Utilizing Logistics to Support our Community with Kids Above All

We recently began working with Kids Above All, a non-profit whose mission is to build better lives for children and families impacted by poverty, violence, and injustice. Kids Above All was founded in 1894 as an orphanage and has grown to currently serve 4,079 people through early childhood education, safe and supportive housing, and trauma-informed counseling.

This partnership started when Kids Above All CEO, Dan Kotowski, spoke to me about the immense amount of his staff’s time being consumed by the transportation of goods instead of focusing mainly on programming.

“Our method of transporting items was inefficient, challenging and very expensive”, according to Dan Kotowski. “We weren’t immediately addressing the needs of our kids and families because items were not being delivered regularly and promptly. When a family struggles with poverty or mental health issues, getting these items out right away and in their homes makes the difference between fighting to live another day and providing their kids with what they need. MedSpeed was already in the space of delivering life-saving items, so we saw great alignment right away.”

While this may seem like an unusual fit for a healthcare logistics company, our mission is to deliver health to patients, providers and their communities. Healthcare is much more than just medical care. Safe housing, counseling, relationship building, and everyday survival essentials, all contribute to the health of people in our community, and Kids Above All is focused on providing these essentials. We understand the vitality of deliveries and our specialty at MedSpeed is enablement. We invest in the right people, technology, and data to provide seamless transportation to enable care delivery.

With this clear alignment, we decided it was the perfect fit to donate our driving, management, and routing design services to handle everything Kids Above All needs moved, including diapers, toiletries, toys, school supplies, and more. Seven of our LSRs or logistics service representatives, (our term for our drivers), drive 180 miles bimonthly to pick up from the Kids Above All warehouse, store everything overnight, and the next day deliver to each of the Kids Above All locations. Recently, we just specially moved 1400 backpacks of supplies for their school drive.

“This partnership with MedSpeed is fantastic because it increases our impact and saves Kids Above All a tremendous amount of time and resources. With MedSpeed, we don’t have to worry. A driver comes in, picks up essential supplies, and then drops it off at one of our sites. They’re on the front line with us. The sooner we can get these items to the children and families we impact, the more people we can help to have the type of life they deserve,” Dan Kotowski notes.

We believe contributing to the well-being of the kids of our communities is not only a duty but also a privilege. We are inspired by the mission behind Kids Above All and look forward to continuing to support their tremendous efforts.