The mission of T&E Care is to maintain a network of people providing financial and other material assistance to persons in need in and around the Tredyffrin and Easttown township area.
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EMERGENCY NEED FOR FIRE VICTIMS
Click here for a LIST OF ITEMS NEEDED 02-03-2010 - A meeting was held with representatives of many of the area churches and synagogues, as well as a couple of community organizations, including T&E Care, to discuss the plans for assisting those families affected by the fire on 1/30/10 at the Strafford Station Apartments in Devon. The case worker from the Red Cross was there and told us what was happening. Basically the needs aren't quite as bad as we initially thought. For those affected it was horrible, but not quite as many families are facing a total disaster as we expected.
22 units damaged or destroyed; only 19 had been occupied. Not all 19 families lost everything - Three or four units were totally destroyed, but smoke damage was (and will be) a problem for everyone. Those units closest to the fires were the worst with smoke damage. Some items were recoverable for some families.
Some families had renter's insurance. The garages were not affected by fire so no cars were damaged. Many of the apartments were occupied by single people. Only a few had children. The landlord at the rental property has been terrific - he put the families up for a week at a hotel and found them ALL units within the same apartment complex into which they can move in the upcoming days. Additionally he has waived the February rent for these families so they'd have some money to help cover expenses. Our hats off to this landlord! Knowing that housing is not going to be an issue is huge. That was our biggest fear. All the new units have appliances, too - so we don't need to worry about finding those.
(2/5/10) The Red Cross has given us a list which lists the needs of most of the families we will be helping . We have given this information to the churches that are "adopting" a family. At the current time we do KNOW that beds will be needed by the end of this week (mattresses are notorious for harboring smoke from fires - they can not usually be saved). Because the turnaround time is so quick, our group decided to just buy the beds and bedding for the families needing this assistance. All donations sent to us will be used to cover the cost of these items as well as for gift cards that people can use to replace kitchen items, clothing, food basics, and other household supplies. Special thanks to the Mattress Giant (Floyd - manager)
in KofP (next to Buckman's Ski Shop) for giving us a great deal on all
the beds that we had to buy for the families. And thanks also for the
discount given to us by the Bed Bath and Beyond in Radnor so we could
outfit the beds with some decent bedding (sheets, pillows, blankets,
and mattress pads); towels for everyone as well.
We are listing specific needs at the link at the top of this box. Please check this website regularly as we update the needs. And as always - many many thanks for your support.
Anyone interested in making a donation to this effort can do so - send checks payable to T&E Care to Debbie Weger, 540 Contention Lane, Berwyn, 19312. On the memo line mark: Strafford Station Apt fire.
http://www.berwynfirecompany.org/incidents.cfm?ItemID=247 (info and great pictures of the fire from the Berwyn Fire Co. website)
http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/local&id=7248213 (local news story on the fire)
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SOUP AND YUMMIES FOR T&E CAREMonday, February 22, 2010
6-9pmCLASS IS CURRENTLY FULL - IF INTERESTED IN BEING ON THE WAITING LIST - LET ART KNOW.Come learn to cook various soups and other yummies, while supporting T&E Care. Cost of the class is $49/person, with $25 of each registration is going to T&E Care. Maximum of 12 participants. Register on-line at www.kitchen-workshop.com.Menu:Mushroom Barley Soup
Old-fashioned Chicken Noodle Soup
Cream of Cauliflower with Cheddar Soup
Hearty Lentil Soup
Irish Soda Bread
Whole Wheat Bread Sticks
Chocolate-Walnut Biscotti
Pumpkin Roll with Cream Cheese FillingThis is a hands-on class where you prepare these recipes as you eat and drink complimentary wine or other beverages. Contact Art at chef@kitchen-workshop.com with questions.
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| NEEDS |
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SPECIAL NEEDS FOR LOCAL FAMILIES
updated 01-26-2010
If you have the ability to help with any of these VERY important needs for a few of our local families - please let us know.
