Meeting Marit Molin, Founder and Director of Hamptons Community Outreach
Ahead of International Women's Day on March 8, State of Escape's Creative Director and New York resident Brigitte MacGowan met with Marit Molin, the Founder and Director of Hamptons Community Outreach - an organisation changing the trajectories of marginalised neighbors on the east end of Long Island. As we contemplate accelerating action this IWD, read on to learn more about Marit and the Hamptons Community Outreach's truly inspiring mission to lift people out of poverty.
Meeting Marit Molin, Founder and Director of Hamptons Community Outreach
Ahead of International Women's Day on March 8, State of Escape's Creative Director and New York resident Brigitte MacGowan met with Marit Molin, the Founder and Director of Hamptons Community Outreach - an organisation changing the trajectories of marginalised neighbors on the east end of Long Island. As we contemplate accelerating action this IWD, read on to learn more about Marit and the Hamptons Community Outreach's truly inspiring mission to lift people out of poverty.
It was a humbling day. Minus 1ºC, with a ‘feels like’ wind chill temperature of minus 8º. Marit had already dealt with a ‘couple of emergencies’ and with 15 minutes spare she messaged ‘can you meet at the grocery store and I'll take you to a homeless encampment’. I was quick to respond with a ‘yes’.
The encampment was in the woods behind the store's carpark. We scrambled through the bramble, over fallen trees, intertwined vines, down a hill to find tarpaulins hung over trees where 3 people currently live. ‘This doesn’t happen in the Hamptons’ I thought to myself. For all those visits to the grocery store where I fill up my trolley to return to my heated home and prepare 3 square meals, little did I know 50 metres away there is an encampment where people live with nothing. These are the same people who with a smile mow our lawns and clean our pools, but unfortunately the work is seasonal and accommodation scarce.
Marit asked me to wait while she met one of the gentlemen to let them know we were here. She greeted him with a warm hug, and he kindly said we could film outside his ‘home’. It was an A frame cobbled together using tree branches and a tarp, weighed down on the sides by recent snow. I glanced inside to see a mattress, a chair and a few tins of food neatly lined up. Marit mentioned she had recently bought them a gas cooker, a small thing to us but one that has a big impact when you live in the woods in freezing temperatures.
I only had 10 minutes left with Marit so I hurriedly asked a couple of questions after which time she said, ‘I’m so sorry I have to leave, you can stay and take photos, I’m also happy to meet next week’. So that was it. A 15-minute meeting that left me standing there, humbled, introspective and incredibly appreciative for a woman like Marit Molin who is dedicating her life to helping others.
I quickly ran up to the store and returned to the site with a bag of groceries and a hot meal for the gentleman. He was very grateful, but for me the experience he and Marit had shared was invaluable. We can all make a difference to the lives of our neighbours, even if in a small way. We just need to start.
It was a humbling day. Minus 1ºC, with a ‘feels like’ wind chill temperature of minus 8º. Marit had already dealt with a ‘couple of emergencies’ and with 15 minutes spare she messaged ‘can you meet at the grocery store and I'll take you to a homeless encampment’. I was quick to respond with a ‘yes’.
The encampment was in the woods behind the store's carpark. We scrambled through the bramble, over fallen trees, intertwined vines, down a hill to find tarpaulins hung over trees where 3 people currently live. ‘This doesn’t happen in the Hamptons’ I thought to myself. For all those visits to the grocery store where I fill up my trolley to return to my heated home and prepare 3 square meals, little did I know 50 metres away there is an encampment where people live with nothing. These are the same people who with a smile mow our lawns and clean our pools, but unfortunately the work is seasonal and accommodation scarce.
Marit asked me to wait while she met one of the gentlemen to let them know we were here. She greeted him with a warm hug, and he kindly said we could film outside his ‘home’. It was an A frame cobbled together using tree branches and a tarp, weighed down on the sides by recent snow. I glanced inside to see a mattress, a chair and a few tins of food neatly lined up. Marit mentioned she had recently bought them a gas cooker, a small thing to us but one that has a big impact when you live in the woods in freezing temperatures.
I only had 10 minutes left with Marit so I hurriedly asked a couple of questions after which time she said, ‘I’m so sorry I have to leave, you can stay and take photos, I’m also happy to meet next week’. So that was it. A 15-minute meeting that left me standing there, humbled, introspective and incredibly appreciative for a woman like Marit Molin who is dedicating her life to helping others.
I quickly ran up to the store and returned to the site with a bag of groceries and a hot meal for the gentleman. He was very grateful, but for me the experience he and Marit had shared was invaluable. We can all make a difference to the lives of our neighbours, even if in a small way. We just need to start.
Brigitte: How do people start philanthropic careers? And what would you say to young women so they can start that process?
Marit: The women that I know that work in the philanthropic field, I see start by volunteering. You start in a very small way, you come once a week and you deliver sandwiches or you make sandwiches and deliver them to meet people, and then it grows and grows. So for me, it was that I found out about children spending their summers in the back of their parents' cars because they have nothing to do all summer.
And I started raising money for art supplies for children, and then I found out that they didn't have coats and their shoes were too small, and then I started raising money for clothing and shoes. And then I found out that they didn't have enough food at home and just started to deliver food. And then it just grew and grew and grew. So I think if you want to get involved, if you want to help people, you should start in a small way. Like, what is that one thing that you can do? What is that one way that you can raise money and maybe buy some things for people? Or is it something you can make? Or is there a service that you can provide?
