In honor of Women’s History Month, we hosted a powerful conversation held by inspiring women who shared powerful reflections on leadership and the importance of women supporting women. Thank you to everyone who was able to spend time with us during our Give to Gain: Women’s History Month Panel.
A heartfelt thank you to our incredible panelists for their wisdom, honesty, and commitment to building stronger communities.
ICYMI: Watch the Conversation
If you missed the live event—or would like to revisit the conversation—you can watch the full recording here:
Resources & Organizations Mentioned
During the discussion, several valuable insights and organizations were shared. We encourage you to explore and support the work being done by our panelists and their communities.
Learn more about our panelists in our previous post.
Supporting The Pop-Up Care Shop
We have some exciting upcoming events, clothing drives, and fundraising initiatives that will allow you to stay connected and continue supporting our mission
Join our mailing list: Stay up-to-date about more events, volunteer opportunities, and what we are working on. Sign up here and be sure to invite a friend!
Donate: In honor of our 10-year anniversary, we’re aiming to raise $10,000. If 100 people give $100—or commit to $10/month through the end of the year—we’ll reach our goal. Every gift makes a difference. Please give what you can and help spread the word. Donate here.
Thank you for being part of this movement. We look forward to seeing you soon!
It’s Women’s History Month! And we are celebrating by hosting a panel of inspiring women leaders who are making an impact on communities around the world.
Join us on Monday, March 9th at 7pm EDT via Zoom. Registration is free. Reserve your spot today by getting a ticket on our Eventbrite.
We have a powerful lineup of guest speakers:
Johanna Edmondson
Female Fight Club, Founder
Johanna Edmondson is the founder of The Female Fight Club, a women-only fitness community built on one powerful requirement: bring your will to fight. Created as a safe and supportive space where women feel protected, empowered, and seen, The Female Fight Club is more than a gym it’s a movement. Johanna’s mission goes beyond physical fitness. She challenges every member to take control of both their physical and emotional health, encouraging women to step fully into their strength. Within this community, women are surrounded by encouragement, accountability, and positivity. Together, they forge resilience, confidence, and the inner fighter that refuses to live life passively the fighter who rises again and again for what she believes in. The Female Fight Club, we don’t just train women we build unstoppable women.”
Deborah Koenigsberger
Hearts of Gold, Founder & CEO
Deborah Koenigsberger is the Founder and CEO of Hearts of Gold, a New York City-based nonprofit that has positively impacted over 45,000 homeless and low-income single mothers and their children since its inception in 1994. Inspired by a personal encounter with a young homeless mother and her 3-year-old daughter—who were sleeping in a cardboard box in Madison Square Park at the time—as well as by the song “Take the Time Out” by her idol and musical genius Stevie Wonder, and driven by her belief in what’s possible, Deborah founded an organization that empowers women to break the cycle of poverty and hopelessness through education, job training, and crisis support. Before she began her philanthropic work, she built a successful career in fashion first as a model, then as a stylist. In tandem with her charitable work, she owns and runs Noir et Blanc, her French-themed women’s boutique in Manhattan’s NoMad/Flatiron district, since 1989. A graduate of NYU, Deborah speaks French, German, and Italian. She is a proud wife and mother of two boys who are her pride and joy. Her life’s work is centered on reimagining futures and creating lasting change—something she has been doing, one family at a time, for more than 31 years.
Tiffany Turner
Soles4Souls, Vice President of Outreach
Tiffany Turner has been a dedicated leader with Soles4Souls since 2011, driven by a passion to ensure shoes find their way onto the feet of those who need them most. As Vice President of Outreach, she leads the organization’s 4Relief and 4EveryKid programs, building meaningful partnerships and advancing global impact with compassion, strategy, and purpose. Now in its fifth year, 4EveryKid has distributed more than 530,000 pairs of new shoes through a network of 500 community partners serving children across all 50 U.S. states and Canada — helping remove barriers to school attendance, confidence, and opportunity. A lifelong advocate for service, Tiffany travels extensively to create impactful events that connect communities and bring the Soles4Souls mission to life in tangible ways. Her journey with the organization began in 2008 after headlining a benefit concert in Nashville and volunteering at a local shoe distribution — an experience that sparked a lasting commitment to the cause. Originally from Paxville, South Carolina, Tiffany holds a Bachelor of Arts in Christian Studies from North Greenville University. She and her husband, Lee, live in Nashville with their beloved fur babies. In their spare time, they enjoy making music together.
