Clothe a Child, Change a Life
It’s that time of year again, summer is ending and a new school year begins. Read about our new student internship program, our incredible student volunteers, and our wonderful individual donors and donor organizations. It takes a village!
Did you know that AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County every time you shop, at no cost to you?
It’s easy. Go to smile.amazon.com, log in to your Amazon account, and then select “Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County” as your charity of choice. Nothing changes with your account, your shopping cart, your wish lists, etc. For future purchases, you’ll just need to remember to start at smile.amazon.com (as opposed to amazon.com). That’s it!
The AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price from your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County. Learn more about AmazonSmile.
And while you’re shopping on Amazon, please take look at our Amazon Wish List too! We keep this list updated with the clothing items needed to provide a full week’s wardrobe of school clothing for eligible children (plus extras when available). Working with a personal shopper, the kids shop for the clothing they like best in the CTKF Store.
You are going to see a lot of purple moving forward at Clothes To Kids. It’s because we’re rolling out our new logo. It’s a purple coat.
On a rare, cold Florida morning, Marie McClung (Co-Founder of Clothes To Kids) got a call from her sister. She had a little girl in her classroom who wouldn’t be able to go outside for gym class without a jacket. Marie ran to the store and bought a purple coat in just the right size. When she dropped off the coat Marie was touched by the deep gratitude of this little girl, who looked up at her smiling big brown eyes and offered a huge hug!
In spring 2002 Marie was telling the story of the little girl and the purple coat to Jode Eye (CTK’s other Co-Founder). It sounded all too familiar to Jode, who had many students without adequate clothing, they even lacked socks and underwear. Together, Jode and Marie were determined that every child should have a coat to wear at recess, and school clothing so that they could go to school and focus on learning. Clothes To Kids was born.
Clothes To Kids has come a long way since that first purple coat. Over the years multiple CTK affiliates have opened around the country, inspired by the wonderful work being done by the founders. Each one dedicated to bringing happiness and improved self esteem, and of course quality school clothing, to low income and in crisis school-age children in their own local communities.
As you may already know, Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County is a proud affiliate! In fall 2015, Executive Director Elaine Rubinson began mobilizing volunteers and we welcomed our first shoppers to the CTK of Fairfield County store in October 2016.
We are excited to share this story about the purple coat and why its meaning is a symbol of our mission, along with our tagline, Clothe a Kid, Change a Life.
AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County every time you shop!
It’s as easy as going to smile.amazon.com and use your regular Amazon login. Nothing changes with your account, your shopping cart, your wish lists, etc. For all future purchases, start at smile.amazon.com (as opposed to amazon.com). The AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price from your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County.
While you’re out there, check out our new Amazon Wish List! It includes clothing items needed to create the full week’s wardrobe that eligible children “shop†for in our CTKF Store.
Thank you!!
Did you know that AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County every time you shop, at no cost to you?
It’s easy. Go to smile.amazon.com, log in to your Amazon account, and then select “Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County” as your charity of choice. Nothing changes with your account, your shopping cart, your wish lists, etc. For future purchases, you’ll just need to remember to start at smile.amazon.com (as opposed to amazon.com). That’s it!
The AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price from your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County. Learn more about AmazonSmile here.
While you’re on Amazon, check out our Amazon Wish List! It includes clothing items needed to create the full week’s wardrobe that eligible children “shop” for in our CTKF Store.
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!
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29WlXQFlaOY[/embedyt]
On October 13th, 2016, CTKF opened its doors and began serving families in Fairfield County. CTKF representatives and volunteers have been busy arranging appointments for families and assisting clients with finding the perfect fit, selecting comfortable and warm items, and choosing unique styles that each child will feel confident wearing.
Since our official opening 1 month ago, we have provided over 92 children with wardrobes! For us at CTKF, seeing the smiling faces of children and parents as they leave our store with much needed shopping bags filled with quality clothing is the most wonderful feeling. We are proud to have served Fairfield County families and we are determined to continue providing children with access to clean clothing, free of charge. Additionally, we are grateful for the tremendous efforts of our volunteers – thank you!
Want to make a difference in the lives of children in Fairfield County communities? We want to hear from you! Learn about our volunteer opportunities here.
Interested in making a donation? Read more about ways to support us here.
Dear Newman’s Own Foundation,
First let us just say, thank you! Your recent grant support means you understand just how important it is to provide new and quality used clothing to low-income and in-crisis school age children in Fairfield County. We envision a community in which every school-age child has quality clothing so that he or she may attend school with the confidence and self-esteem needed to achieve academic success. With more than 47,600 children, or approximately 33.5% of school age children in Fairfield County eligible to receive free or reduced-price school lunches, we have our work cut out for us.
The Newman’s Own Foundation grant funds will be put to immediate use. We are busy stocking our new Clothes To Kids store, as we prepare to open for back-to-school shoppers. Every eligible child may shop twice a year for a week’s worth of clothing, all free of charge. Families will shop by appointment, and shoppers can browse a wide variety of clean, stylish, top quality clothing to select what they like best. Dressing rooms will be provided to ensure a comfortable fit.
Our sincerest thank you!
Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County
Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County is excited to partner with the Boys & Girls Club of Stamford to open our new store in the recently revitalized Yerwood Center in downtown Stamford!
Our mission is to provide new and quality used clothing to low-income or in-crisis school age children in Fairfield County, Connecticut—free of charge. Families will shop by appointment, so once the new store is open we can begin scheduling! Each eligible child may shop twice a year to select a week’s worth of clothing.
Our goal is to be fully stocked and open our doors in spring 2016, so watch for our “Grand Opening” announcement!
The Boys & Girls Club of Stamford began operating programs at their Yerwood Unit in October 2015. They serve children ages 6-18, offering programs and services that promote and enhance their development. Their mission is to enable all children to reach their full potential as productive, caring and responsible citizens.
Interested in volunteering? Have clothing to donate? If so, please get in touch! We’re going to need your help to meet our goal of opening the store this spring.
The Yerwood Center is located at:
90 Fairfield Avenue, Stamford CT 06902
Great news story about the power of giving, and it’s positive effects on our health and happiness. Start 2016 off right with a donation of clothing, money or time to Clothes To Kids of Fairfield County. Doctor’s orders!
Source: PBS NewsHour, January 7, 2016