MetroWest Youth in Philanthropy program seeks Wellesley applicants

January 18, 2022 by admin Leave a Comment

The Foundation for MetroWest’s Youth in Philanthropy (YIP) program, which provides middle and high school students with educational and philanthropic opportunities, has a few more spots open for its YIP program.

YIP is a semester-long extracurricular program designed for students interested in learning more about nonprofit organizations and the needs that exist in their own community (no fees or tuition to participate). YIP students research local organizations and award $10,000 in grants.

Contact information here.

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Wellesley seeks nonprofits, runners for invitational Boston Marathon numbers

December 20, 2021 by admin Leave a Comment

From the Town of Wellesley:

Local nonprofits or runners who want to be considered for the Town of Wellesley 2022 Boston Marathon program must apply by Thursday, December 23, 2021. The marathon returns on April 18, 2022.

The Town of Wellesley has a limited number of invitational entries to distribute to nonprofits and the War Memorial Scholarship Fund. The fundraising minimum for these entries is $5,000, although individual charities may require runners to raise more than that amount.

To be considered for an invitational entry, nonprofit organizations should complete the Town of Wellesley 2022 Marathon Charity Application found on the Town website.

Individual runners seeking an invitational entry should complete the Town of Wellesley 2022 Marathon Individual Application, and indicate an interest in running and fundraising for the War Memorial Scholarship Fund.

Completed applications may be returned via email to Stephanie Hawkinson, or delivered to the secure drop box in front of Town Hall, or returned to the Select Board Office (3rd Floor, Town Hall).

Applications must be received by Thursday, Dec. 23 before noon to be eligible for consideration.

At its regular meeting on Jan. 3, 2022, the Select Board will determine which organizations and runners will receive invitational entries for the 2022 race.

Please email specific questions to Stephanie Hawkinson at [email protected]

More: Wellesley falls for October edition Boston Marathon

Salvation Army bell ringers are back in Wellesley

December 17, 2021 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

The familiar ringing of holiday bells to encourage Salvation Army donations has returned to Wellesley thanks to the Kiwanis Club and Whole Foods.

Salvation Army Red Kettle, Wellesley — Wellesley Public Information Officer Stephanie Hawkinson (left) and Town Executive Director Meghan Jop ring the bells for Salvation Army Red Kettle donations in front of Whole Foods.

The Kiwanis said in November that the Red Kettle campaign would be virtual again this year due to COVID-19 protocols, with countertop kettles available for donations at some retailers. But new plans have allowed for bell ringers to do their thing in front of Whole Foods until Christmas.

Juniper Restaurant in Wellesley coordinated with the Kiwanis to allow a pop-up bell ringing spot in front of its space this past weekend, too.

Look for familiar faces and local entertainment to be among the bell ringers.

Reach out to Dwin Schuler if you’d like to get on the bell ringing volunteer list. “Dwin has been doing an amazing job getting this arranged and staffed!” writes Beth Sullivan Woods, Wellesley Select Board member.

red kettle bell ringing — Wellesley Kiwanian Tommy Orser ringing at Juniper (Photo courtesy of Beth Sullivan Woods)

Wellesley Key Clubbers bell ringing — Wellesley Key Club’s Lillie and Abby ringing at Whole Foods (Photo courtesy of Beth Sullivan Woods)

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Wellesley community news: Gift wrapping help needed; Thanksgiving spirit; firefighter joins hazmat team; Waterstone residents, staff donate to food bank

December 6, 2021 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

Our roundup of the latest Wellesley community news:

Gift wrapping help needed

The Kids Backing Kids Holiday Gift Drive has been a success this season, with 3,000-plus gifts collected to give to children in local communities.

Now the charitable organization needs help wrapping those gifts. Please sign up for 1-hour slot on Saturday, Dec. 11 or Sunday, Dec. 12 between 10am-5pm at the Wellesley Housing Authority’s Community Room on Barton Road

Thanksgiving spirit

Morgan Stanley’s Wellesley branch built Thanksgiving meal kits with Middlesex Human Service Agency for the Foundation for MetroWest’s ONEmetrowest day on Oct. 29.

The kits went to families in Middlesex Human Services’ shelters.

The agency also runs an annual Holiday Giving Program to provide children in its shelters a toy or a gift card for the holidays.

morgan stanley thanksgiving — L-R: Bethea Tashjian, David Swartz, John Coughlin, Jason Devito, Joan Cordell, Kacie Lang (all from the Morgan Stanley’s Wellesley Office)

Firefighter joins hazmat team

Wellesley Fire Department firefighter Andrew Beckford has has been selected to serve on the Massachusetts Hazardous Materials (Hazmat) District 2 Metro Fire Team.