Carmen Reyes
WISDOM, Founder
“As a licensed social worker, I have spent over two decades working with children, youth, women, and families in various capacities from parent coordinator to mental health provider, community organizer and founder of a non-profit – WISDOM Develops – that supports mothers in reconnecting with themselves. I have expanded my work to include community and staff members. A common theme emerges throughout my work: those caring for children are also managing their own lives, but who is caring for them? This is where I come in. I work to support individuals in reconnecting with themselves while thriving in their roles and responsibilities. My most fulfilling role has been as a care giver to my three children and to my twin sister’s daughters who I took guardianship of after her passing. I believe caregiving, in any capacity, is a selfless act, and it does not mean that we have to forget ourselves. All my work is aimed at putting YOU back into the equation of your own life.”
We look forward to seeing you there! Reserve your ticket here.
As we grow, we’re looking for passionate and committed volunteers to join our team. This is your chance to use your skills, energy, and ideas to help us expand our impact.
We’re currently seeking support in the following areas:
Administration & Operations – keeping us organized and running smoothly
Fundraising – helping us raise critical funds to sustain our work
Partnerships – connecting us with businesses, nonprofits, and community allies
Communications – spreading the word through social media, newsletters, and storytelling
Events – planning and supporting our signature pop-up shop experiences
Budget & Finance – ensuring we steward our resources responsibly
Community Engagement & Education – building relationships with those we serve and our supporters
Whether you have a few hours a week or want to dive deeper into Board and leadership opportunities, we’d love to have you on our team. Together, we can continue to create spaces of dignity, compassion, and care for those in need. Also, if you know someone who would be interested in this opportunity, please do not hesitate to share.
Thank you for being part of this journey with us. Your time, talent, and heart can make a real difference.
With love,
Kadia + Kydee
Join our mission
We’re excited to grow our team! Applications are now open for several volunteer roles, and we’d love for you to join us. To apply, you can fill-out an application here.
Donate
Funding makes all of this work possible and every contribution makes a difference. The Pop-Up Care Shop is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and all donations are tax-deductible. Donate to our organizationhere.
We’re just a few days away from our Spring Toiletry Drive on Saturday, May 10! We’re proud to partner with the Center for Supportive Schools (CSS), a nonprofit committed to providing educational resources and empowerment tools to students, schools, and communities in need.
Here’s how you can support:
Shop our Amazon Wishlist: All items will be shipped directly to CSS’s Bronx location for easy distribution. Click here to access our Amazon Wishlist.
Drop Off Donations: Prefer to donate in person? We’re happy to coordinate a drop-off with you! Just remember, all items must be new, unused, and sealed.
We hope you’re enjoying a beautiful spring so far! We’re popping in to share some heartwarming news and invite you to be part of something meaningful.
We’ve partnered with the Center for Supportive Schools (CSS) for a toiletry drive to support families in need. CSS is a nonprofit dedicated to providing educational resources and empowerment tools to students, schools, and local communities.
On Saturday, May 10th, we’ll be participating in CSS’s Community School Forum, where we’ll be distributing free toiletries to local families. We’re currently collecting essentials like soap, detergent, baby wipes, lotion, cleaning products, and more.
You can support our drive by purchasing items from our Amazon Wishlist—all donations will be delivered directly to CSS’s Bronx location. If you prefer to drop off items, we’re happy to coordinate! Just make sure everything is new, unused, and sealed. If you’d like to arrange a drop-off and/or you’d like a tax receipt following your donation, email us at thepopupcareshop@gmail.com.
Thank you for helping us spread care and kindness.
With love,
Kadia + Kydee
Join our mission
We’re excited to grow our team! Applications are now open for several volunteer roles, and we’d love for you to join us. To apply, you can fill-out an application here.
Donate
Funding makes all of this work possible and every contribution makes a difference. The Pop-Up Care Shop is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and all donations are tax-deductible. Donate to our organization here.
On Saturday, June 1st we hosted our first Care Shop since 2019 at Covenant House New York. The energy was high and the feeling of giving back was exhilarating, our shop was open and thriving again; but the road to get here was far from easy.
The Pandemic’s Impact
The pandemic meant a lot of things for a lot of people. Some lost their lives or that of their families and friends. Parents became teachers overnight while students and actual teachers transitioned to virtual education. America was finally forced to reckon with its past and present when it comes to race relations, especially as it pertains to Black lives. Still, there were some who appreciated the pause on fast-paced living, taking time to find reprieve in solitude. As for The Pop-Up Care Shop, we wanted to take action and set up shop once again, but were rejected by dozens of shelters who were taking extra precaution to avoid the spread of the COVID-19 virus to their clients.
