CareKits Provide Supplies To Kids Working At Home - 27 East

CareKits Provide Supplies To Kids Working At Home

icon 2 Photos
Tatyana, 7, of Water Mill can’t wait to start creating.

Tatyana, 7, of Water Mill can’t wait to start creating.

Dylan of Riverhead is so excited to receive a CareKit.

Dylan of Riverhead is so excited to receive a CareKit.

Shari Adler on Apr 27, 2020

Many organizations and individuals are responding to the COVID-19 crisis by giving back to their local communities and healthcare workers in the form of such needed essentials as food and supplies.

Mindy Richenstein, a long-time Sagaponack resident, as well as founder and president of Supplies for Success, an independent 501(c)(3) public non-profit organization, decided to give back to her local community by providing nourishment for the mind, in the form of CareKits.

Kits are filled with creative and educational supplies, compiled for children aged 3-8 years old, for scholastic enrichment as children shelter at home while schools are closed. Supplies for Success has partnered with food banks, hospitals, and local organizations to facilitate delivery of the CareKits.

Under normal circumstances, the objective of Supplies for Success is to provide backpacks filled with grade-appropriate school supplies to children in need who reside in the East End, as well as other areas.

The mission of the organization is for each child to begin the school year with the confidence and tools required for flourishing in an academic environment. Backpacks are filled and organized, for recipient agencies or schools, in a community-wide event that takes place in August at the Bridgehampton Community House on Montauk Highway. Adult and child volunteers collaborate with local high-school students to participate in the preparation of over 2,000 backpacks for school children aged 4-18.

Historically, spring marks the time when intense planning begins in support of the backpack-assembly event. However, the spring of 2020 was no ordinary time. On March 5, as the COVID-19 crisis was on the cusp of a statewide shelter-in-place mandate, the Richenstein family lost Eric, their 37-year-old son, brother, uncle, and nephew to a tragic ski accident.

The family reacted immediately by establishing the Eric Richenstein Memorial Fund to honor his memory in a response to the coronavirus crisis. The fund is structured to continue to address possible future traumatic events as well.

Mindy Richenstein, always focusing on the welfare of children, directed her Supplies for Success team to pivot from a focus of backpacks to a development of CareKits, compiled for young children home from school.

The kits include fun, creative, and educational materials such as art supplies, modeling clay, coloring and activity books, paper, glue, flashcards, and more. It is hoped that the kits promote shelter-in-place academic stimulation, while simultaneously providing parental relief from extraordinary stress.

The objective is to keep children engaged, by learning and creating, during school closings. To date, more than 7,000 kits have been distributed to children through food pantries, hospitals, and schools. The first 3,000 kits were established with funds donated by the Richenstein family; the rest of the kits have been supported through an extensive outreach of fundraising efforts.

Thus far, the following organizations have been recipients of the CareKits: Island Harvest, Southampton Hospital, Stony Brook Hospital, Long Island Cares, Ed Alliance, Northwell Health, East Hampton School District, Westchester Jewish Community Services (WJCS), Bridgehampton Child Care, Butterfly Project, Heart of the Hamptons, Shinnecock Nation, John Hopkins Hospital and School, the Jewish Board Four Sites: Brooklyn, Harlem, Bronx, and Staten Island, and the Metropolitan Hospital. Whenever feasible, CareKits accompany food packages, thereby alleviating distribution efforts.

Anyone who would like to participate with their own expression of gratitude to local communities, to children of our healthcare workers, as well as local children in need, by providing CareKits for mindful stimulation and productivity, may donate by text to: ERIC4KIDS to 443F21, or visit suppliesforsuccess.org. The cost of each CareKit is $15. For more information, send an email to info@suppliesforsuccess.org.

You May Also Like:

New York State’s ‘Free Fishing Day’ Is on for This Weekend, Despite Fishing-Unfriendly Weather Forecast

Despite a fishing-unfriendly forecast this weekend, New York State’s latest “Free Fishing Day” event will go forward on Saturday, September 23. The program, sponsored by the State Department of Environmental Conservation, offers a half-dozen days throughout the year for fishing-interested folks who don’t have a state-managed freshwater fishing license to enjoy the sport. The event has been ongoing since 1991 and, says the DEC, provides an opportunity for families to get out and go fishing even if, say, only one family member has the requisite freshwater license. All other DEC regulations are in effect on Free Fishing Days. In a ... 22 Sep 2023 by Staff Writer

County Road 39 Housing Proposal Developers Release Environmental Impact Statement

A controversial plan to build a housing complex on church land along County Road 39 ... 20 Sep 2023 by Tom Gogola

Flanders Historical Society Highlights Hamlet’s Rich History

The past was present and the future was looking kind of bright last Saturday, September ... by Tom Gogola

Billionaire Developer Aby Rosen Is Behind Hill Street Cinema LLC, New Owner of Southampton Movie Theater; Jay Bialsky Is Doing Renovation

An article published on Page Six in the New York Post on September 19 confirmed ... by Cailin Riley

11th Annual San Gennaro Feast of the Hamptons Rescheduled for Weekend of Oct. 14-15

With high winds and heavy rains in the forecast for this weekend, the 11th annual ... 19 Sep 2023 by Tom Gogola

Southamptonfest Has Plenty To Offer for Festival Goers

The 10th annual SouthamptonFest will kick off on Friday, September 29, and run through Sunday, ... by Cailin Riley

Inaugural Shinnecock Oyster Festival Set for October 7

For the past several years, the Shinnecock Environmental Department has been hard at work pursuing ... by Cailin Riley

D’yan Forest, World’s Oldest Comedian, Lives by Her Own Rules

D’yan Forest is not interested in acting her age. At 89 years old, she still ... 13 Sep 2023 by Cailin Riley

Litter Cleanup Gatherings Around East Hampton This Saturday for National CleanUp Day

This coming Saturday, September 16, is National CleanUp Day around the country, and the East ... by Michael Wright

A Miracle at the Beach: Strangers Team Up To Find Lost Ring

Mike and Claire Piliero always look forward to the day after Labor Day. It marks ... 12 Sep 2023 by Cailin Riley