contact us to get your drive started!
Prefer to donate new socks or underwear? Current participating Starbucks Coffee locations ready to accept drop-offs include:
Download the Drop Your Drawers poster (11″x 17″)
Thank you Backyard Humanitarian, Roxbury School, and New Canaan Country School for spreading the warmth and providing our clients with essential winter clothing!
Interested in organizing a drive? Learn more here.
  
  
A group of 11 sixth grade students and history teacher, Will Colombo, from the Stanwich School of Greenwich, CT, came ready to help in the CTKF Store this week. Stanwich School students volunteer their time once a month in the store to lend their assistance wherever it may be needed. CTKF’s Volunteer Coordinator Nadine Baccellieri kept the group motivated as they worked together on projects such as ensuring an abundance of coats would be available for clients, organizing the cubicles filled with new packages of underwear and socks, refolding pajamas and shirts into neat stacks, and keeping the shoe sizes in proper order. As with a retail store, tidying up and displaying more items for shoppers is important. Maintaining the store is a task that requires enthusiasm, and this group had just that! Thank you Stanwich students and Will Colombo for a job well done!
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On the evening of Thursday, December 1st, Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County (“CTKFâ€) held its first fundraising event, “Cook for Kids”. The much-anticipated event was sponsored by Wells Fargo Advisors and took place at Aitoro Appliance & Electronics of Norwalk, CT. With over 170 tickets sold, by 6pm, the store was filled with community members in attendance to support CTKF. Aitoro served as the perfect space for the local chefs cooking their delicious creations. Attendees were eager to get a taste of each talented chef’s freshly prepared food.
The Blind Rhino, Romanacci, HAPA Food Truck, Via Sforza, The Mumbai Times, Osteria Romana, Chef Luis, Susan Kane Catering, Grana Pastificio, Washington Prime, Mac It, A Dash of Salt, DiMare Pastry Shop, Garelick & Herbs, Saugatuck Sweets, and Donut Crazy were among the generous and well-regarded chefs, restaurants, and bakers cooking for kids. With various chefs dispersed throughout the store, groups of attendees were drawn in around every appetizing station. The selection of foods were complimented by great quality wines provided by Giovana’s Wine & Spirits. The evening’s atmosphere was set by singer/guitarist Vinnie Ferrone as guests mingled and learned more about CTKF.
CTKF’s Executive Director Elaine Rubinson spoke about the organization’s mission, activities and progress since the grand opening on October 13th, 2016, and recognized the Boys and Girls Club of Stamford – Yerwood Clubhouse Executive Director Mike Cotela for his continued and valued support. Carolina Ahumada, a Social Service Professional at Family Centers of Greenwich, CT, shared inspiring feedback from her clients that have shopped in the store. Carolina described the joy and excitement of her clients receiving quality, clean clothing through shopping at CTKF.
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Star 99.9’s radio host Anna Zapp worked her magic, keeping the crowd energized and excited as she promoted the silent auction items, the “Drop Your Cash” collection for new underwear and socks, and the raffle. Guests waited patiently for the results of the highly sought-after auction items, as they sparked lots of buzz throughout the evening. Donors included:
Southwest Airlines, Chef Luis, Morina Pilates and Yoga, Ralph Lauren, Merrill Lynch, The New York Rangers, The New York Giants, Saybrook Point Inn and Spa, Bartaco, Rizzutto’s, She lala, Evander Preston, Art of Control, Earth Animal, CST50, Julien Farel, Oak Hills Golf Club, Dream Spa, The Whelk, Quattro Pazzi, Kramer Little Expressions, JaaFar Tazi Salon, Chop Shop Cooking, Quattro Pazzi, Southern Dermatology, Indulge By Mersene, Savin Center, Okemo Mountain Resort, Big Apple Health Center,Bull’s Head Pet Hospital, Family Tree Yoga, Giovana’s Wine & Spirits, Frame and Save, Westport Eyecare Associates, Wendy and Larry Albert, Suited Co., Back 40 Mercantile, The Whelk, Elyse Brown, Total Wine & More, Colonial Framing, Muscular Therapy, Steve Berni, Estate Jewelry, Millie Rae’s and Dirt Floral.
CTKF’s first annual “Cook for Kids” proved to be a success, raising over $19,000. CTKF is extremely grateful for the wonderful support received for this event from the Fairfield County community, restaurants and chefs, local companies and businesses, and organizations. The organization would like to extend its thanks to Tony Aitoro for making this event possible. CTKF would also like to recognize its Event Committee members, Alexandra Briggs Kling, Livia Feig, Craig Wood, Carrie Franzese, Steve Berni, and Valerie Fischel, as well as the volunteers for their incredible efforts and dedication in organizing this event! Funds raised from “Cook for Kids” will go directly to the CTKF store’s operational and client clothing needs.
Join us as we make a difference in Fairfield County communities. For more about ways to get involved with CTKF, click here.
CKTF would like to thank the student members of Stamford High School’s buildOn Club and their Advisor/Teacher, Matthew Gladstone, for spending this past Sunday afternoon volunteering in the store. The few hours of work that this group devoted to the CTKF mission was much appreciated. Â
With clients shopping at CTKF the day before, the store was in need of restocking. The students did an excellent job of preparing the store for the next week of clients. The group sorted through boxes of new items and attended to the details, such as organizing the accessories in both the boy’s and girl’s sections. Sunday’s cold, windy weather served as a reminder that this group’s priority was to ensure that plenty of warm clothing, scarves, and gloves would be available for children needing winter garments.
Thank you Matthew Gladstone for helping organize the afternoon, and thank you buildOn members for your assistance!