Welcome to The Denville Moms Local Nonprofit Spotlight Series!
Board of Directions: Lorraine Dias-Sotiriou, Megan Deaton, Bridget Cutler, Jackie McCormack, and Michael Futterman.
As the fourth organization in this important series, we are excited to introduce you to Moms Helping Moms Foundation. Moms Helping Moms Foundation started out as a simple idea by a group of new mothers who shared the common ideal that no baby should ever have to go without life’s basic necessities. Their plan started simply – they would collect donations of essential baby items from families who no longer needed them and pass them on to families who did. Over the years this simple idea has turned into a large network of passionate, caring, like-minded people who work together to help hundreds of babies and young children each year. Through partnerships with community organizations, social workers, homeless shelters, schools, and others, they have collected and distributed hundreds of thousands of diapers, clothing, formula, nursing supplies, strollers and countless other baby essentials to hundreds of families. Together with their supporters, they are working to end diaper need and fight childhood poverty in New Jersey.
What is your nonprofit called and how long have you been established?
Moms Helping Moms Foundation (MHM) is a baby supply and diaper bank located in North Plainfield, NJ. In June 2011 the organization was founded and in 2013 we received our official nonprofit 501c3 status.
What is your mission?
Moms Helping Moms Foundation provides low income families in New Jersey with the essential baby items that they need to give their children a safe, happy and healthy start.
Diapers Collected for Distribution.
Who does your organization serve?
The organization collects new and gently used baby items and distributes them to low-income families who reside primarily in Essex, Hudson, Morris, Somerset, and Union counties of New Jersey.
What was a recent project you worked on? How did it come to fruition?
MHM has four main programs to help us achieve our mission:
- Healthy Start for Babies: MHM distributes 350,000+ critical essentials to 19,000+ individuals per year, including 200,000+ diapers per year. Essentials include diapers, wipes, clothes, shoes, blankets, hygiene items, pack n plays, strollers, and more.
- Early Literacy: MHM distributes literature in English and Spanish to parents/caregivers on the importance of early reading, talking and singing with children. We also ensure that each child we serve receives at least two books (one donated, one new) with every wish list fulfillment. We donated over 4,000 books in 2018.
- Dental Program: Through partnerships with local dentists, MHM distributes kid’s toothbrushes and toothpaste (over 700 in 2018), and literature about proper dental hygiene.
- Advocacy: We organize diaper drives in our local communities to highlight the importance of this issue and encourage people to donate diapers or dollars to make an impact. We also participate in Diaper Need Awareness Week and received six diaper need proclamations from local elected officials in 2018.
What was the inspiration behind the formation of your nonprofit?
Bridget Cutler, the founder and executive director of Moms Helping Moms Foundation, was still adjusting to motherhood when she read a magazine article that changed her life. “It was about a mother who decided to give her child up for adoption because she couldn’t stand to hear her crying from hunger. I just thought that no mother should ever be faced with that choice. Every child deserves all the same things in life. They deserve all of the basics.” From there, Bridget founded Moms Helping Moms Foundation. What started out of her garage helping a few hundred people a year, has grown into a thriving nonprofit helping more than 19,000 individuals annually.
Donation bags ready to go to families with Rebecca Tucker, program director.
What’s on the horizon (with respect to your endeavor; future plans or goals)?
Moms Helping Moms is always working to expand the number of families that we support knowing that there are many more who need our services. In order to do this we are expanding our volunteer program, growing our corporate sponsorship program, and increasing the number of donors who give items and funds to the support the organization.
What speaker topics/experts are you looking for? Who can our readers contact if they want to volunteer their expertise? Do you have specific milestones/dates you can share with us (ie. gratitude clubs)?
Moms Helping Moms is currently seeking new board of directors who have a range of skills and expertise. If interested in learning more, please check out the full job description here: https://www.idealist.org/en/volunter-opportunity/249872a79ca84fdaa68a0b6f18898ceb-board-of-directors-member-moms-helping-moms-foundation-north-plainfield
What is an example of “their own meaningful programming?” If our readers have children who want to get involved in your organization if is that possible and how?
Moms Helping Moms loves volunteers! We host more than 250 volunteers per year that range from individuals that pop by once a week to help us sort clothes to large corporate groups who come once or twice a year. If you are interested in volunteering we can accomodate you! And yes, children 12 and older can volunteer for Moms Helping Moms. We have a lot of great, hands-on projects – we are perfect for youth groups, boy/girl scouts, or other service-oriented clubs.
What are additional ways in which our readers can contribute or volunteer their time?
Moms Helping Moms is always looking for volunteers to come to our warehouse to help us sort donations and for individuals or companies to host diaper drives on our behalf. To inquire about volunteer opportunities, you can email [email protected] or you can check out our website to learn more about hosting a diaper: www.momshelpingmomsfoundation.org/get-involved.
