Loving Others - Project 5 - Stuffed Animals For Emergencies (SAFE)

I have been looking for information on donating stuffed animals to police officers, firefighters and emergency responders. That is one thing we have, receive often, and my kids would be excited to give to a child who was sad. 

Most of the information I see is seasonal.  There are drives around Christmas in several areas. 

I also read an article about a girl scout unit that donated stuffed animals to HPD.  http://www.houstontx.gov/police/nr/2012/may/nr051712-2.htm  The article said for more information, please contact the HPD Public Affairs Division at 713-308-3200.  I don't know if they would be able to help you with any ideas on how to donate some items to them. 

I have friends who are firefighters, police, and Texas Marshalls.  I'll try to find some more information.

So far there is one organization that advertises a drop-off for stuffed animals through out the year. 

Stuffed Animals For Emergencies (SAFE)
http://www.stuffedanimalsforemergencies.org/Home.php

The only drop-off in Texas is sponsored by Feed the Children

FTC Texas
4701 Blalock Road
Houston, Texas  77041
713-331-1034

"Feed the Children delivers food, medicine, clothing and other necessities to individuals, children and families who lack these essentials due to famine, war, poverty, or natural disasters.  In particular we are working with FTC on their truck sponsorship program here in the United States.  When truckloads of items have been sponsored by a group or an organization they have agreed to allow out stuffed animals to go with these trucks to be delivered as well with the other items to these families in need.
If you are interested in donating your stuffed animals to FTC ALL DONATIONS MUST BE CLEANED UP FIRST as these donations are not going through one of our chapter members.  
NOTE:  If you are donating directly to FTC they require that you TAKE A DONOR FORM WITH YOU WHEN YOU DONATE so they can keep track of exactly how much we are donating."
Information on the truck sponsorships, cleaning instructions, and the form to download can all be found at http://www.stuffedanimalsforemergencies.org/Chapters.html You have to scroll down close to the bottom to get the only Texas one.  It's labeled Feed the Children.



Here is the letter they have on the webpage that explains how to clean your own animals and prepare them for drop-off. :

 

Stuffed Animals For Emergencies

 

SAFE Guide to Cleaning Stuffed Animals

 

Hello!

Thank you so much for wanting to donate your new and gently used stuffed animals! 

 If you are reading this guide, most likely there was not a SAFE chapter in your area and you are looking to donate your stuffed animals to an organization closer to you.  This guide is here to explain how I normally clean the stuffed animals I receive before giving them out to any organization.  Hopefully, this will help guide you in cleaning up your stuffed animals before distribution. 

Let me first say, it is very important for health reasons to clean up any gently used stuffed animals before giving them to children.  Just think of it as if these stuffed animals were going to your own children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins, etc. - you would want them as clean as possible.  This may take a little more time than just packing them up in boxes but they are going to children who could really use them so they need to be in the best shape possible.

First of all, these are some items I use to clean up stuffed animals so you may wish to have these on hand before you get started:

Washcloth, soap, small comb or brush, scissors, lint brush and a bottle of Febreze.  If you want to, ribbons (polyester and nylon ribbons work the best) and a needle and thread can come in handy if you find a really nice stuffed animal that needs some minor repairs.

So let's get started….

1. Basically when I receive any stuffed animals I go through them first and distinguish what I will keep and what isn't suitable to give to a child.  Just use your judgment in terms of the shape the stuffed animal is in and if there are any tears, stains, or smells.  Make your decision about the stuffed animals based on what you think would be suitable to give to one of your own kids, nieces, nephews, cousins, etc.  Would it scare a child?  Does is not look comforting? If you have some that are not suitable for children in traumatic situations, you can always contact your local thrift store or even your local animal shelter.  One thing I would mention though, don't donate any stuffed animals with beans in them like Beanie Babies to the animal shelter - wouldn't want the employees to have to pick up all those beans if a dog tears it to shreds!

