The Afya Foundation, whose mission is to improve global health in underserved systems around the world, found itself in a unique position when the COVID-19 epidemic struck here. The organization, which collects donated medical supplies, was able to pivot its operations to protecting health care workers here in Westchester and the New York area by identifying, acquiring and delivering desperately needed personal protective equipment (PPE). Afya has delivered more than 100,000 N95 masks, 50,000 face shields and many other PPE items to front line health care workers.  Since early March, Afya has delivered supplies to 44 area hospitals, 14 Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), […]

Healthcare workers at several area hospitals received a pleasant surprise from Lippolis Electric in the form of safety gift bags. The family-owned electrical contractor based in Pelham had been donating meals to local hospitals including Northern Westchester, Montefiore, New Rochelle Hospital, Montefiore St. Luke’s Cornwall, as well as donating food to the Pawling Resource Center near their Pawling, NY office, but they wanted to do more. “In addition to donating meals to hungry nurses, we wanted to think of another way we could help that didn’t involve food. We understand that many hospitals are limited with supplies and wanted to […]

Students and faculty at Iona Preparatory School in New Rochelle made a generous donation to the healthcare staff at St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Yonkers.  Iona Prep delivered to the hospital much-needed medical supplies, including 1,000 nitrate gloves, 200 plastic bibs, 30 safety goggles and 2,500 personal hand sanitizer spray bottles, along with more than 75 pounds of food for healthcare workers.  It was a true schoolwide effort, as administrators and facilities personnel coordinated with Iona Prep’s Department of Campus Ministry to collate and inventory supplies from both the Lower and Upper Schools. “Our daily mission is to teach our young […]

Face-to-face meetings are a critical part of any youth mentoring program so when the Covid-19 pandemic struck, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Family Services of Westchester kicked into high gear to invent creative ways to keep the mentoring bonds strong. To keep its Bigs (adult mentors) and Littles (mentored children) connected BBBS quickly compiled and shared a list of over 50 ideas for virtual connection, many using Zoom, Skype or Facetime to work together on art projects, puzzles, homework or crafts. Because many Littles live in households that lack computers, with the support of the BBBS Advisory Council and most generous donors, BBBS has been able to distribute dozens of laptops to help its Littles keep up with their schoolwork and their mentors. Also, with so many Littles no longer having access to the free school lunches they qualify for, BBBS has committed significant time and energy connecting its families […]