Category: Circles of Mercy

Here’s our Adopt-a-Family information

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SRC Rotary Club / Circles of Mercy


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.

Annual school supplies donations delivered

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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.

Here are the dropoffs for school supplies drive

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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

Annual back-to-school supplies drive begins

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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.

Easter baskets delivered to Circles of Mercy

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Jim Leyhane and Roberto Martinez, shown above, delivered a gajillion — OK, 126 — