The holiday season is just starting, and nonprofits like the Boys and Girls Club have several busy weeks ahead as they try to fundraise and provide families what they need.
Last week, the Lynn Boys and Girls Club decorated its gymnasium and set place settings to serve 450 Thanksgiving dinners to members and their families just a few days before the holiday.
Shixsovech Florian of Lynn came with her two children to join in the fun.
“This is so amazing, is beyond the words,” Florian said. “Honestly, I don’t even have words to explain that, especially after being home with this pandemic.”
Servers wore masks and gloves while they doled out turkey, gravy, mashed potato, corn and rolls — plus juice and cookies for dessert. And for the organizers and volunteers, their reward came in the form of gratitude after a holiday dinner that left people with smiles and full stomachs.
“Some of this means the world,” said Brian Theirrien, executive director of the Lynn Boys and Girls Club. “The purpose of that is really getting all the club members to come together, share some stories, get some laughs in there and have a great meal.”
Every day, the Lynn Boys and Girls Club serves 1,500 children that range in age from 6 to 18. Theirrien said 75% of its members are from low-income or single-parent homes.
It’s one of more than 23,000 nonprofit organizations in Massachusetts that aid residents and people around the world.
Issa Zefta has owned Maria’s Restaurant in Lynn for 32 years. He donated some of the food for the event, hoping to bring a smile to the kids’ faces.
“I like to see them have a better future, brighter future when they go home,” he said. “Then they are eager to come back the next day.”
Jennifer Suarez shared her Thanksgiving dinner with her husband and two daughters. She said nonprofits in Lynn are known to rally around the community.
“This is amazing. We were just talking about how exciting it is," she said, "and it was such a sensitive thing to do.”
Tackling hunger and providing people the resources they need takes a community effort. For this meal, it was a local credit union that helped out: the Brotherhood Credit Union of Lynn donated $12,500. Marilyn DeSimone, senior operations officer, said helping neighbors goes back to when the union was founded.
“One of the things that the credit union was established on back in 1934, was to help the unbanked and the less fortunate to be able to come to a place to perform their banking needs and cash their checks.”
The Boys and Girls Club is organizing a toy drive and another holiday meal around Christmas.
This is the first of four stories this holiday season in the GBH News series, "The Holidays, A Time for Charity,” profiling local charities making a difference in the lives of families across the state. Part 2 next week features the "Wonderfund" under the leadership of First Lady Lauren Baker.
