Nonprofit Celebrates New Location, Continues Mission to Eradicate Poverty
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About a decade ago, Jessica Reinmann and Dawn Greenberg started a very local organization that was focused on addressing those in need despite launching it in one of Westchester’s more affluent communities.
It didn’t take long for that organization, Chappaqua Cares, Chappaqua Shares, to change its name to 914Cares and expand to address poverty countywide because the demand was so great.
The next step in its growth was recognized last week with the ribbon-cutting of its new basic needs distribution center after relocating from North White Plains to a 12,000-square-foot warehouse in Armonk.
Included in the more than 4,000 packages that 914Cares calls Bags of Love that are distributed each year, are clothing, items to help mothers with babies such as diapers, formula, high chairs and car seats, personal and feminine hygiene products and many other essential goods. It partners with roughly 100 organizations across Westchester that helps ease the burden on struggling families.
“Our focus is that they boost the self-esteem of the recipient and give them the confidence to tackle each and every day with excitement and determination,” said Reinmann, the organization’s chair and CEO.
Other initiatives undertaken by 914Cares is a literacy library where underprivileged children can take home up to eight to 10 books and a shoe bank that distributes footwear to youngsters in need.
The Armonk warehouse at 28 Kaysal Court roughly doubles the organization’s space, enabling the Diaper Bank, which 914Cares is affiliated with, to recently provide 18 pallets of Huggies diapers. That’s 180,000 diapers that the warehouse can hold. It also received a shipment of 10 pallets of Poise products.
Reinmann said the new facility is expected to help 914Cares increase its programming by 50 percent by year’s end. She recognized a relatively modest number of volunteers who do the work and help those who need the assistance.
“This amazing space will allow 914Cares to exponentially increase the number of recipients in each of our programs, providing dignity and a sense of security to our most vulnerable neighbors,” she said. “None of this would have been accomplished without the tireless efforts of you, our 914Cares family.”
A strong turnout of elected officials and prominent community members were on hand to recognize the evolution of the organization and its impact on the county. Deputy County Executive Ken Jenkins said it is outfits like 914Cares that make Westchester a special place.
“So when you see people that put the time, the energy, the effort…that’s what makes Westchester different,” Jenkins said.
Some of the many organizations that work with 914Cares were represented at the ribbon-cutting, including CarlLa Horton, executive director of Hope’s Door, a Hawthorne-based nonprofit that helps domestic violence victims.
Horton said very often a family comes into a shelter, including women with a baby or small child, with nothing but the clothes on their backs. It is then that 914Cares is one of the first organizations contacted to provide basic items that most people take for granted.
“It’s everything from like socks and underwear to sweats and clothes to go for an appointment, Horton said. “914Cares is one of a handful of organizations we reach out to to help with food insecurity, clothing insecurity, lots of baby items.”
North Castle Supervisor Joe Rende welcomed 914Cares to its new location, and as impressed as he was with its reach to help an increasing number of people, it is the efforts to help many local residents understand the need to assist others in the community that should not be overlooked.
“The thing that I was most impressed with is the fact that they’re not only doing this now, but they’re educating our young people to understand the need to recognize that sometimes we grow up in an affluent community, and there’s a population outside of our community that needs our help, and to make these young people understand that generosity and commitment is so important,” Rende said.
To learn more about the work that 914Cares does, visit www.914Cares.org.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/