Charity

Watertown Man, Fiance Running to Help Low-Income People Find Housing

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Watertown-native Steve Farrell will take on the Boston Marathon for the second time, this time with his fiance Todd Robinson, and they will raise money to help connect low income families and individuals with housing that they can afford. Farrell, who is the Director of Communications, Development and Policy for the Metropolitan Boston Housing Partnership (MBHP), has been running for a few years, and growing up near the Marathon course he dreamed as a child of running the fabled race. When he was young Farrell would run a race from Waltham City Hall to the then Watertown Police Station in Watertown Square and then would either go home to watch the Marathon called by Chet Curtis and Natalie Jacobson or go with an older sibling to watch the race live. Farrell ran his first marathon in 2012, and this year he will be joined by his fiance, who is newer to the sport. “Our first race together was the Dorchester Firefighter 10k Memorial that fall.

Around Town

Tickets on Sale for Watertown Boys & Girls Club Spring Auction

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Watertown Boys & Girls Club will host their Annual Spring Auction this year on Thursday, May 4 at 6 p.m. This yearly event raises crucial funds for the organization, including over $15,000 for summer camp scholarships. The event will be held at the Oakley Country Club and will include a silent and live auction, hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar, and a meet & greet with some Boys & Girls Club members! The meet & greet portion of the evening is a new addition this year and will serve as an opportunity for attendees to get a better understanding of what really happens at the Club day-to-day. “It is our hope that by facilitating this meet & greet, event attendees will feel more connected to our mission. It’s one thing to support the Club, but to see it in action and witness how it changes kids’ lives is a whole different story!” said Kristina Norris, WBGC Director of Marketing & Special Events

Tickets can be purchased online at http://events.eventzilla.net/e/annual-spring-auction-2017-2138889274 for $50/each.

Charity

Rotary Club Hosting Wine Tasting Fund Raiser, Selling Tickets, Sponsorships

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The Watertown Rotary Club will host a Spring Wine Tasting event at the Plumbing Museum to raise money for the club’s charitable causes. 

The Rotary Club sponsors scholarships for Watertown students, and this year some of the money will also go to the Food for Thought program. This program provides meals for students in the Watertown students on weekends so that they do not go hungry and are prepared to learn when they return to class on Monday. Find out more here. The Club is selling tickets to the event, and also seeks advertisers for the event program and sponsors for the event. For more information on tickets, ads and sponsorships email watertownrotary@gmail.com

From 2006 to 2016 the club handed out more than $300,000 to causes in the community, including:

• Watertown Families in Need

• Cancer Research

• Watertown Food Pantries

• Watertown Public Library

• Watertown Public Schools Programs

• Watertown Boys & Girls Club

• Watertown Human Services Agencies

• Arts & Theater Sponsorships

• College Sponsorships for Watertown Residents

• Flags on Main St, Mt Auburn St and Arsenal St

• Rotary Foundation – Polio Eradication

• International Aid (Disaster Relief, Clean Water, etc)

Charity

Ed Walsh Foundation Hosting Fundraiser to Put More Books in Schools

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The Ed Wash Foundation, in memory of the fallen Boston firefighter and Watertown native, will host a Spring Fundraiser on March 24 featuring music, food and raffles. 

The event will be held on March 24, 2017 from 7 p.m.-midnight at the American Legion Post 440, 295 California St., Newton. Tickets cost $20 in advance or $25 at door Purchase tickets at bit.ly/March32417

Entertainment for the evening will be provided by Boston rock band Fenian Sons. Proceeds from the event will be used for the Smile-On Grant program that provides grant money to teachers, coaches, parents and specialists who help children in school and sports, according to the organizers. “Please help us by bringing a book for our book drive. Imagine a school without a library, or a home with no books to read when you get home from school.

Charity

Watertown-Belmont Chamber Hosting $10,000 Raffle

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Now is your chance to get your tickets for the Watertown-Belmont Chamber of Commerce’s $10,000 Raffle. The raffle takes place Friday, March 24, 2017, from 7-10 p.m. at Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. (VHB), 101 Walnut Street, Watertown, MA

The Grand Prize is $10,000. The evening will include a 50/50 split the pot and additional raffles. The evening features catered light faire, music, beer and wine. Only 300 tickets at $100 each will be sold.

Charity

Watertown Community, Education Foundations Announce Joint Grant Awards

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The Watertown Community Foundation (WCF) and the Watertown Education Foundation (WEF) are pleased to announce their first joint grant awards for education. A record number of 42 applicants submitted proposals for this grant cycle, designed to benefit educational programs in Watertown’s public schools. “We received 42 interesting and wide-ranging grant applications, making the review committee’s job very difficult. We are pleased to be able to fund 23 outstanding projects, for a total of $35,012,” said Thea Sahr, Grant Committee Chair for the Watertown Community Foundation. “It was a pleasure to be able to share our grant making with the Watertown Education Foundation, and we look forward to continuing to work closely with them in the future.”

Elaina Griffith, Co-President of the Watertown Education Foundation, said the collaboration will make it easier for educators to get funds for their projects and programs.

“The idea behind this partnership came about after the realization our educators were having to go to a number of different non-profits to fulfill their grant needs.    Streamlining the grant request process theoretically making it a one-stop shop made sense,” Griffth said. “The $25,000 in grant monies given by the Ed Foundation are a direct result of our Dancing With the Stars fundraising event last year.

Business

Watertown Savings Announces Winners of Customer Choice Awards

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On Tuesday, March 28, Watertown Savings Bank (WSB) will distribute $75,000 to the 30 local community organizations chosen by its banking customers, in the bank’s 21st annual Customer Choice Awards, bank officials announced. “Our Customer Choice Awards program is one of which we are particularly proud,” said CEO Ronald Dean. “The list of winners reflects the important work being done by non-profits and volunteer organizations throughout the communities we serve.”

Dollars awarded are based on the number of votes each organization received. All organizations that received one percent of the total number of votes are being awarded funds. The bank divided $75,000 by the percentage of votes received, with $3,500 as the maximum amount and $5,000 awarded to the organization with the most votes. Congratulations to all the winners, and thank you for all that you do in our communities!

Charity

New Rotary Club Program Provides Meals for Watertown Kids on Weekends

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A new program sponsored by the Rotary Club, called Food for Thought, is providing some Watertown students who might go hungry over the weekend with two breakfasts, two lunches and two snacks each week.  

During the week, these students can get free or discounted meals at school. About 30 percent of the students in Watertown are in the Free and Reduced Lunch program, said Watertown resident Lilia Weisfeldt, who came up with the idea for the program. “Over the weekend the kids don’t have access to the program and a lot of kids go without any food,” Weisfeldt said. “We give them a bag of food over the weekend so they can go back to school Monday not hungry and ready to learn.”