A 501(c)(3) Nonprofit

Our amazing team of administrators and volunteers are committed to helping others. We take our convictions and turn them into action!

Taylor E. James

Founder & Executive Director

Dennis S. James

President

Kimberly N. James

Secretary/Treasurer

Whitney James West

Director of Communications & 

Volunteer Coordinator

Mary R. Nicholsonne

Fundraising Coordinator

Darrius L. West

Hospitality Coordinator & Boys' Program Coordinator

Interested in volunteering with our organization? Get in touch for more information!

In 2013 at age 10, Taylor E. James, Founder and Executive Director of Heart of Charity, Inc., started this organization to encourage volunteerism and raise funds for her two favorite charities – Food on the 15th and Cool Kids Campaign.  Under her leadership, Heart of Charity has expanded its reach to support approximately twenty organizations; donate over 16,000 items; volunteer countless hours; and secure over twenty-five major sponsors for its annual fundraiser, the Miss Heart of Charity Pageant.

Food on the 15th, a program of the Coalition of Geriatric Services, operates on $0 overhead and delivers free groceries and toiletries to economically disadvantaged senior citizens in Jessup & Ellicott City, MD. In 4th grade, Taylor became involved with the organization through her school’s community outreach. She and her family assisted with collecting and sorting groceries as well as delivering them to the 

seniors monthly.

Taylor’s involvement with Cool Kids Campaign stemmed from her love of modeling. She was selected to participate in the 2012 American Girl Fashion Show, an annual fundraiser for Cool Kids, where she enjoyed modeling and helping to raise awareness for sick children. Devoted to improving the quality of life for pediatric oncology patients and their families, Cool Kids Campaign, headquartered in Towson, MD, focuses on the academic, social, and emotional needs brought on by a cancer diagnosis.

From writing encouraging notes to preparing holiday Blessing Bags, Taylor began volunteering with Generosity: Global in 2016. Generosity: Global, a nonprofit organization committed to using the power of generosity to positively impact people, provides access to clean drinking water to people in developing countries and helps people in the homeless community become self-sufficient. Taylor’s concern for the homeless coupled with her desire to feed the hungry prompted her to add Generosity Global to her “charities of choice” in 2018.

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 With a passion for community service and environmental awareness, and the desire to empower young people, Taylor is the recipient of six Gold-Level President’s Volunteer Service Awards, two Governor's Volunteer Service Certificates, and the creator, choreographer, and director of the organization's annual fundraiser, the Miss Heart of Charity Pageant.

 Volunteering

Heart of Charity has volunteered countless hours with numerous organizations, including:

• Baltimore Book Festival
• Best Buddies
• Chesapeake Cats & Dogs
• Food on the 5th
• Generosity: Global
• Happy Helpers for the Homeless
• Howard County Food Bank
• National Kidney Foundation
• Ronald McDonald House
• Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure
• United Way of Central MD
• Zero Prostate Cancer Run/Walk

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Donating

Since its inception, Heart of Charity is proud to report that it has collected 

and distributed the following:

• 10,186 non-perishables/toiletries to Food on the 15th and Generosity Global
• 2,769 items to Goodwill
• 945 cards to Operation Welcome Home, MD
• 437 Wish List items to Cool Kids Campaign
• 389 items to American Red Cross
• 367 items to Vietnam Veterans of America
• 291 items to Lupus Foundation
• 225 items to Purple Heart
• 159 items to Grassroots Crisis Intervention Center
• 151 items to Global Aid Network
• 100 Blessing Bags to Generosity Global
• 76 Beanie Babies to Operation Gratitude
• 50 items to Salvation Army
• 12 lbs of candy to Operation Gratitude