Item Donation Guidelines
Thank you for your generosity and for supporting the children and families we serve!
Every donation helps us provide safe, nurturing, and enriching environments for children to learn and grow. To make sure your contributions are useful and safe, we ask that all donations meet our guidelines. Following these standards allows us to distribute items efficiently, protect the health and safety of children, and ensure that our families receive items in excellent condition.
We Cannot Accept
- Baby equipment (cribs, car seats, highchairs, strollers, pack-n-play, etc.)
- Used microwaves, televisions, large kitchen appliances or large furniture
- Used mattresses or box springs
- Expired food
- Baby formula
- Used personal care items (toiletries, cosmetics, hygiene products, etc.)
- Play guns (including Nerf™ guns and water guns)
- Hazardous materials (cleaning chemicals, paint, propane, etc.)
- Non-functional electronics
- Used undergarments
- Vehicles, boats, or any form of motorized transportation
We Accept
- Clothing – New or gently used, laundered or professionally dry-cleaned
- Toys – New or gently used, clean-including new or gently used operational children’s bicycles
- Baby items – new diapers and/or new wipes in intact packages, new baby bottles in intact packaging
- Books – new and gently used. See below for more Book Donation Guidelines.
Book Donation Guidelines:
- Age-Appropriate – Infant to 5 years old
- Educational Books
- Board Books
- Age-Appropriate Chapter Books – 1st to 5th grade levels.
- While some donated books will be for the classrooms and lending libraries, others will be distributed to families with the goal of creating their own home libraries.
When do we receive Book donations?
Holiday Program
- Annually, we receive donations of books to provide to our children during the holiday season.
Today a Reader, Tomorrow a Leader Book Drive
- Annually, during the months of February and March, we receive book donations from different organizations and groups as part of our literacy initiative. These books then get distributed to classrooms, lending libraries, and our children.
Questions?
Contact us at volunteer@childrenfirst.org
Thank you for helping us create a safe, happy, and supportive environment for every child. Your generosity truly makes a difference!