Beckford earned his spot after completing a rigorous 12-week training course.

Not to mention, he knows how to create a soundbite: “[I] know it takes not only chemistry at the incidents but also chemistry among team members to do this work.”

The District 2 team is 1 of six in the state strategically located to respond to hazardous materials emergencies in less than an hour. The teams support local fire departments with expertise and specialized gear.

Beckford joins Wellesley fire firefighter Lt. Ian McMakin, who has served on the hazmat team since 2018.

Firefighter Andrew Beckford and Chief Rick DeLorie

Waterstone residents, staff donate to food bank in big numbers

A total of nearly 200 residents and staff at Waterstone at Wellesley, a senior living community, are joining forces to donate to the Wellesley Food Pantry this month.

According to Waterstone, the food drive is being conducted in honor of resident Nancy Lankford, who spent decades organizing and managing the Many Angels Needed Now and Always (MANNA) Monday Lunch program that fed many thousands of homeless people over the years at the Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Boston.

Please send tips, photos, ideas to [email protected]

Salvation Army Red Kettle going virtual again in Wellesley

November 27, 2021 by admin Leave a Comment

From Wellesley resident Dwin Schuler:

Again this year: Red Kettle to be heard but not seen!

The Wellesley Kiwanis Club has hosted the Salvation Army Red Kettle at Roche Bros. Market on Linden Street every December since 1994. However, like last year, due to COVID-19 restrictions, the familiar Red Kettle will not be at its usual location.

Kiwanis will continue this important tradition again VIRTUALLY in 2021 with considerable help from the more than 200 former bell ringers who are reaching out online to town residents to ask for donations in an effort to insure that Wellesley families and individuals in need will have the help they require throughout the coming months. We are grateful to local merchants who have agreed to once again host small Red Kettles at their counters. You can find these at the following stores including Anderson’s Jewelers, the Fells Market, Green’s Hardware, Tony The Tailor, and others who may be added soon. All contributions from the counter Red Kettles will be used to support the Wellesley Rent Fund.

red kettle at andersons — Red Kettle inside Anderson’s Jewelers in Wellesley Square

Launched by Past Kiwanis President, Ric Brown, Wellesley’s former Planning Director, the Wellesley Red Kettle has grown to be the Salvation Army’s #1 Virtual Kettle in Massachusetts. In the past 8 years Kettle receipts have been nearly $30,000 each year. For the last decade, we have been supported by town employees, Wellesley Municipal Light Plant employees, Wellesley High School Key Clubbers and citizens, young and old.

You can make your contribution online
Questions? [email protected]

Please send tips, photos, ideas to [email protected]

Wellesley community news: Friends of Library books donation day; Myth Busting Thanksgiving; Juniors’ Pop-up Marketplace; MassBay leads dignity initiative

November 16, 2021 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

Our round-up of the latest Wellesley MA community and charitable news:

Conversation and book signing event at Italo American Club

The Foundation Against Intolerance & Racism (FAIR), in partnership with the Wellesley Italo American Educational Club, will present a live conversation with FAIR advisor Steven Pinker on Fri., Nov. 19, 7pm-9pm at the Italo American Club located at 75 Pleasant St., Wellesley.

Steven Pinker is the Johnstone Family Professor in the Department of Psychology at Harvard University. He will be talking about his new book, Rationality: What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters and exploring progress, reason and scientific understanding in the 21st century.

A free, signed copy of Rationality will be given to the first 50 registrants. Please register here.

Books donation day

Wellesley Free Library, fall 2020 — Wellesley Library, Wakelin Room entrance side

The Friends of the Wellesley Free Library will hold a books donation day on Sat., Nov. 20, 10am-1pm at the recently reopened Wellesley Main Library. Please use the Wakelin Room side entrance to donate any quantity of items. (The Friends typically limits donations to one bag per day at the Friends Bookshop during Library hours.)

Accepted items

gently-used adult and children’s books books in good condition
cookbooks
textbooks 2016 or newer
antique and collectible books
CDs (music and audiobooks)
DVDs

Unaccepted items

damaged books that are mildewed, stained, yellowed or torn
textbooks published before 2016
travel books published before 2018
encyclopedias
outdated tech, business, current events, or medical books
cassettes
VHS tapes
records

EVENT: Friends Books Donation Day
DATE: Sat., Nov. 20
TIME: 10am – 1pm
LOCATION: Wellesley Main Library, 530 Washington St.
Please use Wakelin Room side entrance.

