Contributed photos (2) Jared McMullen
Web site. While I keep a list of how many and where boxes are made, Jared Boxes are certainly being made without me ever knowing it. Here is a perfect example: The King’s College (in Wilkes-Barre) baseball team has been making Jared Boxes for years, making well over 5,000 boxes in total. They just looked at the Web site and “figured it out” on their own. It wasn’t until I stumbled onto a story on Facebook about the King’s College effort that I learned about it! Mimi: You have had nationwide impact essentially through word of mouth? Cindy: Yes, that is true. Just in the past few weeks, I have heard from a Daisy Girl Scout Troop in Long Beach, California, a group of college students in San Juan, Puerto Rico, BYN Mellon in Pittsburgh, and the Moose Club in Clarence. Honestly, I get excited each morning when I open my e-mail — always something new! Mimi: I was thinking somehow I have to contact NBC news. The evening program has a segment at the end called “Making a Difference,” and the Jared Box is a living example of what they report on. So these people just start making Jared Boxes, and they get the information and the ingredients from you. How do you do that? Cindy: The Jared Box Project took a simple idea of toys in a box and created a nationally recognized service project. The simplicity of the project allows everyone to practice small 102 - T&G December 2015
acts of kindness. It is really all in the way it is organized. From our Web site, you can learn about the project, obtain a list of ideas of toys to put in the boxes, and can print labels for the boxes. From our hospital directory, you can look up a local hospital in your area. Whether you make one or 1,000 Jared Boxes, the idea is the same. We have tweaked the process over the years to make it simple and straightforward. I think this has made the Jared Box Project a popular service project for kids of all ages. Again, the Web site is the key. Mimi: Do the service groups that do this buy their own contents? Cindy: Yes. Groups making the boxes provide their own supplies. Fortunately, Jared Boxes are inexpensive to make. Toys are readily available at Dollar Stores, Walmart, and Target. We estimate that a Jared Box can be made for around $10. Jared Boxes are made with a particular age group in mind. On the end of each box, we place a label. The label tells whether the box is for a boy or a girl. The label also allows you to check off an age category. So when boxes are delivered to hospitals, Jared Boxes can easily be stored by gender and age group. This insures that the boxes are age appropriate and helps the hospital, too. Many groups making boxes will hold toy drives, have fundraisers, or will ask businesses for donations. I often hear that Jared Boxes are as much fun to make as they are to receive! Mimi: These boxes come with all the little decorations on it? Cindy: That is part of the fun of making a Jared Box. We encourage groups to decorate the outside of the boxes with stickers. Plastic boxes are transformed into colorful boxes filled with well-wishes, hope, and love. Mimi: There’s a wonderful message that goes along with it. The givers are giving unrestricted philanthropy and public service. Cindy: You are exactly right! The Jared Box highlights how people want to help others. The Thank You notes we receive make it all worthwhile. Parents tell of how the boxes put a smile on their child’s face, make the stay easier, and make them feel special. As a parent, I can imagine how hard hospital stays can be on the entire family. I am brought to tears time and again as I read the Thank You notes and learn how the simple idea of toys in a box can be just