The Local newsletter is your free, daily guide to life in Colorado. For locals, by locals. Sign up today!
WeeCycle collects gently used baby gear for families in need.
Loathe to throw away functional baby gear after their kids outgrew it, Jayme Ritchie and Sunny Heydorn founded their own donation center in 2008 specifically for young families in need. WeeCycle began in Ritchie’s garage, where the two women stored donations from friends. The venture grew like a newborn, though, and the nonprofit relocated to an Aurora warehouse that is now overflowing with car seats, strollers, and more. Partner organizations such as Hope House Colorado pick up supplies requested by the families they serve; through them, WeeCycle reaches more than 16,000 Colorado children each year. To contribute baby gear and packs of new diapers, visit one of 16 donation sites in the state after your child’s next growth spurt. —Caitlin Foster
Energy Outreach Colorado ensures Centennial State residents can keep the heat on come winter.
Energy Outreach Colorado (EOC) has been helping Coloradans afford heating since 1989. In 2018 alone, EOC contributed $7 million to pay more than 16,000 utility bills and also funded a weatherization program that helps tenants and homeowners improve efficiency by providing upgrades such as new insulation and lighting. Feeling generous yourself? Utility customers can donate to EOC using a tear sheet on the bottom of their energy bills (or at energyoutreach.org). —Lily O’Neill
Peace, Love & Paws makes sure pets get the care they need.
Shortly after becoming a veterinarian, Carolyn Karrh volunteered at a Denver homeless shelter and saw firsthand the painful choices—buy food or pay for a vet visit?—pet owners there faced. So, in 2014, Karrh founded Peace, Love & Paws. Supported entirely by private donations, which can be made at peacelovepaws.org, the nonprofit provides vaccines, medications, and accessories like toys and leashes to about 80 pets each month at its free clinic at Denver’s St. Barnabas Episcopal Church. Karrh, also the medical director at Lakewood’s SpayToday, helps pet owners access spay and neuter services that they’d otherwise be unable to afford. Recovery time from the surgeries is short, so patients can get back to what they do best—giving unconditional love to their humans. —Jesse Klein