Category Archives: donations

Shaw’s Stamps can Help Formerly Homeless Families Equip Their New Kitchens

Shaw’s Stamps? Say “Yes!”

free cuisinart, cuisinart, shaws, homeless, Next time you are in a Shaw’s Supermarket, instead of saying “No” when the cashier asks if you are collecting stamps for their flatware promotion, please say “Yes” instead.  Then put the stamps you do not want in an envelope and mail them to:

Judith Patt
c/o Promise Church
204 M Tall Oaks Drive
South Weymouth, MA 02190

“No need to bother pasting them in the little book either,” says Judith. “We will take care of that.”

Judith and others at Promise Church are collecting the stamps to give to Friends of the Homeless of the South. They will redeem these Shaw’s Stamps for flatware to give to families moving out of shelters and motels and into more permanent housing.

“We’d love your help in collecting as many stamps as we can before the January 5th deadline,” Patt says. “That gives us up to January 19th to redeem them for the families.”

Ask the Shoppers Ahead of You Too!

Shaws, Cuisinart, stamps, utensilsIf you are in line and the person in front of you says “No.” Think about taking advantage of that opportunity too, Judith suggests. “When you ask if they would mind giving you the stamps to help temporary shelter guests move into permanent homes, you will be surprised at how generous your fellow shoppers can be.”

For more on this easy, painless way to help FHSS clients, contact judithann5@comcast.net

How Do You Earn Shaw’s Stamps?

These Cuisinart Saver Stamps are earned for every $10 you spend at Shaw’s. Why not take advantage of this wonderful opportunity? And for other donation ideas, visit our website donations page.

Promise Church is a newly forming church of the United Church of Christ. They gather for worship and fellowship in homes around the Weymouth and Quincy area on Sunday evenings. Church members provide ongoing support to Friends of the Homeless of the South Shore to help build stronger parents, children and families; to secure education and employment opportunities; and to find safe and affordable permanent housing.

Norwell Recreation Department: Summer Fun and Great Memories

Norwell Recreation Logo--full address-02Norwell Recreation Department and Norwell Schools deserve a great big “Thank You!” The generosity of local community organizations, and the hard work of the staff at Friends of the Homeless of the South Shore made it all possible. Eight children living in temporary shelter or motel rooms went back to school this fall with plenty of stories to tell when their teachers asked, “What did you do this summer?”

The boys and girls, ages 5 through 12, were selected for the Norwell Recreation Department’s pilot initiative. This initiative offered 6-week scholarships to the town’s summer recreation programs for kids from kindergarten to 8th grade.

“Our day-long programs give kids the opportunity to get outside and get active, socialize with friends, and do a variety of things they wouldn’t do if they stayed at home,” explains Recreation Department Superintendent George Grey. (According to their brochure: No electronic games allowed.) “And from what we heard from the parents and the kids, they had a blast!” he says.

Who Gets These Ideas?

Grey and Michelle Henderson, social workers for the Norwell schools, came up with the idea in early June. The idea was to give under-served children in the town’s schools a chance to participate in the Rec Department’s summer activities. Tuition was covered by the Recreation Department’s Scholarship Fund. However, additional registration and transportation costs were needed to be taken care of before the program could get underway.

Go Team!

That is where ace coordinator Sharyn Burden from Friends of the Homeless of the South Shore stepped in. “Fortunately, we were able to secure generous donations from local residents and organizations such as: St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, Norwell Police, Masonic Angel Foundation, and Friends of Norwell Kids in Need to pay for program registration and driving the children to and from their activities each day,” says Burden. “We can’t thank them enough for giving the kids such a wonderful opportunity.”

Shout Out to Norwell Recreation and Norwell Schools

Norwell Recreation and Norwell Schools worked together to arrange for staff and a vehicle to transport the participants. Burden quickly coordinated the schedules to and from program sites.

KinderScene

Norwell Recreation, Norwell, FHSS

Two of the children attended the KinderScene sessions at the Town Hall for ages 4 to 1st grade where daily activities included games, crafts, songs, stories and outdoor fun.
Five of the children were in the KidScene camp at Vinal School where 2nd-5th grade children enjoyed field sports, soccer, Dr. Spy dodgeball, music, games, and crafts. This year’s KidScene 4th and 5th graders also went on field trips to Launch Trampoline in Norwood and Boston Bowl in Dorchester.

SummerScene

Norwell Recreation, FHSS

The middle school camper who attended the SummerScene program (for grades 6 to 8 – another Norwell Recreation program) had the opportunity to participate in the camp’s daily on-site activities and take day trips to Canobie Lake Park, Water Wizz, Boston Paintball, Lazer Gate, and Metro Rock.
Popular theme days for all campers this year were “Olympics Day,” “Messy Day,” the “Wacky Wednesday” inflatable obstacle course, and “Foam Day” where Norwell firemen joined the fun by using firetruck foam to create what Grey calls “the wildest slip-and-slide this side of Boston.”

Would they do it all again next summer? “YES!” said participants. “Absolutely,” says Grey. “The success of this pilot means we’ll be looking at sponsoring kids again in the summer of 2016.”

Tell Us Your Thoughts?

We are grateful to Norwell Recreation and Norwell Schools, among other organizations for their partnership with us. We would love to hear your thoughts and ideas about future school vacation events. shelter life is not just a seasonal event, it can be year round for some families. You may leave a reply or go to our  Facebook or Google+ pages.

What do you think of when you think of home?

Home cookingI imagine one of the things that comes to mind is “home cooking.”  Our neighbors who are experiencing homelessness also dream of home cooking.  When families leave the shelter for their own place, they need to supply all their furniture and household items.  In order to help these families get settled, the people of Promise Church collected Cuisinart pots and pans provided by Shaw’s Supermarkets.

Shaw’s offered one stamp for every $10 spent; we needed 100 – 120 stamps for the size cookware we wanted to collect, so we asked our friends for help.  People from UCC churches, churches of other denominations, local groups and individuals, all combined their stamps in the weeks before Christmas.  These stamps were redeemed and the result was 40 saucepans, fry pans and chef’s pans to give to families to use when they are in shelter and to take with them as they leave shelter for their own place.  Dorothy Newell, president of Friends of the Homeless said, “A new skillet for a family moving into our homeless shelters!  What could be more welcome!  And many thanks to Shaw’s stamps and all who collected them to make this Promise Church project possible.”

Helping the shelters run by the South Shore Friends of the Homeless has been an ongoing mission of Promise Church.  Friends of the Homeless of the South Shore is dedicated to helping homeless families by providing food, clothing, furniture, shelter, education, and advocacy.  They address a whole range of needs, from physical to emotional, from personal to social, and from psychological to spiritual.

Promise Church is a newly forming church in care of the Pilgrim Association of the Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ.  We gather for worship and fellowship in homes around the South Shore area.  It is sometimes hard for such a small congregation to see that they are making a difference.  With the help of many friends, this pile of cookware is a visible expression of our care for others.

Friends of the Homeless is grateful to Promise Church for their commitment to helping home-ready families get the items they need to move in. If your church would like to participate in a similar way, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator, Dorothy Newell at info@friendsofhomeless.org