The Committee for Indigenous Peoples Day Wellesley, World of Wellesley, and other community partners will hold a virtual event: Myth Busting Thanksgiving, on Mon., Nov. 22, at 7pm. Kisha James of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head, Aquinnah, and Oglala Lakota will discuss popular Thanksgiving day narratives. The presentation will be followed by a live Q&A.

Registration is required.

EVENT: Myth Busting Thanksgiving
DATE: Monday, November 22
TIME: 7pm
LOCATION: Registration link

Junior Womens Club Marketplace to pop up

The Wellesley Hills Junior Women’s Club (WHJWC) will host a mini pop-up version of its traditional Marketplace event, December 10-12, in Linden Square (at the former Petco location). The holiday shopping showcase will include 55 vendors of crafts, gifts, specialty items, baked goods, and more.

Due to COVID, the club had to make the difficult decision to cancel their beloved large-scale Marketplace for the second year in a row. WHJWC president Lindsey Crowley said, “The decision was not made lightly, but it was the right one at the time. However, we heard from so many people how Marketplace was their favorite holiday shopping event, so we put our heads together to figure out how we could bridge the gap this year. POP will showcase some of our tried and true vendors while also mixing it up with some new artisans to give the Marketplace experience a vibrant and fresh twist.”

EVENT: Wellesley Hills Junior Womens Club Pop-Up Marketplace
ADMISSION: Free
DATES/TIMES: Fri, Dec. 10, noon-5pm; Sat., Dec. 11, 9am-4pm; Sun., Dec. 12, 9am-4pm.
LOCATION: 165 Linden St., Wellesley, MA

Holiday hack-a-thon at Code Ninjas

Code Ninjas in Linden Square will hold its annual holiday hack-a-thon for kids ages 5-14 on Sunday, Dec. 12, 1pm-4:30pm. While the kids are doing their game building, parents can go shopping or have a bite at a restaurant within the square.

The gaming competition runs in conjunction with a Toys For Tots collection. Bring new, unwrapped toys to Code Ninjas through Dec. 15, and help make the holidays happy kids in need.

MassBay leads dignity initiative

MassBay Community College is partnering with Framingham’s Dignity Matters to provide free period products to students in need. The inability to afford or access menstrual care products is a growing issue among homeless and disadvantaged women and girls, according to the organizations.

Dignity Matters is a non-profit organization that collects, purchases, and supplies menstrual care products, bras, and underwear to women and girls who are homeless or in need.

Free menstrual care products provided by Dignity Matters have been made available in the women’s restrooms on MassBay campuses in Wellesley Hills, Framingham, and Ashland.

This initiative is led by MassBay’s Student Nourishment And Care Committee, which is a group of staff, faculty, students, and community volunteers dedicated to eliminating basic need barriers that are obstacles to student success.

Wellesley Rotary Club launches “Dinner on Us” fundraiser

October 29, 2021 by admin Leave a Comment

Thanks to the Rotary Club of Wellesley for sponsoring The Swellesley Report’s Restaurants page.

The Club’s “Dinner on Us” fundraiser is aiming to raise $40,000 to help fight food insecurity. Food insecurity exists right here among those who live, work, and go to school in Wellesley. Rotary members want those in need to know that there are resources to help them and their families through these difficult times.

2,000 “Dinner on Us” tickets are available at $20 apiece—every entry bought helps end food insecurity in Wellesley. Get your ticket here.

The Rotary Club of Wellesley members have not withdrawn during this pandemic and continue to seek creative ways to raise money with or without gathering in-person.

Why buy a “Dinner on Us” ticket?

First, you will be supporting three Rotary projects to end food insecurity in Wellesley. The Village Table feeds community members, the Mass Bay CC project feeds students facing food insecurity, and every year Rotary serves meals to veterans at the New England Center for Veterans.

Second, there is a lot to win. Just think, if you win first or second prize, you could eat at a different Wellesley restaurant every week for more than half a year. If that seems extravagant, it’s because, well, it is.

Absurd Grand Prize – $3,000—Winner takes all $100 gift cards to 30 Wellesley restaurants

Ridiculous Second Prize – $1,500—Winner takes all the $50 gift cards to 30 Wellesley restaurants

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