Episode 75: Lynn Margherio
Join Lori and her guest, Lynn Margherio, as they talk about understanding the reason for your philanthropy. Lynn is the founder and CEO of Cradles to Crayons, which helps provide children living in poverty with everyday essentials like clothing, backpacks, and other school supplies.
Here are the things to expect in this episode:
The origins of Cradles to Crayons.
Understanding the gap that you’re filling through philanthropy.
The impact that volunteering programs can create.
And much more!
Connect with Lynn!
Cradles to Crayons: https://www.cradlestocrayons.org/
Giving Factory Direct: https://www.cradlestocrayons.org/givingfactorydirect/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/c2cboston/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lynn-margherio-87372a1/
Connect with Lori Kranczer!
Website: https://www.linkphilanthropic.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorikranczer/
Episode Transcript
So you're listening to the positive impact Lathi podcast where we share the journeys of everyday Philanthropist as they incorporate philanthropy into their lives. Lamp is a personal journey through the stories we will share here. We hope then sparks something in you and how you can make your own philanthropic impact in the world. I'm your host, Lori Kranczer attorney, philanthropic advisor and legacy given strategist. Together we're going to explore what it looks like to be an everyday philanthropist and make a positive impact in the world. Are we get started, make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you never miss a new episode. Today I'm really excited to introduce Lin Mark Aereo. She is the founder and CEO of Cradles to Crayons. Welcome Lynn.
Thank you so much for having me, Laurie. I love the concept of everyday philanthropy. Thank
you. Yes, I try to live that every day as do many of our listeners. So Lynn, why don't you tell us more about you.
So Laurie, my background is business consulting and and public policy. And I have founded and run a children's nonprofit called Cradles to Crayons, which is headquartered in Boston. And we have locations in Boston serving kids across Massachusetts. We've got a location in Philadelphia and other in Chicago, and we've just developed an online platform. And what we do is we provide children with clothing and other everyday essentials that they otherwise are not able to easily access in their homes.
So this is a fantastic concept that you created. When did you start this?
I started Cradles to Crayons 20 years ago, and it was really a personal story. I was home in Michigan, which is where I grew up and where my family is. And I was visiting my my sister and helping my young niece get dressed. She was probably two at the time and I was taking clothes out of her drawer and realizing that even though some of them still had tags on them they were way too small for her. And then I went to my brother's house and I saw a similar situation where his home had been completely overrun with children's goods. And I realized you know kids grow really fast that some of the things that they have received, they no longer fit them, or they've outgrown them developmentally, or they're now you know, two sizes too small. And so I saw an opportunity to connect these resources with children and families who lacked them.
So it's a it's amazing concept and it feel very overwhelming because how do you even start? Where did you start when you thought of this?
So it's a great question Laurie and and I know that some of the other other people you've had on this program, and some who are perhaps listening today could relate to this. That in my background is business consulting, and I had had the opportunity to do a lot of pro bono work when I was doing consulting. And that's where I found my passion to be I got really excited to be able to apply the business training that I had to questions of equity, Education, Human Services, and and this was an opportunity for me to try to apply those skills to some idea that I had. And so I took the tools that I would have used in you know, for a for profit, consulting engagement, and said okay, I have to do a little bit of market research here. Is there an organization out there that is doing this work of connecting children to resources in their community and specifically clothing footwear, coats and other and other supplies that they're lacking? And, and is there a need out there for families who ought to get these resources because they can't afford them? So I've just set up a spreadsheet of organizations that I thought would give me some good information about that. You know, I looked on the on the internet for organizations that sounded like what I was trying to do, and then I also researched places that served families provide services to families living in low income or homeless situations. And I went out and I asked a lot of questions. And what I heard back was that, you know, clothing and security, which is the issue we are addressing is often a hidden crisis. But the social workers, the case managers, the teachers, the therapists I was talking to, would be faced with that every day and they really struggled to provide those resources to the families requesting them so I got I got good feedback from people who said yes, this is a need that is out there. And we would be interested in getting connected with you if you were to move forward on your journey. And at the same time I started to think about the supply side, how am I going to get people to share those resources? So I reached out to schools, I talked to parents. And what I was really excited about was how willing people are to share what they have. When they hear how they can do it.