While we understood and prioritized the safety of all individuals, remaining stagnant during this time was not an option for us. We knew the cultural zeitgeist this moment presented and wanted to be a part of the change, not complicit in the status quo. In 2020, we hosted a mask and toiletry drive, collecting over 10,000 masks and toiletries for CAMBA. In 2021 we hosted Operation Care Package, which allowed us to safely bring our supporters together for an evening of creating care packages for those in need. Over 150 Care Packages were delivered to New Destiny Housing in the Bronx. In 2022 after a slew of rejections from shelters who were just not ready for the services of The Pop-Up Care Shop, we focused our efforts on becoming an official 501c3 nonprofit organization, which we knew could open up more opportunities for us to drive deeper, long-term impact within our communities.
While the pandemic was extremely challenging for everyone globally, it taught us resilience and perseverance. When facing rejection, it would’ve been easy to just give up, but we decided to continue pushing through, utilizing our own sphere of influence to drive impact in a safe and cautious way.
Our First-Ever Summer Care Shop
In 2023, we decided we were ready to open up shop again and the first thing we noticed was how much change had occurred within the shelter system and in the world since 2019. This made finding partners to work with more challenging but we remained optimistic and eventually made a connection with the most amazing shelter for youth called Covenant House New York. Covenant House New York offers safe housing and holistic care to young people ages 16–21 experiencing homelessness and survivors of human trafficking.
While our initial plan was to host a holiday Care Shop in 2023, we pivoted to our first even Summer Care Shop on June 1, 2024. This Care Shop would be one of many firsts:
It was our first time hosting a Care Shop since 2019 due to the pandemic
It was our first time hosting a Care Shop for the summer season
It was our first all-gendered Care Shop
It was our first time hosting a Care Shop for the youth
Leading up to the Care Shop we found the most amazing partners including Female Fight Club, who hosted a clothing drive for us, and Black Girl Sunscreen, who donated sunscreen products for our event.
June 1st was a day that will live with us forever. The day was filled with palpable joy from the volunteers and the youth. The youth received a shopping bag upon entry and were able to shop as much as they could fit in their bags, including brand new sneakers and shoes. Think of it like their own shopping spree. Another awesome highlight this year includes our partnership with Soles4Souls, 4EveryKid program. They supplied us with an abundance of brand new socks and sneakers.
For us, as founders, it made our hearts swell with pride because after five years of many ups and downs we did it and to be honest the wait was well worth it. We learned so much, we became stronger, more organized and efficient and was able to execute a seamless experience for our partners, youth clients, and volunteers.
We share all of this with you because you’re family. You’ve been supporting us since day one and are a central part of our journey. From your donations, to your volunteering, to the times you engage with our social media posts and newsletters, we appreciate it all and we couldn’t have gotten this far without you.
Thank you!
Join our volunteer team
We are always looking to grow our volunteer network. Whether you’d like to sign up for an upcoming event or be a part of our core team (helping with planning Care Shops, fundraising, etc.), we welcome you! Email us at thepopupcareshop@gmail.com for inquiries.
Donate
Funding makes all of this work possible and every contribution makes a difference. The Pop-Up Care Shop is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and all donations are tax-deductible. Donate to our organization here.
Thank you for your support as we kicked off our clothing drive week. Last week, we hosted not one but two clothing drives to extend our reach across New York City and ensure our supporters had centralized locations to make donations. In partnership with Female Fight Club we were able to collect clothing donations for a week in the Bronx. The excitement we received from you was exhilarating. We also hosted a Manhattan based clothing drive which allowed us to collect donations and connect with long time supporters. We want to express gratitude for your donations and support as we gear up to serve the youth at the Covenant House New York on Saturday, June 1.
$10,000 Fundraising Goal!!!
This week we received encouraging words from a supporter that told us we are not just going to meet our fundraising goal this year but exceed it. Sometimes when you have a vision, and you set a goal to achieve it, it may seem impossible but the support of each and every one of you assures us that nothing is impossible!
We need your help spreading the word about our fundraiser to support our upcoming Care Shop and future events.
We have a current goal of $10,000 to help us with operational costs, transportation, storage, and other hefty expenses that make our work possible. Whether you give $10 or $100, we are grateful for any contribution! Donate here.
Because we are officially in our clothing drive era! 😎 We are hosting not one but TWO clothing drives this week in NYC. Read on below for what we are collecting and where you can drop off your threads.
