As a nationwide shortage of baby formula persists, Oyster Bay Town officials and community members are partnering to collect and distribute the desperately sought-after necessity.
The Town of Oyster Bay, along with volunteers from the Facebook group One Parent to Another, will host an infant formula donation drive on Sunday, June 12. At the event, they will also hand out the baby formula to those who need it.
“The goal here is really to help those families who can’t get to the stores, who can’t go from place to place trying to find what they need,” said Carmela Shimansky, who founded One Parent to Another. “We hope to reach as many people as possible so that they can provide for their families.”
Shimansky, a Massapequa resident, started the Facebook group at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic to help connect parents who had leftover childcare items to other parents in the community who needed them. Many local moms have donated different necessities over the past two years, and the focus has recently shifted to ensuring that moms of newborn children have baby formula during the shortage.
“We’re proud to partner with local moms to collect unopened baby formula and safely distribute it to local families who can’t find these important products on the shelves at local stores,” Oyster Bay Town Supervisor Joseph Saladino said. “While the nationwide shortage has been dreadful for families of newborns, we’re very fortunate to have goodhearted community volunteers who stepped up to make a positive difference in the community.”
Residents are encouraged to bring unexpired, unused formula for families who need it. Those in need can pick up the formula on a first come-first serve basis.
The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, June 12 at Fireman’s Field in Oyster Bay.
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