Yeah. Which is why I asked you about the process that you went through because many people have that, that inclination to do something but they don't know how and that's really what stops them and when they hear how asking questions using their experience with you is business consulting and you found there's a problem and then what the solution could be and then it's about how to then go about doing that. It helps people to take action, I think so. It's a great story, and I love the way that you have created it created a great impact over the past 20 years and we have someone else on the show who started pajama project years ago for the same, that same impact that saying that kids and homeless shelters and foster care system didn't have the dramas to wear and she started that product. So So likewise, your your organization really fills that need. So tell us a little bit about the impact that you're making that the I know that your your national. So tell us a little bit where are you really seeing the the greatest needs and and how you have filled that and what the the growth has been.
So Laurie, there are two in five children across the United States who are living at or below 200% of the federal poverty level. And that basically translates in to them not having adequate resources to afford clothing that fits to regularly put food on the table to pay rent and to meet really basic necessities of daily living. And so we estimate there are roughly 20 million children across the United States who face clothing insecurity. And as I mentioned before, it's really not on anyone's radar, that this is a need that that children have nor what it's like to not have clothing that fits. Not having a winter coat on a cold day here in New England means that a child can't wait for a school bus and they miss school. Not having school supplies can mean that a child not able to do their homework and or that a child is missing. Important medical appointments are not able to be out there doing recess or play in gym because they don't have the appropriate footwear. And so over the past 20 years, we have provided more than 4 million packages of clothing and other essentials to children across Massachusetts, Greater Philadelphia, Chicago, and more recently New York City and San Francisco and we are really working to both raise awareness and give people direct ways to make an impact.
I'm really glad that you brought that up then because you got to the why. And a lot of organizations when they're struggling a little bit to figure out their their why their case statement essentially is it's not because of the the probes that they do are wonderful. Their impact is great, but why should people care what what's the actual the ultimate reason and you just hit on it because it's not the actual clothing. Find clothing is very important, but it's because if they don't have it, this is what can happen. And a lot of people don't look past that. The clothing issue potentially, to know why why it's so important because the kids can't go to doctor's appointments or miss school or perhaps there's bullying involved with at school. If they don't have particular items, they can go into recess and then the effects of that potentially if they can't have recess, then there's other issues that can happen if they're not participating. So it's so important to address that for people to understand why this is so important. And it's one thing I don't really hear a lot about clothing insecurity. I mean we hear a lot about food insecurity I think is very you know well known termed but clothing is also an important thing to be providing for certain people in the population. So is that something that you work with a lot on in your when you're speaking with your people that are supporting your organization and they understand that why behind it?
So Laurie, it's your your so correct in saying that clothing insecurity is a hidden need. But it is something that I think every parent really feels viscerally and understands the importance when you think of your own child and getting your child ready for school. You want to make sure they're ready from head to toe. That they've got the right shoes, they've got the right clothes, they've got their backpack, they've got their coats, and they're able to kind of walk out the door feeling ready. And so it's a it's a very basic concept that when we have volunteers come into our shipping factory and we take children as young as five to come in to volunteer so we we welcome families coming in. We welcome corporate groups, we welcome individuals, you know, alumni groups, you think of a type of organization that is looking to do some bonding and and make a difference and we welcomed them into our giving factories. And as we set them up to do a volunteer shift we let them know about the need, why it's important that they're there and the kind of difference that they are making both in that moment and then how they can further that support as they move on to the rest of their day. And additionally we have a an online platform called giving Factory Direct, which now connects people in 43 states across the United States to children from the comfort of their homes, they just log in and we share a little bit about the child and you tell us I've got clothing and size six girls and we match you to a child who wears girl size six clothing so it's about making it real and you know in fine in building that empathy bringing it forward for for all of our, our donors.
It I agree and and and seeing it is so important. Volunteering is such an important part of not only nonprofits but what everyone really should be doing in their lives because it makes a huge impact. And I love that you brought up volunteering because many people think well I don't have the resources, financial resources to give so much but if they have time to volunteer that is also equally important to nonprofits. So can you tell us a little bit more about your volunteer program?
