Community Cash Cards make an impact

If you ever wondered what the Tossed and Found Community Cash Cards can do for the JLW community partners, I have a great success story for you! Two vans from Community Family Life Services arrived bright and early to take advantage of the great shopping. Thanks to the cash cards, 9 of the 16 CFLS families were able to obtain much needed items for their homes and families.

Overheard in each space – “I wish I had started in the other room, there is so much we need!” Small appliances, clothing, furniture, utensils and other kitchen items as well as baby clothing and accessories were snapped up by the women. Many of the kids were able to come, and pick out toys. One little boy even got his first bike!

The families and CFLS employees were so grateful for the opportunity to shop and fulfill their needs for both individuals and the organization. Thanks to the Tossed and Found volunteers and the donations of the cash cards, the JLW was able to make a huge impact for CFLS!

Loading the vans

Happy shoppers

Are you in it to pin it?

Last month, I spent an evening in Crystal City, helping to set up shop for the upcoming annual Tossed and Found event. Being a new member, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I arrived for my work shift. Over the course of the evening I was impressed with the vast array of clothing, home goods, books, furniture, kitchenware and holiday items. I found myself looking at all these wares with a fresh new eye. I could see these items re-purposed and reinvented in new ways. Items that were no longer needed by their previous owners could get a second chance in a new home.

The next morning it hit me. I was scanning the racks and rows at Tossed and Found, looking at things from the Pinterest Perspective.

Are you pinning yet? I’m referring to the incredibly popular (and addictive!) website, Pinterest. The website recently hit the notable mark of 10 million monthly visitors. What’s even more impressive is that it reached that number faster than Facebook or Twitter.

What’s contributing to Pinterest’s surge in status is its rapidly growing popularity with women. Young and old alike, droves of women are turning to Pinterest for recipes, wedding and event inspiration, crafting ideas and home décor suggestions. On the site, users are able to create boards and name them, like “wedding” or “kitchen.” When you find images you like, you simply “pin” them to the desired board. You can pin things you see around the web, even creating a Pinterest button on your web browser’s toolbar for easy pinning. But I think the more popular method is to re-pin things you see on the boards of your friends and other Pinterest users you follow.

So now that you've hit up Tossed and Found, consider spending some time online getting inspired for what you may be able to do with your fabulous T&F finds!

Editor's note: AJLI has joined Pinterest this week. Follow them for plenty of Jr League inspiration