Over 1,000 Coats Already Delivered: Livingston Philanthropies Director Explains LPI Process from “Donation to Delivery”

Wed
12
Dec

Over 1,000 Coats Already Delivered: Livingston Philanthropies Director Explains LPI Process from “Donation to Delivery”

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Thanks to Livingston residents’ ongoing donations, Livingston Philanthropies, Inc. (LPI) has surpassed the 1,000 mark in delivering coats to the “poor, homeless and disenfranchised.” That number, noted LPI founder and director Jeff Friedman, “is in addition to the hats, gloves, scarves, toiletries, cosmetics, diapers, women’s products, family clothing, men’s suits and more that have been donated. The volume of these additional items makes it logistically impossible to count.” The Donation-Delivery Process “Our generous Livingston neighbors sometimes ask about LPI’s process – ‘Who actually gets my donation, and how does it all happen?’ said Friedman. "It all begins with what you're reading now – our weekly update. "Each week, I submit content to Tribune managing editor, Christine ‘Chrissy’ Sablynski. She crafts it into a cohesive newspaper article for Thursday’s publication. The resultant article tells stories and asks for the continued support from Livingston residents. I’m pretty sure I’m the only person on my block with a personal editor!” Donations are dropped at the offices of LPI’s partner and main collection site, the West Essex Tribune, at 495 South Livingston Avenue, Friedman continued. “Additional donations come directly to ‘Coat Drive Central’ (my garage) and from Jen Mortensen, a biology teacher and head of the Volunteer Club at Jonathan Dayton High School in Springfield. The Club conducts a coat drive on behalf of LPI each year, and now coordinates drives with other local organizations in that town. I’m never surprised to see an email from Jen asking for another sizable pick-up.” Next, Friedman said, “ ‘Stock’ is sorted in Coat Drive Central into various categories: coats, winter accessories, men’s dress attire, and general family clothing. New toiletries and cosmetics find their way into the house and are placed into gift bags created by volunteer Karen Friedman (also known as my lovely wife). “Next, one or more of LPI’s volunteers pick up donated items at the Tribune and come to my house for the loading process. We are blessed to have a small, but resourceful volunteer staff, including local volunteers Rick Levin, Pat Corcoran, Neil Greco, Gabrielle Sonet, Stephen Greenberg, Candi Samanski, and Joyce Friedman.” From there, he said, deliveries to Newark and East Orange distribution partners “are cheerfully made by LPI volunteers. Our distribution partners, many of whom have been associated with us since we began this initiative in 2011, include the Family Success Center and the United Missionary Baptist Church, both located in East Orange, and Newark’s Emergency Services ...

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