Yep. So So Laurie, I agree with you. I think that really philanthropy is just a personal or corporate commitment to make a positive difference in your community. And we all have ways we can do that. And it starts with that sense of commitment. So you know, I I'll share a quick story going back in time, where, you know, initially it was me and friends of mine and and colleagues who were cobbling together this idea, and I realized that there was some power to it when I looked in our first warehouse, and I didn't recognize a soul who, who was there. They were people who found out about the organization through word of mouth, and they raised their hands to come in to volunteer and that really has been the engine of our growth over time, because every one of those volunteers who has come in has then gone out. They've shared their experience with their friends with their families with their corporate CSR departments. And that's how we've been able to grow from serving a couple 100 children in our in our first year to now this year serving 700,000 Kids annually. And so you know, it starts with figuring out for us our how our business processes and how they can be done simply by people who have never interacted with us before. And so you come in by yourself with your family with a group and we sit you down and do a quick orientation tell you why you're here what you're going to be doing. You go off into a station you might be sorting clothes, you might be making outfits you might be shopping for particular children and then once you have completed your volunteer shift, at the end of essentially two hours, we bring you back along with all the other volunteers that have been there with you. And we talk about what we've done together and you know, it's really it's fascinating hearing the sort of realizations people have had, in just two short hours of giving back. They've made stronger connections with their colleagues. They've talked about important values. of empathy and kindness and sharing, and they're excited to be able to say, I actually made a difference for hundreds of children today.
Oh, I love that I think is great and it's a great system and and it's connecting them to understand why they're doing what they're doing, which is so important. So like they have that orientation then you bring them back to debrief in a sense afterwards. So let's go back to Michigan where you grow up and are there any other things that you think about because I know you had the inspiration there when you were visiting family to to create Cradles to Crayons, but going back to your upbringing, any other inspirational people or moments in your life that you looking back now you can see that was something related to philanthropy?
Great question Laurie. And and I would say, you know, a lot of it stems from my mom. As we were growing up, she was always involved in the community. She was a tutor. She was involved in different foundations and there was one in particular that was really she got the whole family involved. And it was called festival of trees of benefit for the Children's Hospital in Detroit. And it would start, you know, in November where we would help with donated goods that were coming into our home. And and then we would, as a family, go and volunteer and we'd be there setting up the whole event floor we would be helping to get things ready. We would help to sell trees and raise money and and so, you know, when I was a teenager maybe I complained a lot when when I was when I was doing that but you know there was a part of me that I think really connected to that and felt felt good that we were able we were in a position to be able to give back and I see that now reflected in all the volunteers and you know, the product donors and the financial donors who come and support our organization. You know, it's about trying to be a role model as a parent for your children and raising them with values that you find important. It's about being that 20 Something who has grown up volunteering in their in their schools, and they are now mobilizing their, you know their teams and leading the way in many cases in their companies to start a volunteer program to start a foundation to raise awareness. And, and so I'd say you know, my my mom is you know, is my biggest role model and, and probably biggest, biggest champion over the 20 years of doing Cradles to Crayons. That's
amazing. So I'm seeing patterns here. I love to see these patterns when I'm meeting with people about your philanthropy but we're at a point in time I'd love to know what you consider your legacy to be.
So I am working to put clothing insecurity on the map as a basic need alongside food insecurity, housing insecurity. And, and my hope is that part of my legacy is to is to is to really create awareness and to create channels of people have channels of giving ways for people to support ending that, that very basic need, and at the same time to be a place or people who are looking to make a difference and who feel inspired through spending 15 minutes on our giving factory direct site, making a donation and sending a couple of outfits to a child who needs them or a volunteer family who's come in to volunteer for a couple of hours, and helping to foster an army of empathy, where people take that sense of connecting with someone else and that positivity that comes from giving back. It continued to further the charge that Cradles to Crayons has or they feel inspired to follow their own path and and create their own legacy.
Fantastic. So it's not only your legacy, but it's also influencing others legacies and I think that's wonderful. Lynn, thank you so much. Where can people find out more information about you or Cradles to Crayons? At Lori it's
been great to be here. I would love for people to check out cradles to crayons.org Great.
All right. We'll have all the information in the show notes. Again, Lynn, thank you so much for joining us and for everyone out there listening feel free to go to Cradles to Crayons and if you're in the area, please volunteer. It will make a difference in your life. And for everyone involved. Thanks again for listening.