Ikea Brooklyn (wikimedia commons)
April 30, 2020 By Michael Dorgan
IKEA is donating thousands of products to Queens-based organizations that will distribute them to families in need.
The Swedish home ware and furniture giant is partnering with the Queens Borough President’s office to provide new bedding, towels, batteries, and children’s items to low-income families.
The contribution is part of a nationwide initiative by IKEA that will see the company donate around $1.6 million worth of its products and supplies to communities hardest hit by the virus.
The company is donating about 14,000 products to Queens-based non-profits and shelters. The items include: 864 bed spreads, 816 bed sheets, 1,920 washcloths, 1,440 hand towels, 864 bath towels, and 3,820 batteries.
Various children’s items are part of the donation package including 180 train sets and 96 weaving looms. The company is also giving 1,425 mixed paint sets, 2,160 paintbrushes, and 444 packages of mixed paper for kids to use.
The goods will be delivered to the non-profits and then distributed among families throughout the borough.
Acting Queens Borough President Sharon Lee praised IKEA for its donation and said that the much-needed items will help families during the pandemic.
“Queens is proud to partner with IKEA and thanks them for this swift, generous donation,” Lee said.
IKEA, which is opening a new store at the Rego Center in the fall, said it wanted to help Queens since it has been so hard hit by the pandemic.
“We recognize the role we can play in helping people during the COVID-19 crisis, and we are proud to support relief efforts in Queens with a donation of much-needed products including bedding and bath linens,” IKEA Area Manager Shahab Mollaei said.
The non profit organizations working with IKEA said that the donations were much needed.
“This donation comes at the perfect time as we are all tightening our belts due to financial ramifications of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic,” said Jeehae Fischer, the Executive Director at the Korean American Family Service Center.
The goods are being distributed to 15 different community-based organizations, which are listed below.
- 100 Suits for 100 Men in Jamaica
- Briarwood Family Residence in Briarwood
- CORE Services Group Beach House in Arverne
- Forestdale, Inc. in Forest Hills
- Garden of Hope
- Homes for the Homeless in Jamaica
- Hour Children in Long Island City
- Korean American Family Services Center
- LifeWay Network, Inc.
- Restful Nights Organization, Inc. in Jamaica
- Safe Horizon
- Transitional Services for New York, Inc. in Whitestone
- Voces Latinas in Jackson Heights
- Women for Afghan Women
- Womankind
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3 Comments
Maybe if Amazon was building their headquarters in LIC we would get some support from them too. I know there would be thousands of jobs waiting for us. Jobs that include construction and using the services surrounding the sites, like restaurants and small delis. But thanks to Gianaris, aka “Amazon killer”, we got nothing.
The only reason we don’t have Amazon coming to our neighborhood is because Gianaris was too scared to go against AOC.
My husband said the same thing. We would have had TONS of jobs in our neighborhood (Queens). We all have to take an active role to make sure we vote out Gianaris, AOC, etc.
What? A big company that is contributing and helping out its Queens neighbors? I thought we were told to believe that all big companies feed off the blood and toil of working class people and do not benefit the community. Isn’t that what you told us about Amazon, senator?