Medford Health Matters

Medford starts 2010 by giving! Thank you!

Thanks to all who contributed to and supported the suitcase collection drive for foster children conducted by Suitcases4Kids on Jan. 16, 2010 at Medford City Hall.

In just four hours, 1,039 suitcases were collected, to be donated to family service organizations so foster children moving to new homes have a dignified way to transport their belongings. More than 40 volunteers assisted at the event, including a group of students from Medford High School.

Benvenuti’s Italian Kitchen and Papa Gino’s on Riverside Avenue, and Dunkin’ Donuts on Salem Street donated refreshments.

A little history about Suitcases For Kids, well in 1995 a 10 year old girl came up with a great idea. She had found out that the average child in foster care has to move three to four times and carries everything they own in garbage bags.

“I thought it was horrible that the children had nothing to carry their things in as they moved so many times. I wanted to make them feel special by giving them something of their own to keep. I tried to put myself in their place and think how I would feel,” said Aubyn Burnside. And she started a movement to replace these kids’ garbage bags with their own suitcases.

It was not long before newspapers and magazines nationwide picked up the story. Aubyn would later appear on the Oprah Winfrey Show and be named one of Oprah’s Young Angels in her Angel Network.

Fast forward to 2009: Ron Nickerson, the president and founder, decided to use his talents and contacts to help children in the foster care system. During his research he discovered Aubyn Burnside. By this time her project had fallen into disuse as she had moved on to other things. He realized with his background that this would fit in very well with his goals.

Ron has spent the past 25 years working with children and their families in a variety of settings including residential facilities and psychiatric hospitals. He has also been a social worker for kids in specialized foster care and director of a 30 bed youth detention facility in Boston Massachusetts. He is currently a foster dad to several boys with Reactive Attachment Disorder.

The organizers also wished to thank Medford Mayor Michael J. McGlynn for co-sponsoring the event and opening Medford City Hall for the collection; corporate sponsor Citizens Bank; and Cheryl White, Executive Director of the Medford Chamber of Commerce.

Suitcases4Kids has now collected 10,194 suitcases toward its goal of 14,000 by June 10, 2010. Information on future collection drives will be available on the Web at www.suitcases4kids.org.

Categories: Live Resources