Brigitte: I think that's really good advice. It’s important to teach our children from a young age that they can always give back. Even if it's in a small way, it all has a meaningful contribution to our community. And to somebody else's life. You’re never too young or too old to start that process.
Brigitte: How long ago did you start Hamptons Community Outreach?
Marit: Seven years ago, in 2018 as I mentioned before, when I found out that there were children who had nothing to do in the summer. So I started fundraising to start a camp.
And in summer 2018, the camp was done for the first year. And this summer, upcoming summer 25, will be our eighth year of hosting camp.
Brigitte: That's amazing. You’ve also diversified so much from when you started the camp.
I understand now you're providing housing and renovating homes. How many homes now have you completed to help our community?
Marit: We have renovated 65 homes. We have purchased three prefabricated homes. And then we built one home from scratch. We have 54 families on waiting list, and we're going to take care of them all. Yes, so we just committed to building four more houses.
Brigitte: Which is extraordinary.
Brigitte: How do people start philanthropic careers? And what would you say to young women so they can start that process?
Marit: The women that I know that work in the philanthropic field, I see start by volunteering. You start in a very small way, you come once a week and you deliver sandwiches or you make sandwiches and deliver them to meet people, and then it grows and grows. So for me, it was that I found out about children spending their summers in the back of their parents' cars because they have nothing to do all summer.
And I started raising money for art supplies for children, and then I found out that they didn't have coats and their shoes were too small, and then I started raising money for clothing and shoes. And then I found out that they didn't have enough food at home and just started to deliver food. And then it just grew and grew and grew. So I think if you want to get involved, if you want to help people, you should start in a small way. Like, what is that one thing that you can do? What is that one way that you can raise money and maybe buy some things for people? Or is it something you can make? Or is there a service that you can provide?
Brigitte: I think that's really good advice. It’s important to teach our children from a young age that they can always give back. Even if it's in a small way, it all has a meaningful contribution to our community. And to somebody else's life. You’re never too young or too old to start that process.
Brigitte: How long ago did you start Hamptons Community Outreach?
Marit: Seven years ago, in 2018 as I mentioned before, when I found out that there were children who had nothing to do in the summer. So I started fundraising to start a camp.
And in summer 2018, the camp was done for the first year. And this summer, upcoming summer 25, will be our eighth year of hosting camp.
Brigitte: That's amazing. You’ve also diversified so much from when you started the camp.
I understand now you're providing housing and renovating homes. How many homes now have you completed to help our community?
Marit: We have renovated 65 homes. We have purchased three prefabricated homes. And then we built one home from scratch. We have 54 families on waiting list, and we're going to take care of them all. Yes, so we just committed to building four more houses.
Brigitte: Which is extraordinary.
Brigitte: I know everything you’ve done is an achievement, but what would you say is probably the greatest achievement that you feel very proud of?
Marit: For me, it's the houses, the renovations, providing new housing. When you enter these families' homes and you see the collapsing ceiling, they live in a house full of black toxic mold and they don't have heat, the children are not allowed to take off their shoes because they get splinters from the flooring because they're down to the particle board. Changing that, changes their lives in a really fundamental way.
Brigitte: In terms of women and children in this community, how do you see them being directly affected by their environments and circumstances?
Marit: I mean, it's hard for them to find work. So that obviously, it turns into everything. It's hard for them to pay their rent and to provide food. And we hear of single moms when they're serving their kids breakfast, they really would like to have cereal too, but they have a tiny bit of cereal left and they give it on their children. Women are just so incredible and so resilient.
And every day, I meet women and think what they do for their children is just incredible. It's so good. Working with sick moms to be able to work and have a safe place and happy place for the children.
They make most of their money in the summer, so they have to work all summer. And so they leave their children with neighbours and family members and it's very hard. They feel guilty, I mean, all the time.
Brigitte: Thank you for your time today, I really appreciate it. We hope to be able to give back, to really help you with this amazing work that you are doing.
If you would like to learn more, please visit hamptonscommunityoutreach.org
f you would like to learn more, please visit hamptonscommunityoutreach.org
Brigitte: I know everything you’ve done is an achievement, but what would you say is probably the greatest achievement that you feel very proud of?
Marit: For me, it's the houses, the renovations, providing new housing. When you enter these families' homes and you see the collapsing ceiling, they live in a house full of black toxic mold and they don't have heat, the children are not allowed to take off their shoes because they get splinters from the flooring because they're down to the particle board. Changing that, changes their lives in a really fundamental way.
Brigitte: In terms of women and children in this community, how do you see them being directly affected by their environments and circumstances?
Marit: I mean, it's hard for them to find work. So that obviously, it turns into everything. It's hard for them to pay their rent and to provide food. And we hear of single moms when they're serving their kids breakfast, they really would like to have cereal too, but they have a tiny bit of cereal left and they give it on their children. Women are just so incredible and so resilient.
And every day, I meet women and think what they do for their children is just incredible. It's so good. Working with sick moms to be able to work and have a safe place and happy place for the children.
They make most of their money in the summer, so they have to work all summer. And so they leave their children with neighbours and family members and it's very hard. They feel guilty, I mean, all the time.
Brigitte: Thank you for your time today, I really appreciate it. We hope to be able to give back, to really help you with this amazing work that you are doing.