Loved Twice: Mother Gives 20,000 Lbs Of Clothes To Underprivileged Newborns (VIDEO)

Once a month, Lisa Klein and her two little children neatly pack baby booties, bibs and books in boutique style boxes labeled "Baby Boy" and "Baby Girl". Her 6-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son understand the boxes aren't for them. For the past two years, Lisa has packed more than 20,000 pounds of kids clothes for underprivileged newborns living in and around Oakland, California -- Kids that would otherwise leave the hospital without the baby basics. There's enough clothes in the 10 pound boxes for the baby's first year, gently used onesies, socks, a book, plus every box has 'something extra' such as diapers or a baby Bjorn.

"It's all about the babies," says the Oakland mother of two, "It's to keep them warm, clean and cozy no matter what's going on in their mothers' lives." The boxes are delivered to 11 county hospitals, shelters and prenatal clinics in and around Lisa's Oakland neighborhood. Lisa says she heard a story from a nurse that still can bring her to tears, "This 15-year-old girl was getting ready to leave the hospital and she asked the nurse if she could bring home the blanket, she didn't have anything to keep her baby warm." The nurse said, "I can do better than that." She gave the new mother a box, and the young girl wept.

Lisa's non-profit LovedTwice.org was born out of one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history, Hurricane Katrina. Stories about tens of thousands of people losing everything, from their storm swept homes to losing loved ones from mother nature's powerful blow moved Lisa to action.

"We saw that people lost everything and were camping out in front of a church. My daughter and I wanted to help. We didn't know how. We went on the internet and on Craigslist. What struck me, was that they needed baby clothes. I had so much baby clothes that my kids have outgrown, sitting in storage." She started what was supposed to be a one-time clothing drive. "I asked my family, friends and people in my community to drop off baby items on my porch so I can send a couple of small boxes to Katrina victims. I didn't expect them to tell friends of friends and for so many people to post the call to action on Craigslist." She says with big doe eyes and wide smile. "It felt great! Then one thing led to another and donations kept coming in." Hundreds of pounds of baby clothes would pile up on my porch.

She pauses. "I had baby clothes." That's when Lisa put two and two together and came up with LovedTwice.org. She started in her attic, pulling out dusty boxes and bags full of baby items. Unplanned and unanticipated, the one-shot clothing drive turned into an amazing non-profit.

More than two thousand boxes later, the busy mother of two says sometimes it's hard to keep her head above the mounds of baby items. "Last month, I had to take a step back," she says. "I came back from an extended vacation and there was 800 pounds of clothes waiting for me. I was like, I can't do this anymore. I've never thought that before... and within an hour of thinking that, I received a call from you, THANK YOU! " She says with a smile." That kept me going... thousands of kids will continue getting the baby boxes."
Her eyes lit up as she explained, "Within an hour, a woman from a local company called me and said she and said her coworkers wanted to volunteer and help pack."

Just at the moment she thought she was going to be overwhelmed, people reached out and LovedTwice got a second wind, and this time a good one. When I heard how my phone call - just that phone call - had come at just the right time, a chill tingled through my body and goosebumps made the hair on my arms stand straight up. I told Lisa, lately, I've been feeling overwhelmed too, orchestrating my non-profit, www.GoInspireGo.com, which makes these videos possible. I teach full time at the Academy of Art in San Francisco and I teach one class at my alma mater, the University of San Francisco. I also produce online videos for San Francisco stores and companies and I'm writing a children's book... And of course, I blog for the HuffPo. Recently I've felt like I really need a break -- I began to wonder: how long I could continue my irratic schedule of staying up till 3am and waking up at 5am to get all my work done. I began feeling like a college student who stays up late and gets up early to cram for a test. This test, however, was a real test in life. A test of balancing life, work and play. Balance. Juggle. Balance. I was spending more time with my MacBook than with my family and friends. I'm still learning.

I realized that sharing Lisa's story and the inspirational stories and story ideas that my viewers are sending in continue to inspire me and my amazing team of GIG'sters to continue building upon our global platform to for people to see and share inspirational stories. It's also humbling to see folks reaching out to help the featured people in the stories. In all of the 31 years of my life, I've never felt such joy, pure joy through this project. I've made life-long friends and learned so much about the spirit of service and how the real gifts in life aren't always tangible and counted in dollars and monetized.

It's amazing how timing and the world works. I inspired Lisa and she inadvertently uplifted my spirits in return and now, the underprivileged kids will continue receiving help through LovedTwice.org and I too have caught my second wind to keep doing what I'm doing. What you give to the world, you get back 10-fold. When you see it happen and you see it keep happening, well, there it is. So what I ask you, is -- What have you done to improve someone else's life? If the answer is "I don't know," then get crackin'! I wish I could bottle up all the life lessons and joy created from www.GoInspireGo.com -- When I was laid off from my TV reporting job last December, I frantically started looking for jobs in industries that I wasn't even interested in. After lots of meditation and countless conversations, I decided to stop looking for a job and wanted to dedicate this year to service. That was what that little voice inside me was telling me. I'm glad I listened. One conversation led to another, which led to a YouTube site, which led to a blog, which turned into the website itself: www.GoInspireGo.com Some people thought I was crazy, many blank stares ensued. I always dreamed of being a TV reporter in a major market. Check. Then I wanted to report for PBS. Check. After ten years reporting the local news and for some magazine shows, I still felt empty. But after creating Go Inspire Go and seeing how many people we've inspired, I feel like I'm just where my life's path is supposted to be, in service and volunteerism. I invite you to check out my inspirational website that uses social media to create social change. And as Gandhi said, "Be the change you want to see in the world." I'm not telling you to give to the world. But if you dare to, it just might give you back more than you could have ever dreamed. At least that's what I've learned through my experiences!

