Describe what was lost
When family intake opens, an authorized adult can tell us about the specific item and the details that may help identify it.
A wildfire recovery service from Nexus IT Solutions
Some things are more than things.
Refound Friends helps wildfire-affected children and families replace the specific cherished items they lost. Not just any toy. Not just any book. The one they remember.
- Specific cherished items
- No donor-child contact
- Family identity stays off public requests
What this is
Not a generic toy drive.
After a disaster, replacing essentials comes first. But children and families can also lose the objects tied to bedtime, routines, hobbies, memories and a sense of home.
Refound Friends centres on those specific losses. A faded plush rabbit. A particular edition of a book. A discontinued doll. A half-remembered toy from years ago. The goal is to help identify it, find an appropriate replacement and get that replacement safely into the family's hands.
How it works
Community help, without putting families on display.
Refound Friends separates the public search for an item from the private information needed for a safe handoff.
Help identify or locate it
The community can help identify hard-to-find items, track down discontinued versions or offer an appropriate replacement.
Use a trusted handoff
Refound Friends keeps the handoff separate from donors, using an accountable fulfillment process that does not require direct donor-family or donor-child contact.
Complete the handoff safely
Pickup authorization stays separate from public and inventory identifiers, so an item can be released only through an approved collection process without putting family identity on boxes, labels or public requests.
Designed carefully from the beginning
Privacy and safeguarding are part of the product.
When public matching requests open, they will show only approved item-matching information, not family identity.
No child accounts
Children do not need accounts or direct contact with donors or helpers.
No family identity on inventory labels
Physical tracking uses non-identifying request, item and location codes.
Pickup authorization stays separate
Item numbers help locate an item. They are not permission to collect it.
Minimum information
Refound Friends is built around data minimization. When intake opens, it will collect only what is genuinely needed to operate the service safely.
Current status
Families can submit a private request now.
An adult can privately tell Refound Friends what cherished item they are trying to replace. We ask for one adult email address and item-focused details only.
Private first: submissions do not automatically become public Find a Friend cards, partner records, inventory or pickup authorizations.
For families
Small details can make the difference.
Details such as colour, year, brand, size, a missing tag, a phrase from the packaging, where it came from or a private reference photo can help identify the exact item.
For people who want to help
The useful skill might be recognition.
Someone may remember the toy line, know the collector market, recognize a discontinued model or find an obscure listing others may have missed.
When community matching opens, helping will not require direct contact with a child or family.
Frequently asked questions
What Refound Friends is, and what it is not.
Is this a regular donation or toy drive?
No. Refound Friends focuses on replacing specific cherished items people actually lost, especially items that are difficult to identify or replace.
Will donors contact children or families?
No. Refound Friends does not allow donor-child contact and is structured to avoid unnecessary donor-family contact. The fulfillment model keeps the handoff separate so direct donor-family contact is not required.
Is family request intake open?
Yes. An authorized adult can submit a private cherished-item request now. Public Find a Friend publication and physical fulfillment remain separate later steps.
Is a fulfillment partner already confirmed?
Not yet. The handoff workflow is structured so a trusted local fulfillment partner can participate without routine access to family identity.
What information does the family request form collect?
The private request form asks for one adult email address, an item-focused description and optional non-personal item clues. Families may also add private item-reference photos. It does not ask for a child name, home address, school, medical information or phone number.
Who runs Refound Friends?
Refound Friends is built and operated by Nexus IT Solutions in Summerland, British Columbia. Like other websites, server and security logs may still record technical request information for operation, troubleshooting, abuse prevention and security.
Refound Friends
Because sometimes finding one familiar thing matters.
Built in Summerland for wildfire recovery to make community help useful, accountable and safe.