The power of "community" can make the impossible possible!
Baby Items:
- A very young mom in our area is currently expecting a baby in March - it will be a boy. She is in dire need of help getting baby items. We already have donations of a crib, changing table, rocking chair, and a few newborn and 3mo clothing items. We definitely still need:
car seatbaby bouncy seatbaby swingstroller
- newborn diapers and
wipes
- newborn clothes and 3-6 mo clothes (clean, keep seasons in mind please)
baby monitorbath tub and bath toys- a
few bath towels and baby blankets
- baby toys and books
- crib mobile
- baby bottles
Many thanks! Contact us if you have any of these items to donate.
Appliances/Furniture:
Clothing:
2/5/10 - A family that we know has a grandmother in a nursing home. She is gaining weight and needs some new clothes. She wears a 2x size - would like some loose fitting shirts and pants (elastic waist please). If anyone has these things please let us know ASAP.
Computers:
We could use a few towers as well as some thin monitors. We are down to about 3 towers in our inventory - and we REALLY NEED MORE so we have them ready when the requests come in. We have a number of the larger monitors, but space is always such an issue for so many of these families - the thin monitors work soooo much better. Please let us know if you have any items to share. (We have plenty of keyboards and mice.)
Cars:
We know of a numerous local families who are desperate to get a "new" car. We especially need a van at this time. Some of these families currently have cars, but the cars are FALLING apart and unsafe to drive. If they lose the car, they lose their jobs. They can't pay
their rent without getting to work. The cycle begins. Getting a "new" car
will stop the tailspin before things get out of control. Some families RIGHT IN OUR AREA have no car and this is limiting their housing and job options because they can only look for housing and jobs on a transportation line. If you have a
car that works well that you would like to donate to a local family,
please let us know.
We will work with you on applying for a tax deduction for this
donation. This would be a great opportunity to get a special tax
deduction in 2009 while truly changing a family's life.
(MANY
THANKS to five car offers we had in 2008, and so far two this year - this community is incredible! You
have no idea how life-changing these cars are for families!! But we still have more families on the list - PLEASE consider helping out!)
If you can help out with anything requested on this page - please email us at help@tecare.org.
THANKS!
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We are done collecting items for the holiday drive ....
... and oh my ... what a pile! We are all speechless. Once again we can't believe how incredibly generous the families in this community are. We have sorted and delivered all the gifts, and received many many words of thanks. Below are some of the emails and notes we have received (slight changes were made to some to protect confidentiality; otherwise - these are the notes verbatim):
WE all thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the wonderful gifts you bring to us. You are such a special T/E Team by giving joy and happiness to each
family in the T/E district. Again, thank you for your time and all the
gifts for all of us. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and
your families. Oh
boy I'm still in shock, I can't Thank you enough, Oh my gosh I can't
tell you what a blessing that was to receive the gifts. Oh from the
bottom of my heart I Thank you. It
is truly a blessing and saying. "Thank you" just does not say nearly
enough for the food and gift cards. There are no words to express our
feelings and deep appreciation for the help you have given us at this
time. I
want you to know how much I appreciate the generous gifts because of
your organization, my son and I can be comfortable in our home. Please
tell those who helped, thank you sooooooo much and big group Hugs &
Kisses! I
would like to take the time to thank the family that adopted us for the
holidays this year. My girls were so very happy with the items they
received for Christmas this year. My Son also! The smile on my
daughter's face was as wide as the ocean..She loves the Jonas
brothers... I can only say God Bless you for caring ..You are truly
appreciated...One day i hope I can play it forward. This was one of
the best Christmases in a very long time..Thank you once again and
Happy New Year !! I
wanted to reach out to you and say Thank you for the help you gave my
family for Christmas. The look on the children's faces simply made me
smile and cry. You kindness is no doubt from God. Please tell everyone
that has helped my family that i am greatly appreciative for all the
blessings they gave to me. I
want to thank everyone that is involved in T.E CARES for the gifts for
Christmas and the Christmas Dinner.I really appreciate everything that
you do for Me and My son.You have helped us on several occasions. I
realized If it were not for you and your generosity I don't know what
I would have done. - I want to thank the entire T&E Cares group for their generosity. I feel so blessed by all that was given to us! Since my parents passed away, I do not receive an gifts aside for the token gifts we exchange between families with a $10 limit. The vacuum works nicely and the movie tickets were a wonderful surprise! All the household items and food items are greatly appreciated as well! My son was delighted with all the toys he received! We are very thankful for it all and those who took the time to choose each of the items, did an excellent job! Please let all of the members and supporters of T&E Cares know what a wonderful service they do and how very thankful we are.