2.     Next if you could count how many stuffed animals you are going to donate (and to what places) and e-mail me (my e-mail address is at the bottom of the checklist) I would really appreciate it.  We keep a running tally of how many stuffed animals are donated to SAFE or are donated through SAFE's contacts or drives.

3.     Deciding the condition of the stuffed animal - First, any stuffed animal that is in excellent condition (i.e. doesn't have any stains, tears, spots, smells) was rarely played with and looks really nice, I usually just put these in the dryer for about 10 minutes on AIR DRY (don't ever put them on high heat because the temperature gets too hot and will melt the fur on some stuffed animals) just to get any dust off of them.  Please cut off any tags though before putting it in the dryer.  My only exception to tags is Beanie Babies, I usually keep those on so when I donate them people know they are actual Beanie Babies (and I clean these by hand usually unless it is really dirty).  Also I usually spray some Febreze over the whole pile.  If you have a stuffed animal like this that has some attachment to it though (like a box or a basket) don't worry about putting it in the dryer.  You can clean these by hand (just follow the directions in number 4 for hand washing).

4.     Next any other stuffed animals that are regular size, been used by children in the past and don't have any kind of attachment to it (like boxes, baskets, etc.) you can go ahead and wash these in the washing machine.  My only exception to this is if you have a stuffed animal with longer fur on it, you really shouldn't wash these as the fur is never the same after washing.  Just try to hand wash the animal by using a washcloth and soap or by brushing it and if it is unable to be cleaned that way, you can donate it to your local animal shelter or you will have to throw it away.  Make sure there are no tags on any of these stuffed animals before washing.  Again, my only exception to tags is Beanie Babies, I usually keep those on so when I donate them people know they are actual Beanie Babies (and I usually wash these by hand if they need it).  I will put these in the washing machine on a gentle cycle; some chapters even use a sensitive or baby-type laundry detergent so it is extra gentle.  Then I put them in the dryer on AIR DRY or LOW HEAT for a short period of time (10-15 minutes) and then I usually let them air dry the rest of the way (again don't ever put them on high heat because the temperature gets too hot and will melt the fur on some stuffed animals).  After that I freshen them up by using a lint brush if needed, a small brush to comb the fur with, cut any strings that need cut and then I just usually spray Febreze over all of them when I am done.  Some chapters use dryer sheets in the bag or box when donating to make them smell nice as well.

5.     If after washing the stuffed animals you have some with stains that wouldn't come out and you cannot see any other way of getting it clean, this would be a good stuffed animal to donate to the animal shelter or throw away. 

6.     If you find there are some stuffed animals that are in good condition but coming apart at the seam or need other repairs, you can chose to repair it or it will have to be thrown away (if you gave it to the animal shelter the animals would most likely tear it apart).

7.     If you have any large stuffed animals you will have to clean them up by hand of course.  Just follow the directions for hand washing in number 4.  Note:  Really large stuffed animals can be donated to libraries which work great in their children areas.

8.     Also, just wanted to mention that if you have a stuffed animal that has a ribbon around its neck that is frayed and falling apart, just go ahead and cut it off and if you have some polyester or nylon ribbon (they usually tie the best) just tie a new one with a bow around its neck, it really does a lot to freshen it up.

 

And that is it!  Just organize them in boxes or garbage bags depending on how many you have and take them to the organization that needs them.  Again, if you could please provide a count of how many you donated at the bottom and e-mail me we would appreciate it, we keep a running tally. 

If you have any questions at all, here is my contact information:

 

Jennifer Alloy

jenalloy15@gmail.com

11886 Monroe Road

Leesburg, OH  45135

937-708-0251

 

Total number of stuffed animals donated ________________.

Place(s) where stuffed animals are being donated:

_____________________________________________________.

 

Thank you again so much for what you are doing, it really does help so many children and please e-mail me pictures if you would like so we can post them on our 'Thank You Donors' page or Facebook!