We’re looking for volunteers to assemble donated items into finished baskets for needy kids in Circles of Mercy’s annual Easter Basket drive.
Member Shannon Romanowski informs us a basket assembly session is scheduled for this Thursday from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at the Greenbush YMCA. However, she needs to know ASAP how many people plan to volunteer their time. You can call her at the Y at 518-477-2570, extension 1200, or contact Debbie Rodriguez.
Shannon and Y staff plan to deliver the completed baskets to Circles of Mercy on Friday.
Even if you plan to help but don’t want to miss our dinner meeting that same day, the Y is close to Moscatiello’s so you can leave a few minutes before the end of the session and still make it to the dinner where we will have two guest speakers from the Capital Roots community garden and nutrition services organization.
Your club is looking for a volunteer coordinator for our annual participation in the Circles of Mercy “Cate’s Kids Easter Basket Program.”
Club President Debbie Rodriguez will be asking at Thursday’s dinner meeting at Moscatiello’s for people to work on coordinating our effort to provide baskets for needy kids in Circles’ area of service in Rensselaer County. It’s a short-term but important role that will allow people to continue Rotary’s community service component.
Easter this year falls on Sunday, April 17. We hope to have completed baskets delivered to Circles no later than Monday, April 4, so they can be assigned and delivered to client families the week before the holiday. That also provides sufficient time for Circles to spend any monetary donations to fill the recipient families’ needs.
We will be publishing on our club website and Facebook page a shopping list for the project. Meanwhile, please consider your level of participation in this very worthwhile undertaking.
Just a part of the bounty of gifts you donated this year.
Imagine thinking your young children would be waking up tomorrow morning to a very sparse Christmas. Now, imagine as a single parent receiving a call from Circles of Mercy, telling you not to be concerned, the Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club has come through once again.
That’s what happened thanks to our “Adopt-a-Family” effort for 2021, with a big boost from the Greenbush YMCA. Two moms and six kids are receiving a variety of “needs to have” and “nice to have” items donated by the generous folks of both of these organizations, and a few of their friends.
To all who helped in one way or another — wrapped gifts, gift cards, pickups, deliveries, etc. — thank you, thank you, thank you.
The second of two scheduled dropoff dates for donations to our annual “Adopt-a-Family” drive for the holidays was scheduled for today at Moscatiello’s.
How did we do? How many people showed up?
Drum roll, please!
1
That’s right. Exactly one person showed up at the 5:30-6:00 p.m. session.
This year we have only one family, a small one — a mom and two kids — to buy for. (We had accepted two families proposed by Circles of Mercy, but the Greenbush YMCA volunteered to take the other.) Nevertheless, we have a significant number of items on the recommended shopping list still unfilled.
We’ll be discussing the situation during Thursday’s 7 p.m. Zoom meeting to see what we can do to return to our usual level of holiday giving. Meanwhile, here’s the latest update as of 7:30 p.m. this evening. Items in red are taken care of, all others still are needed.
We hope you are planning to join your fellow Rotarians for dinner this Thursday at Moscatiello’s? If so, you’ll have the choice of one of three entrees:
• spaghetti and meatballs with marina sauce • chicken Caesar salad • baked ziti
No need to reserve in advance. Just let us know your choice when you arrive. And remember, a cash bar is available to find a beverage complement to your meal. (If you’re not planning to attend, you can email your proxy to Debbie Rodriguez at debannrod@yahoo.com no later than Wednesday. You’ll be counted as “present” for quorum purposes.)
Our guest speaker will be Richard Zazycki, executive director of Circles of Mercy, who will share his thoughts on running a family aid organization under pandemic conditions.
And remember, Thursday will be one of just two drop-off days for your donations (the other is Wednesday, December 8) to our “Adopt-a-Family” holiday project. Coordinator Bill Dowd will be posted in the Moscatiello’s parking lot from 5:30 to 6:00 p.m. each of those days to receive your wrapped-and-labeled donations. (Look for his white Subaru Impreza.)
NOTE: Please do not bring gifts into the restaurant, even if you plan to stay for dinner. We don’t want to intrude on other customers’ space.
We’re steadily adding to our pledges of “Adopt-a-Family” gifts for the Monroe family, although we still have plenty of “needs to have” shopping list items remaining to be claimed. In particular, the shopping list for the 12-year-old boy is in need of attention.
The last gift drop-off is scheduled for 5:30 to 6:00 p.m. this WEDNESDAY in the Moscatiello’s parking lot. Look for project coordinator Bill Dowd who will be there to load gifts into his car, a white Subaru Impreza. Please be sure all gifts are wrapped and tagged with the recipients’ names. If you are contributing gift cards, please be sure they are activated.
Scroll down for the latest spreadsheet update and check out what is NOT in red if you want to contribute. Also, if you’d prefer contributing a gift card, see below for some suggestions.
THE ORIGINAL POST:
We’re already doing great with our “Adopt-a-Family” effort for Circles of Mercy. As we progress, we’ll keep updating the spreadsheet below so those of you who wish to participate do not duplicate purchases.
Anyone who wants to supplement the overall gift for the Monroe family may wish to purchase gift cards for such businesses as Stewart’s, Walmart, Aldi, or any such place in the Rensselaer area.
You’ll note that only one family is on the spreadsheet. We had two, but the Greenbush YMCA is using its relationship with a local Target store to handle the other family, as explained in an e-mail sent to all members today.
Please note: Anything marked in red on the spreadsheet already has been spoken for. Please keep checking back on a daily basis to see what still is needed. All gifts must be wrapped and labeled with the intended recipient’s name. They may be dropped off to Bill Dowd in the Moscatiello’s parking lot between 5:30 and 6 p.m. Thursday, December 2, and Thursday, December 9.