CALL TO ACTION--GO INSPIRE GO NEEDS YOUR HELP:

In the spirit of inspiration and children around the world,
Go Inspire Go is collecting inspiring and compassionate kids stories. Please e-mail them to us below!

***
Please comment here on the blog and you can find out more about Toan Lam at http://www.goinspirego.com. Click on the YouTube link and check out the stories his team created, and videos created by viewers.
Contact Toan at: [e-mail]

Follow Toan Lam on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Go Inspire Go

Comments

[flowerislaughing]

Toan - great story! Upwards and forwards. It's amazing how one encounter can change a life or even thousands. Our happiness is not one-sided. Our own happiness is interdependent on the happiness of others around us. Who has remained happy by never making others happy? It doesn't work. This woman has heart. True heart. What an angel. Generosity is a great fuel for our own happiness and those of others. This woman's quality is one that I hope to develop or enhance too. And I hope examples of such stories....and the collection of kids stories will get more people to be involved starting at a young age.

Thanks!

[AshleyL]

This story is absolutely amazing. The concept is so simple, yet it took just one mom with extra clothes to start this movement. I commend her.
As I was helping Toan edit this piece, I put out a Facebook comment asking if anyone had baby stuff for this awesome organization... a couple of days later, I had a truck load of things from an old co-worker & drove them up to San Ramon to one of the Loved Twice donation centers....it felt great to know I was helping new babies stay warm & have books & toys for their first year. I'm glad we are sharing the love & that we helped Loved Twice stay alive. Go Inspire Go! www.goinspirego.com

[SwissGIGfan]

What a great story! Everyone who has had a baby knows how tough things can be in the early days, so support from other parents through this organization would make such a difference. Thanks for spreading the word-- I am going to forward this to my friends to see how we might be able to help.

[bowthai]

Keep up the good work, Toan! Every small act of service - whether it is giving away a box of baby clothes or writing about Ms. Klein's generosity - is just another step in the right direction. We need people who are doing the daily work of feeding the hungry or providing clothing for the poor, and we also need people to share those stories. The news might be filled with the misadventures of everyone from the youth all the way up to our elected leaders, but we can't underestimate the power of Ms. Klein, or yourself, Toan. Even if those of us who read about and watch this might not be moved to action today, we are at the very least moved by the compassion, and in time I really believe that this changes for the better the way we think and thus the way we act.

[Toan Lam - Huffpost Blogger]

Katake- Such a poignant point. That's why we need more volunteers.

I got a call from my good friend, Yasi today and she said her mother heard me talk about service over dinner the other day and said, "Toan said something that I am going to listen to." I was humbled because she's a wise, classy woman whom I have the utmost respect for. I recall saying, "When I was laid off, I dedicated at least a few hours to service/volunteering each day (which turned into my non-profit, www.GoInspireGo.com) - that's when an amazing shift happened in me and those around me. You see when you help others, the world, and people help you, not to mention, your circle of "service minded friends" and those in your network expand." Try it. It just might change your life. It changed mine... (And I've made some incredible life-long friends in the process.

In Service,

xx
Toan

[yemaya]

Toan I love your stories! Keep em coming. We need them to inspire us and give us
examples of how to change the world by changing ourselves, thank you!

[katake]

What an inspirational woman with a great project! And it doesn't hurt to be reminded that people who work for the benefit of others can get burnt out (not only those in non-profits, but teachers, coaches, nurses, caregivers, etc.). With that in mind, we can go out and lend a hand, and remind those who give so much that they are truly appreciated.

[ImaLibDem]

A True American Hero!

[ljklein]

Thank you for inspiring us all. Please know how many lives you effect in such a positive way by sharing these stories.

[Vicky Nguyen]

I love that her kids understand what they're doing at such a young age. What an inspiring mom. Greatly needed in these times when a lot of people are so selfish.
Go Inspire Go!

[Vicky Nguyen]

Awesome! Great mother and example to her family and others. Keep inspiring!

[ryanquintana]

This is amazing to see and inpires me to want to help out those less fortunate around my community. It is amazing how such little things can make such a big difference. The best part about the story is that she was about ready to give up and Go Inspire Go and Toan helped to fill her passion bucket and re-light her fire. Keep up the good work and never forget to help those around you. After all, it is always better to give than to receive.

www.goinspirego.com

[lyther21]

Thank you so very much for sharing this wonderful story. Good all over Lisa Klein, her children, and you, Toan. Very best wishes to all, and thanks.

[soylentgray]

One of the advantages of positive stories is that they make people brave, not afraid. Good work. But pace yourself. There are a lot of good stories out there that need telling.

[msxena]

what an amazing mother and philanthropist! it's so great to see and hear about people doing good. truly inspiring to hear about people like Lisa and Jorge! Toan your such a great storyteller!

[Yasirella]

Love this story! Shared it with my entire office... few hours later, a co-worker came to me and said : "I watched the video with my 8 year old daughter, and afterwards she looked at me and said 'Daddy, Can we help? This lady is right here in Oakland. We can help her!' "...

Toan, your stories are the gift that keeps giving! Thank you!