BOTTOM LINE ... a HUGE thank you to all! Happy new year!
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| Employees of Old Navy (King of Prussia Mall) donated items for a family! The shopping cart was overflowing! |
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HELP* IS ALWAYS NEEDED WITH ...
Any general cash donation or pledge for a
future donation would always appreciated.
General gift cards can also
be used at any time (grocery stores, all purpose stores, general VISA
cards, etc.)
See our donation page for more details.
(*Please tell your friends about T&E Care - the more who know, the more likely we can help!)
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Many THANKS for the recent donations ....
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| Main Line Unitarian Church makes donation to T&E Care; L to R: Rev. Justin Osterman, Senior Minister, Craig Roshaven, Associate Minister, Kirk Gorman, T&E Care President, and Denny Willson, T&E Care Chairman. |
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- Many thanks to 4 members of the Conestoga HS Ice Hockey Team who recently gave up a few hours to help move the T&E Care computers from our old location at the ESC to our new location by TEMS. We had 6 carloads of things to move - computers, monitors,keyboards, mice, cords, tables, chairs, etc. that needed to be moved. We couldn't have done it without the assistance of these boys. Thanks to Brody Shea, Cal Bailey, Tim Lopez, and Chris Kupp. (And thanks to the school district for finding us a corner in the basement of the Network Operations Center where we can do the refurbishing work that is needed for our computer program.)
- Much appreciation to the members of St. Luke Evangelical Lutheran Church for their support of T&E Care in the recent alternative gift program run in December. We really appreciate being included on that list, and were overwhelmed when the results of this program were sent to us.
- C&J Auto Repair in Berwyn helped a local family with much needed car repairs in December. They reduced the cost of their service, and then asked patrons to help with donations. Many thanks for their efforts and to those who made these donations.
- Wonderful news - we received a grant from Fox Roach Charities to help with some of our support programs. Many thanks to those involved in making that grant happen.
- Many many thanks to the Main Line Unitarian Church members for giving 1/2 their November collections to T&E Care. These funds will be used to help with upcoming utility bill payments - something we know will be hard for families during the cold winter months.
- A special shout-out to the employees of the corporate office of Jefferson Health System in Radnor for their generous donations to our Educational Fund - which supports kids needing help with educational expenses (college tuition, books, SAT prep classes, etc). This was a wonderful holiday gesture.
- Many thanks to Play It Again Sports in Berwyn for making a nice donation to T&E Care. It's great to have the local companies helping out like that!
- Thanks to Chang's School of Martial Arts in King of Prussia for donating the tuition for one local student to attend the program. This is a huge help for the family and we appreciate the support of Chang's!
- 11/6/09 - Thanks to the local company Johnson Matthey for donating $200 that will be used to buy food for the Thanksgiving dinners being prepared by Art Roman of The Kitchen Workshop for 8 local families.
- 11/4/09 - Thanks to John at D'Avico's Auto Repair in Wayne for helping a local family with a free oil change!!
- 10/27/09 - Thanks once again to Joe Tucker from Allstate (Chesterbrook) for applying to the Allstate Foundation for a grant for T&E Care. For the 3rd year in a row Joe has secured $500 for our organization. Many thanks for his continued support!!!
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"Never underestimate the ability of a small group of committed individuals to change the world." Margaret Mead
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