Soft-toy “adoption” company gives old stuffed

animals a second life

By The Washington Post, adapted by Newsela staff on 03.31.24
Word Count 770
Level 790L

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.

A few of the renovated plush animals that have found new homes through Loved Before. Photo: Loved Before/The Washington Post Photo:
Loved Before/The Washington Post

In 2016, Charlotte Liebling was volunteering at a thrift shop in London, England. Thrift shops sell
secondhand items. Often, they donate the money they make to people in need.

Liebling noticed that many people dropped off stuffed animals, or stuffies. Some call them
plushies, too. People brought teddy bears, rabbits and other plush animals in good condition.
Some were sold, but most of the well-loved soft toys were thrown away.

Liebling loves plushies. Her favorite was a stuffed dog named Soppy that she had relied on for
comfort since she was 8 years old.

"I knew they had sentimental and emotional value," she said. "I was sad to learn most of them
ended up at the landfill." She said she couldn't imagine throwing hers away. She also couldn't stop
thinking about all of the plushies that were filling up landfills.

Stuffies Get Cleaned Up And Resold

In 2019, she put her ideas into motion with Loved Before. The
company is a "soft-toy adoption agency." It cleans up donated
plushies and resells them online. The toys cost an average of
$10 to $15, plus shipping. The renovated stuffed animals are
also available to buy at three department stores in England.

In the past five years, Leibling has collected more than 60,000
plushies. She has cleaned them up and sent them to new homes.

She has donated 50 percent of her profits to charity, she said.

Thrift shops in London donate stuffed animals to the company.

Thousands of people drop them off at Loved Before's offices or
mail them in.
Image 1. Charlotte Liebling poses with one
About 95 percent of the plushies she receives are usable, of her stuffed animals when she was a
Liebling said. If they are not, she'll recycle them. young girl. Photo: Courtesy of Charlotte

Adventures With New Friends Liebling/Loved Before

Lauren Sergi donated her

collection of stuffed toys to
Liebling's project.

"I didn't donate them

because I didn't love them
anymore … I loved them very
much and wanted them to go
on adventures with new
friends," she said. "They
deserved better than staying
in boxes for decades."

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.

Donors are asked to send a
brief bio or story about the
life of their stuffed animals.
Liebling's company uses the
bio when creating online
stories for the toys.

If a stuffed animal comes in

without a bio, Liebling will
give it to a "foster carer" for a
few weeks. That person will
then do a write-up.

"Or we'll pass them over to a

school classroom," Liebling
said. "The children will take
them on adventures and
write the stories."
Steam Cleaning And Repairs
Image 2. People can order the stuffed toys
online. They arrive in boxes that can be
used again. Photo: Loved Before/The
Washington Post

Before the plush animals are posted for the public, they go
through a high-temperature steam cleaning. "Some of them will
then get extra grooming, stuffing and repairs," she added.

Between 50 to 100 plush

animals are worked on every
day by Liebling. She also has
three staffers and three
volunteers. Each stuffie takes
between one and five hours
to refurbish.

"Our stuffed animals help

teach children the
importance of giving
something secondhand a
second chance," said
Liebling.
Image 4. A donated monkey waits for a bath Image 3. This batch of stuffed animals was
at Loved Before. Photo: Loved Before/The dropped off at Loved Before. Photo: Loved
Washington Post Before/The Washington Post

Loved Before toys have been

purchased by people all over the world. This includes the
United States.

"We know this is a real need in the U.S.," said Liebling.

A Second Chance To Be Loved

Emily Dreimann purchased a stuffed pig from Loved Before. It

was a present for a friend's young daughter.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.

"He's a pirate pig named Captain Porkchop," said Dreimann.
She says she fell in love with the whole concept of Loved Before.

After ordering the bright pink plush, Dreimann said she went
through her parents' attic. She gathered up about 20 soft toys to
donate to Liebling. They included "Pink Ted," a teddy bear that
attended all of her childhood tea parties.

Liebling has big hopes for each Loved Before toy. She wants
them to be looked after and passed down for decades instead of
ending up in a dumpster.

She said she believes that her second-chance toys are very Image 5. A bear after its cleanup. He's ready
valuable. It's because of the love and adventure they've already for new adventures. Photo: Loved
experienced. Before/The Washington Post

"I love that we can give them a second chance to be loved," she
said.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.

Quiz

1 Read the paragraph from the article.

After ordering the bright pink plush, Dreimann said she went through her parents’ attic. She
gathered up about 20 soft toys to donate to Liebling. They included “Pink Ted,” a teddy bear that
attended all of her childhood tea parties.

Which statement summarizes the paragraph?

(A) Dreimann ordered 20 stuffies from Liebling and donated “Pink Ted” to her.

(B) Dreimann got 20 stuffies from her parents’ attic, including “Pink Ted,” to give to Liebling.

(C) Dreimann looked for more toys to donate to Liebling but could not part with her beloved “Pink Ted.”

(D) Dreimann loved having her childhood teddy bear “Pink Ted” attend make-believe tea parties with her.

2 Read the section “Steam Cleaning And Repairs.” Which sentence from the section supports the conclusion that children can
learn valuable lessons from Loved Before?

(A) Before the plush animals are posted for the public, they go through a high-temperature steam cleaning.

(B) Between 50 to 100 plush animals are worked on every day by Liebling.

(C) “Our stuffed animals help teach children the importance of giving something secondhand a second
chance,” said Liebling.

(D) Loved Before toys have been purchased by people all over the world.

3 Read the section “Adventures With New Friends.” Which sentence from the section shows why Loved Before gives some stuffed
animals to school classrooms?

(A) Donors are asked to send a brief bio or story about the life of their stuffed animals.

(B) Liebling’s company uses the bio when creating online stories for the toys.

(C) If a stuffed animal comes in without a bio, Liebling will give it to a “foster carer” for a few weeks.

(D) “The children will take them on adventures and write the stories.”

4 Which sentence from the article supports the main idea of the article?

(A) In 2016, Charlotte Liebling was volunteering at a thrift shop in London, England.

(B) Often, they donate the money they make to people in need.

(C) Some were sold, but most of the well-loved soft toys were thrown away.

(D) In the past five years, Leibling has collected more than 60,000 plushies.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.