OUR MISSION
Founded in just July of 2020, Millions Of Butterflies is a queer and youth led non profit organization based in New Paltz, New York. Millions Of Butterflies is fully dedicated to community support and mutual aid. Above all else we want to make our community members lives more pleasant by trying to relieve everyday worries and support passions that are usually found pushed to the side in the pursuit of stability.
Founded by someone who’s part Sicilian, Millions Of Butterflies was created with the ideals of what it truly means when you refer to “The Mob.” - a group of hardworking individuals who come together for their community to make sure that everyone’s needs are met.
Our History
In the beginning Millions Of Butterflies started from very humble means. Our first Charity Bake Sale started because our CEO Mariabella, baked a bunch of brownies to bring to a protest and ended up forgetting them all at home. Instead of letting their little brother eat all of them, they took the remaining brownies, bought some lemonade and sat outside on the Rock N’ Snow wall and sold their baked goods and donated all the proceeds.
It ended up being wildly successful and more bake sales were held, each one donating to different causes that were dedicated to supporting different communities ranging from local to international. As business grew, a new and more professional location was needed so our Vice President Jasper MacDonald connected with local business owner Maryann Tozzi of Kontiki Trading Post and was able to secure a spot right in the middle of Main St. Thanks to Jaspers quick thinking and Maryann’s kindness, Millions Of Butterflies was able to raise more money than ever. More funds meant that further avenues of community action could be explored.
After donating to an array of different causes we decided to be the change we wanted to see in our community by directly creating the change ourselves. So in the Fall/Winter of 2020 we put together one hundred Back 2 School Care Packages, each containing everyday needed school supplies and a little extra something to channel students energies in a constructive and creative way when not focused on school work. Since then Millions Of Butterflies has grown immensely due to hard work and community support.
In our second year of operation, Millions Of Butterflies started our largest project yet - The New Paltz Free Food Fridge.
But it doesn’t stop there. We expect to be making great strides as we continue on this wonderful journey. So far it has been nothing short of amazing and we thank every single person who has helped us get this far.
We truly would not be anything without our friends, family and wonderful Butterflies.
Thank you for sticking with us <3
A picture from one of our first bake sales ever back in the Summer of 2020 taken by Jasper MacDonald.
OUR TEAM
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Mariabella Rivera-Todaro
Founder and Board Chair
(they/them)
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This Could Be You
Millions Of Butterflies is always looking for more full time team members. As our organization grows we need our team to do the same.
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Jasper MacDonald
Co-Chair and Treasurer
(he/him)
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Daniel Blake
Co-Chair and Secretary
(he/him)
Our Current Projects
Charity Bake Sales
The event that started it all. Some weekends you can find Millions Of Butterflies outside of Kontiki on downtown Main St. of New Paltz, NY selling fresh baked goods and the occasional poem written for you on our typewriters.
These Charity Bake Sales are our main source of income. All of our proceeds go towards our current projects as well as other mutual aid causes ranging from local to international.
Back 2 School Care Packages
In the Winter of 2020 Millions Of Butterflies launched their first direct action initiative. We created 100 Back 2 School Care Packages aimed for families of children in elementary to high school in need of supplementary resources of school supplies or holiday gifts.
Each Care Package included 1 large sketchbook, 2 spiral bound notebooks, 1 composition book, a 5 pack of erasers, a ruler, a pack of colored pencils and paint brushes as well as a pair of gloves, some stickers, a comically large pen and a bag of cool rocks.
We were not able to complete this project in 2021 as we were focusing on our second direct action initiative but we are hoping to continue this project come 2022.
The New Paltz
Free
Food Fridge
In Spring of 2021 we started our second direct action initiative, the establishment of a Free Food Fridge in the heart of New Paltz.
In the following November we were able to break ground on the project and begin to build the structure that will soon house the fridge. Since Christmas 2021 the Fridge has been up and running. You can visit the structure yourself at 25 Plattekill Ave. New Paltz, NY.
The Chrysalis Kitchen
Formerly known as New Paltz Food Not Bombs, join the crew of Millions Of Butterflies every other Wednesday as we cook free meals to distribute amongst the folks in our community.
What’s Next?
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Over the Spring in to Summer of 2022 we are hoping to publish the first issue of our zine titled The Butterfly Times. Our goal is to promote local artists and artisans and share important information on local resources.
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Located at 25 Plattekill Avenue in downtown New Paltz right next to the Free Food Fridge, the Pollinator Garden houses multiple indigenous plants that support our local pollinators. Our plan is to extend it to surround the Free Food Fridge and bring it to multiple different locations around town in the coming Spring of 2022.
This is to create accessible resources to safe, edible plants and herbs for both our pollinators and our people. As well as expand the knowledge of these indigenous plants to our surrounding community by providing information of their growth and uses in pamphlets that will be located within the Free Food Fridge.