Gift is first of many planned disbursements from massive Amazon donation we received in November
Diversity Richmond donated more than 60 boxes of new household essentials, valued at more than $10,000, to the CARITAS Furniture Bank, just in time for the holidays. The donation is the first disbursement from more than $120,000 in merchandise Diversity Richmond received from Amazon last month as part of its ongoing partnership with the company. Staff from Diversity Richmond arrived in a box truck, wrapped in a huge red bow, to deliver the items to CARITAS.
The donation is comprised of a wide range of new items, still in the packaging, including bedding, housewares, kitchen supplies, small household appliances and toys which will be given to CARITAS clients, free of charge, through the organization’s Furniture Bank.
"The CARITAS Furniture Bank helps families who are coming out of a crisis to start their new lives," says Furniture Bank Program Manager Sandy Morris. "Our very own neighbors in need come in here to find new furniture and full of hope every single day and it's so exciting to be a part of. We are enormously grateful for organizations like Diversity Richmond that help us help others."
CARITAS's mission is to create a safe place to heal and time to rebuild. More than 1,000 adults and children receive essential furniture and household items each year through the CARITAS Furniture Bank, one of five CARITAS programs. Other programs include The Healing Place, the Emergency Shelter, CARITAS Works, and the CARITAS Recovery Residences. Through these programs, CARITAS provides men and women with the tools to make a successful transition to dignity and self-sufficiency.
“Diversity Richmond is honored and humbled to be able to make this donation to CARITAS, which has been one of our community partners for several years,” said James Millner, a spokesperson for the organization. “We know that, through CARITAS, this merchandise will immediately go into the hands and homes of people and families who are working hard to get back on their feet. This is exactly the kind of impact we hoped we could make with this donation from Amazon.”
Staff and volunteers at Diversity Richmond began sorting through the Amazon merchandise, currently stored in the organization’s warehouse, just before Thanksgiving and will continue to make donations to other community partners during the holidays and beyond.
“There is just so much good that can come from this massive donation of merchandise,” Millner continued. “It is a shining example of what can happen when non-profits work together with companies like Amazon to serve the communities in which they operate.”
