Mary Ann's Story

Mary Ann’s Closet was created by foster parents, for foster parents, with one simple belief: no foster family should have to do this alone.

When I welcomed my first foster child into my home, she was five years old and arrived with clothing meant for a toddler. Later, when I welcomed my first infant, he was five months old and came with only 0–3 month clothing.

I remember looking at this sweet baby and realizing I didn’t even have a bottle in my house to feed him. I had no stroller, high chair, car seat, diapers, or any of the other things a baby needs. Like so many foster parents, I had said “yes” to a child who needed a safe and loving home—and then had to figure out everything else.

Within that first week, I spent hundreds of dollars purchasing the necessities to care for him. That experience stayed with me, and I kept thinking, there has to be a better way to support families who are willing to open their homes and hearts to children in need.

That idea eventually became Mary Ann’s Closet, named in honor of my mother.

My mother, Mary Ann, spent much of her life helping others. She worked as an AIDS educator at a time when the subject was rarely spoken about openly. She worked in the local consumer fraud bureau and spent many years teaching sociology to incarcerated men who were pursuing their education.

After retiring, she became an award-winning photographer and generously donated her photographs to organizations for fundraising events.

But one of the things I remember most fondly was her love of knitting.

Living in upstate New York, she would spend countless hours knitting little hats for children. When the cold weather arrived, she would fill a large bag with the hats she had made and bring them to St. Patrick’s Soup Kitchen so they could be given to families with young children.

There was no recognition or fanfare. She simply wanted to know that a child would be warm.

That was my mother.

She had a special place in her heart for making sure children were cared for, and although she passed away before she had the opportunity to meet any of the children who have come through my home, I know she would have loved them deeply. And I know she would have been the biggest supporter of what Mary Ann’s Closet has become.

Today, her kindness continues through every family we help.

Mary Ann’s Closet provides foster parents and relative caregivers with clothing, shoes, diapers, baby equipment, toys, and other necessities for the children in their care—at no cost to them. Our hope is that when a family receives that unexpected call asking, “Can you take this child?”, worrying about how they will afford everything the child needs will be one less reason to hesitate.

Every donated outfit, every package of diapers, every stroller, and every dollar given helps a foster family say “yes.”

And every “yes” means a child has someone willing to open their door, make room in their home, and offer comfort and stability when that child needs it most.

Not everyone can be a foster parent, but everyone can help a foster family.

By supporting Mary Ann’s Closet, you become part of that circle of care. Together, we can lighten the load for foster families, help more families feel supported enough to open their homes, and make sure children entering foster care know there is an entire community ready to welcome them.

One family helping another. One community caring for its children. And one woman’s legacy of kindness continuing with every child we serve.

Thank you, Tracie