BloomAgainBklyn Brightens People’s Day, Thanks to Homemade Card Project, by Erin DeGregorio

BloomAgainBklyn – a community-based, non-profit organization that repurposes unsold and once-used flowers into new arrangements – has been operating non-stop throughout the pandemic. Volunteers have upcycled fresh flowers destined for the solid waste stream, made them into new arrangements, and delivered them to frontline workers and vulnerable populations.

“Some of the nursing homes that we deliver to weekly or twice-weekly couldn’t even allow visitors in for the longest time, and that was absolutely heartbreaking,” said Sally Demo, a florist and director of strategic initiatives at BloomAgainBklyn.

“So, to be able to pivot our model just a little bit and do contactless, curbside drop-offs –just to maintain those relationships and get flowers to recipients – I think was such a really important way and reason to keep going.

“From a personal standpoint, it just was a really bright spot in a dark time,” Demo added.

But, as life seemingly gets back on track toward a new sense of normalcy, the organization wanted to get the community involved with a brand-new project called “Bloom Again” – in which local residents would come together to make silk flower-adorned cards that would be distributed to their vulnerable neighbors.

The idea came about when the Charles Lubin Company – the leading nationwide wholesale silk flower company for over 119 years – reached out to BloomAgainBklyn Founder and President Caroline Gates-Anderson, asking if she wanted and could use imported and manufactured silk flowers.

The Brooklyn group said “yes” and wound up receiving thousands of silk flowers – marking the first time they ever worked with non-live flowers.

“The idea was to get families involved with their children and introduce them to giving back at an early age,” Gates-Anderson said, “so that they can make a difference and impact in the community, plus enjoy doing it in a really fun activity.”

Each refurbished kit BloomAgainBklyn made contained a bouquet of 10 mixed stems of silk flowers with different types of blooms, shapes, and colors; 10 pieces of 5×7 cardstock; and a link to an instructional YouTube video from one of BloomAgainBklyn’s floral designers. But the most important component, according to Gates-Anderson, was including a picture of a recipient so that younger children could actually see who would get their homemade gifts.

Program manager AJ Jonakait noted that because BloomAgainBklyn relies solely on donations, sometimes there are no fresh flowers to distribute after major holidays – including Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day.

“This is perfect because people love silk flowers and they bring new life forever,” Jonakait said. “And I think people want to make their children more involved in the community and show them – especially in this climate where things are kind of topsy-turvy – that people want to help and be agents of change.”

“We thought creating cards and sending messages to people that need a little extra cheering up – especially right now – was a really nice way to involve the community,” added Rachel Jones Bella, a BloomAgainBklyn board member and volunteer. “Where we can get them outside, making a craft with their friends and starting a discussion about what it means to be a helpful member in our community.”

More than 95 kits were handed out during the week of May 17 at BloomAgainBklyn’s temporary home, Christ Church Cobble Hill. Once the hundreds of cards were returned to BloomAgainBklyn, volunteers, ranging in age from 21 to 85, geared up to distribute the cards to various Brooklyn-based organizations during the first week of June.

Recipients of the cards will include trauma survivors, food pantry recipients, homebound seniors, and nursing home residents. Gates-Anderson explained that some organizations would be given a heads-up of the gift drop-off, whereas others would be in for a surprise.

Christina Santos, director of recreation at Cobble Hill Health Center, has worked with BloomAgainBklyn, both before and during the pandemic. She explained that patients have especially looked forward to receiving greeting cards and flowers from BloomAgainBklyn over the past 15 months.

“They really wait for those floral arrangements and they just love to have it on their night tables,” Santos said. “It’s like sunshine in their lives.”

She continued, “On behalf of Cobble Hill Health Center and on behalf of the residents, I really want to say thank you to BloomAgain for bringing color, fun, and joy to the patients.”