April is the Month of the Military Child, and the Westchester County Veterans Service Agency is proud to be sponsoring the Westchester County Military Family Collection Drive.
The Drive is being spearheaded by the American Legion Auxiliary Eastchester Unit. This is a county-wide effort with the help of several American Legion and VFW posts, as well as other public and private partners including Eastchester Schools, Tuckahoe-Eastchester Lions Club, and more.
The Drive is collecting new and unused items to benefit the children of veterans and military service members from age newborn to teen across New York State. Items being collected include diapers, formula, and hygiene items, clothes, toys, gift cards, and handmade blankets. All donations will be distributed by the New York State Department of Veterans’ Services to military-connected families throughout the state.
There are multiple ways to donate:
- Items can be dropped off at the Eastchester Public Library and Eastchester Town Hall through April 25. There will be a final collection and open house at the American Legion Leroy Gregory Post, 40 Bell Road, Scarsdale, on April 27 from 1 - 3 p.m.
- Items can be dropped off at American Legion Post 347, Flint Park, Larchmont, on Fridays in April from 6 - 10 p.m.
- Items can be dropped off at American Legion Post 1195, 215 Farragut Avenue, Hastings-on-Hudson, on April 26 from 9 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
- Items can be purchased through the event’s Amazon wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1NZKG987YLNXF?ref_=wl_share
- In addition, Eastchester Middle School and Eastchester High School are also running collections for their students through April 25.
County Executive Ken Jenkins said, "Children with parents in the military may not wear a uniform, but in many ways they serve, just like their parents do. Certainly their sacrifice -- including time away from their parents and often uncertainty surrounding deployments -- is very real, and this is a very real way for Westchester residents to show our love and support to our military-connected families."
Veterans Service Agency Director Josh Gaccione said, "I want to thank Tiana Sloan, president of American Legion Auxiliary Unit 979, for launching this inaugural drive to support military children and their families in Westchester. It's not only a wonderful way for our communities to support military families and heighten community awareness of the sacrifice and service of our military families. I'm looking forward to working with Tiana and all the post and volunteers in making this an annual event."
Tiana Sloan, president of American Legion Auxiliary Unit 979, said: "Military children face unique challenges, from frequent moves to having parents deployed for long periods and missing milestone moments in their lives to adjusting to new schools and communities. It’s our turn to show them we see them, support them, and appreciate them, and to honor the resilience, strength, and sacrifices of children in military families."
To learn more about the collection drive, please contact the Eastchester Unit at or contact your local American Legion Auxiliary Post.