Thanks to all who already are helping and those who will.
We have just received the names and shopping lists for the two families SRC has been assigned for the annual “Circles of Mercy Adopt-a-Family” project. The information is on the two spreadsheets shown below.
Here’s how we’re handling it this year in view of the fact we are not meeting in person each week
• Please select which item(s) you would like to donate, and email project coordinator Bill Dowd via SRCrotary@gmail.com to let him know your choices. He’ll continually update the spreadsheet on the club website so everyone can see it and avoid duplicating gifts already spoken for.
• All donations must be gift wrapped and clearly labeled as to recipient.
• Any monetary donations should be done in the form of gift cards placed in envelopes marked with the name of the intended recipients.
• Donations may be brought to our dinner meetings at Moscatiello’s on either December 2 (when Circles Executive Director Richard Zazycki will be our guest speaker) or December 9. Those are the only dropoff dates.
NOTES:
• Bill has to inventory and deliver all donations to Circles by December 15, so your dropoffs in a timely fashion are very important.
• Even if you don’t plan to stay for the dinner and meeting on those two dates, Bill will be available in the Moscatiello’s parking lot at the side of the building from 5:30 to 6 p.m. to accept your donations.
As always, thank you for your generosity. In these unusually trying times you’ll be helping needy families have a holiday they otherwise might not be able to imagine.
SRC’s annual participation in the Circles of Mercy “Back-to-School Supplies” drive has been completed, and donations delivered to the family-aid organization.
Ray and Lois Hannan were this year’s project coordinators. They report that nine members donated supplies and two others donated checks to the effort for needy students in the Rensselaer City School District.
The club thanks the Hannans and those who contributed to the project.
OK, you’ve been shopping for school supplies as part of our annual drive to aid kids in the Rensselaer City School District in partnership with Circles of Mercy. So, now what do you do with those supplies?
• Drop them off with Ray and Lois Hannan at Thursday’s pizza and ice cream social at Pat Bailey’s residence. (If you haven’t yet RSVP’d to Pat, please do so no later than Tuesday by calling 518-766-0215 or emailing her at baileyps26@gmail.com.)
• Drop them off at the Schodack Diner on Thursday, August 12, where the Hannans will be hosting a dinner for Rotarians and guests. (If you haven’t yet RSVP’d to them, please do so by August 6 by phoning 585-315-1385 (note this is NOT a 518 area code number) or by emailing them at ray110b@yahoo.com.)
• The Hannans may be setting up another date or two for accepting donations from those of you unable to make either of the two events listed above. Stay tuned for that info.
Once again, we’re listing the preferred shopping list provided by Circles of Mercy. In lieu of shopping, you can donate a check made payable to “Circles of Mercy,” with “SRC Rotary Club” in the memo line so the folks at Circles know how to apply the money.
Thanks again for your generosity.
• Pencils (regular lead #2 and color) • Pencil sharpener • Erasers for pencils • Pens (black or blue) • Markers (dry erase) • Sharpies (assorted colors) • Pocket folders (assorted colors) • 3-ring binders (2” and 3” sizes) • Loose leaf paper (college ruled) • Graph paper • Spiral subject notebooks (1-, 3-, and 5-subject, all college ruled) • Notebook subject dividers • Plastic zipper pencil cases / boxes • 3”x5” index cards • Yellow highlighters • Rulers (regular with metric) • Facial tissue packets • Hand sanitizer (small bottles) • Post-It notes • Backpacks (no rollers/wheels) • Hole reinforcement labels • Combination lock (for gym lockers) • Electronic items such as flash drives, computer ear buds, scientific calculators
Each summer, the Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club participates in a drive to provide school supplies for students in the Rensselaer City School District. That time has arrived once again.
Why Rensselaer kids? Besides the fact they all reside in SRC’s area of service, of the approximately 1,034 students, 64% qualify for either free or reduced price lunch program — a number much higher than the state average of 52%; and, 28% of the kids live near or below the poverty level, compared to the state average of 21%.
Due to the high cost of preparing a child for school, Circles of Mercy, the Rensselaer-based family services organization we team with in projects all year ’round, has a program available in which low-income parents may pick up free school supplies for their kids. The project is known as “Cate’s Kids Back to School Program” and we need your assistance again to help us help others.
Our new president, Debbie Rodriguez, is looking for a volunteer to coordinate SRC’s role in this drive that focuses on pre-school and grades 9-12. But, even before such a person steps up, we can began buying supplies from the following list. For example,Target has a back-to-school sale this week. Rotarians can stockpile items now, and collection times and times will be forthcoming as soon as we get a volunteer coordinator.
The preferred shopping list:
• Pencils (regular lead #2 and color) • Pencil sharpener • Erasers for pencils • Pens (black or blue) • Markers (dry erase) • Sharpies (assorted colors) • Pocket folders (assorted colors) • 3-ring binders (2” and 3” sizes) • Loose leaf paper (college ruled) • Graph paper • Spiral subject notebooks (1-, 3-, and 5-subject, all college ruled) • Notebook subject dividers • Plastic zipper pencil cases / boxes • 3”x5” index cards • Yellow highlighters • Rulers (regular with metric) • Facial tissue packets • Hand sanitizer (small bottles) • Post-It notes • Backpacks (no rollers/wheels) • Hole reinforcement labels • Combination lock (for gym lockers) • Electronic items such as flash drives, computer ear buds, scientific calculators
Circles of Mercy has requested that all donated items, or checks in lieu of supplies, be delivered no later than August 23, so SRC will be collecting items and/or checks through Friday, August 20. Our eventual project coordinator will take care of collecting donations and getting them to Circles in time for families to pick them up.
Southern Rensselaer County Rotary Club 