April 21, 2023, Boston, MA — Cradles to Crayons, a national Clothing Insecurity relief nonprofit, recognizes five recipients of the 2023 Chairman’s Council Clothing Insecurity Impact Awards (CCCIIA). On May 8 at 5:00pm ET, recipients of the Chairman’s Council Impact Awards will be recognized at a virtual event. More information about the event can be found at https://CCCIIA2023.eventbrite.com.
This annual recognition honors the contributions of organizations working to ensure children have the essentials they need to feel safe, valued, and to thrive in their childhoods. This year, Cradles to Crayons (C2C) expanded the CCCIIA to honor four Clothing Insecurity Partners—one C2C Service Partner organization in each of our markets (Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Giving Factory Direct)—who demonstrate excellence in partnership to meet children’s clothing needs. This year’s competitive application process spotlighted Service Partners who support children and families’ basic needs all while working toward additional program goals such as providing healthcare, educating kids, offering additional antipoverty supports, and more. Our 2023 Clothing Insecurity Partners represent a diverse, rich network of organizations who lift families up daily:
- Grand Prize: South Shore Stars (Cradles to Crayons—Boston), an early education and youth programs service provider whose family-centered approach ensures quick and continued assessment of families’ basic needs to provide necessary food and clothing supports and improve kids’ overall development
- Runner Up: Women In Need (Giving Factory Direct), is the largest provider of shelter and supportive services for homeless families with children in New York City and the nation. Win works to transform the lives of New York City’s homeless women and children by providing safe housing and social services to help them foster hope and regain independence. The organization operates approximately 1,400 units of transitional housing, providing shelter for more than 6,000 people — including over 2,500 children — every night, and runs programs for children including a STEM Camp, afterschool care, and cultural field trips.
- Honorable Mention: Nationalities Service Center (Cradles to Crayons—Philadelphia), a multiservice immigrant and refugee organization who provides children and families with all the clothing, essential, and enrichment items they need to restart their lives in the United States
- Honorable Mention: SGA Youth & Family Services (Cradles to Crayons—Chicago), a youth-focused organization that provides comprehensive services from “cradle to career,” including resource coordinators who connect children with clothing and critical essentials to ensure they realize their full potential
The organization is excited to announce the expansion of the CCCIIA newest recognition—a Clothing Insecurity Crusader organization working outside of C2C’s current service range whose work exemplifies C2C’s vision that together we can build a world where all children have the clothing and essentials they need. Applications were received from across the country and the inaugural Clothing Insecurity Crusader recipient is UniCycle, an innovative community-driven school uniform program that ensures all students in the Nashville Public Schools system have access to the school clothes that they need.
Cradles to Crayons defines Clothing Insecurity as the lack of affordable, adequate, appropriate clothing. Currently, 2 in 5 American children are experiencing Clothing Insecurity across the United States—going without basic essentials like pants, shirts, socks, shoes, coats, diapers, and school supplies during their critical development years.
“Across the U.S., 20 million children do not have access to adequate, affordable or appropriate clothing.” said Lynn Margherio, CEO and Founder of Cradles to Crayons. “Cradles to Crayons is committed to be a uniting force to end Clothing Insecurity and to recognize those making a difference in this fight.”
Each year, Cradles to Crayons celebrates Service Partners and like-minded organizations that work jointly to end Clothing Insecurity and ensure that all children have the basic essentials they need to feel safe and valued, and to thrive at home, at school, and at play.
About Cradles to Crayons
Cradles to Crayons® (C2C®) believes that all children deserve the essentials they need to feel safe, warm, ready to learn, and valued. Founded in 2002, Cradles to Crayons provides children from birth through age 12, living in homeless or low-income situations, with the essential items they need to thrive—at home, at school, and at play—for free. Cradles to Crayons collects and distributes new and high-quality used children’s goods by engaging and connecting communities. C2C sets a gold standard of individual, family, and corporate volunteer engagement, and through its “Giving Factories®” provides unique, hands-on opportunities to directly help local families. Headquartered in Boston, MA, C2C opened in Philadelphia in 2007, Chicago in 2016, and New York City via an innovative online platform, Giving Factory Direct (GFD), in 2020. For more information, please visit www.cradlestocrayons.org.