As you may know, this year we are serving the youth at Covenant House NY, an organization that shelters and supports homeless young adults and survivors of human trafficking. Our recipients are young men, women, and nonbinary individuals between the ages of 16 and 21. We are seeking new or gently used spring and summer clothing to stock our Covenant House NY care shop on June 1st.
What you can donate:
Sneakers
Shoes (dress, sandals, etc.)
Jeans/Pants/Bottoms
Tops/Shirts/Blouses
Shorts /Skorts
Skirts/Dresses
Light Jackets and Cardigans (for spring or summer seasons)
Suits (business/professional wear)
Bags/Backpacks/Purses
Accessories (watches, earrings, bracelets, etc)
Socks
What we are NOT accepting
Underwear/Bras
Tattered, torn, broken, overly used items
Unclean or smelly items (this includes dirty sneakers)
Children or baby clothes
Winter clothes
Where you can donate
BRONX – MONDAY, MAY 13 – SUNDAY, MAY 19
This week from May 13 – 19, you can drop off your donations at Female Fight Club, an amazing nonprofit organization dedicated to fitness and women’s empowerment. See flyer below for full details. They are located at 5912 Riverdale Avenue, New York 10471. Please call the studio ahead to get their business hours.
MANHATTAN – SATURDAY, MAY 18 (2pm – 5pm)
We are hosting a one-day-only clothing drive event in New York, NY this coming Saturday, May 18th from 2pm – 5pm. You can find us at 134 W 29th St, New York, NY 10001, USA, Floor 2. See flyer below.
Hope to see you soon!
✨LAST MINUTE REMINDERS✨
FUNDRAISER
Please be sure to support our fundraiser to help us put on our Care Shop event on June 1st and keep us going for years to come. Donate here.
We are so excited to partner with Female Fight Club for an upcoming clothing drive! From May 13-19, Female Fight Club will be collecting clothing donations to help support our upcoming Care Shop for the youth of Covenant House New York.
We are accepting:
Tops/shirts/tees
Pants/jeans
Dresses/skirts
Shorts
Shoes/sneakers
Bags/purses/backpacks
Accessories
We will be serving youth of all genders, ages 16-21. As always, only new or gently used items will be accepted. Worn out, tattered, and poor conditioned items aren’t good enough for anyone, especially our Care Shop recipients. Please give thoughtfully :-).
DROP OFF LOCATION:
5912 Riverdale Ave, Bronx, NY 10471
CLOTHING DONATIONS WILL BE COLLECTED FROM MAY 13 – 19 DURING FEMALE FIGHT CLUB’S BUSINESS HOURS. PLEASE SEE THEIR WEBSITE FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THEIR HOURS.
About Female Fight Club: The Female Fight Club, a non-profit fitness club exclusively for women located in the Riverdale section of the Bronx in NYC, is dedicated to not only transforming the lives of women but also improving the community.
About Covenant House New York: For over 50 years, Covenant House New York (CHNY) has been a leader in providing residential services to vulnerable homeless, runaway, and exploited youth. As the largest provider of runaway and homeless youth services in New York City, CHNY serves over 1,600 young adult ages 16-24 annually
Hope the spring season is treating you well. We have some great news: we are gearing up for our first-ever summertime Care Shop! It feels like it’s been ages since we’ve had a Care Shop event. On Saturday, June 1st we will be opening shop for the youth of Covenant House New York, an organization dedicated to protecting and supporting homeless youth and human trafficking survivors. We are honored to serve them. There’s so much to catch-up on, so read below for how you can be a part of the happenings.
Fundraising
We are currently holding a fundraiser to support our upcoming Care Shop, as well as building our foundation for future events. We have a current goal of $10,000 to help us with operational costs, transportation, storage, and other hefty expenses that make our work possible. Whether you give $10 or $100, we are grateful for any contribution!
We will be hosting a clothing drive event. Full details on location will be released soon, so please look out for our Instagram, website, and email updates! We are looking for clothing donations for all genders, specifically for the warmer months. Our recipients are between the ages of 16 – 21.
What you can donate: tops, pants, jeans, shoes, sneakers, skirts, shorts,dresses, accessories, bags, and light jackets.
As always, only new or gently used items will be accepted. Worn out, tattered, and poor conditioned items aren’t good enough for anyone, especially our Care Shop recipients. Please give thoughtfully :-).
Volunteer Call
We are looking for volunteers to help us on the day of the event. Volunteers make it all possible. You’ll help with setting up the shop, styling, finding sizes, and making our Care Shoppers feel special. It’s an amazing experience and one you definitely don’t want to miss.
Sign up here and email us for more information at ThePopUpCareShop@gmail.com.
The Pop-Up Care Shop 