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Baby2Baby: A Formula for Growth
Strollers, diapers, bottles - these are just a few of the baby basics that many families take for granted. But making do without such necessities is often the norm for far too many families with young children in Los Angeles.
Baby2Baby, a project of Community Partners, works to address this problem with a program as seemingly basic as it is effective: in 2013 alone, the project collected and distributed 85,000 bottles, 1.65 million new items from corporations, 231,000 gently-used donations from individuals, and reached 67,000 children in Los Angeles.
Baby2Baby has grown exponentially under the leadership of co-presidents Norah Weinstein and Kelly Patricof. Their success can be attributed to the leaders' focus on growth, their ability to effectively partner with community organizations (57 local nonprofits currently help to deliver the goods they bring in), and their savvy leveraging connections to corporations and celebrities.
When working with celebrities, Weinstein and Patricof found that it is important to offer them more than just opportunities to give money or make appearances at events. Celebrities such as Jessica Alba and Nicole Ritchie are actively involved, serving on Baby2Baby's board and volunteering at events.
"Celebrities, like anyone else, respect the opportunity to do more than just give money," said Patricof. "They come to our warehouse, sort clothes, get diapers off of a diaper truck, meet the children, and more. They appreciate being brought into the core of an organization."
Similarly, employees from Baby2Baby's corporate partners have the opportunity to volunteer alongside community members. "Corporations are also looking to do more than just give money," said Weinstein. "They want to bring their staff in to volunteer or help in other ways."
Still, the two recommend always keeping in mind a corporation's bottom line goals. "They're donating large amounts of product or money," said Patricof. "We go out of our way to try to meet all of their needs and make sure they feel that we're working with them."
With corporate partners like Huggies contributing 1 million diapers, Baby2Baby's future looks bright, but Weinstein and Patricof know that there are hundreds of thousands of children still in need of support. "With over 500,000 children living in poverty, we want to serve as many children as we can," said Weinstein. "Right now, we're focused on growing as quickly and efficiently as possible,"
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