Warm The Children: Providing New Winter Clothing for Durham-Area Children in Need

Warm The Children is neighbors helping neighbors. This year, The Middletown Kiwanis Club with support from the Middletown Press will serve approximately 740 Middletown area children, each receiving up to $80 ($40 is under age 2) of new winter clothing and footwear.

The families are referred to the Warm The Children Coordinator by public elementary and middle schools in Middletown, Cromwell, East Hampton, Portland, Regional District 13 and through some social service agencies such as CRT’s Head Start program, Even Start, Haddam Public Health and the Middlesex Hospital Family Advocacy programs.

An army of volunteer shoppers assist the families on their shopping trip to Wal-Mart in Cromwell. No money exchanges hands - Wal-Mart bills the Kiwanis Club for the purchases.

Funds to pay for clothing originate mostly from individual contributors. All the donation money received is used to purchase clothing and footwear only, nothing is skimmed off for administrative costs as the Middletown Press and the Kiwanis Club absorb the expenses. The Middletown Press places free ads in their newspaper and regularly publishes donor thank you ads. Also, there is no payroll - the program is 100% volunteer.

Every year our friends and neighbors, are the driving force behind our fundraising success. This season we will able to serve approximately 740 children thanks to the donations we received.

This year’s fundraising goal is $57,000. That amount can enable us to serve more than 300 families with approximately 740 children in total next season.

The Middletown Kiwanis website has information on Warm The Children and ways that you can help including the ability to donate using your credit card through PayPal. Please visit: http://middletownkiwanis.org . You can also mail in your tax deductible donation to Warm The Children, c/o Liberty Bank, Att: Peta Manuel, 315 Main Street, Middletown, CT 06457.

If you would like to be a volunteer shopper, please contact WTC Coordinator Lynn Baldoni at warmthechildren.middletown@gmail.com.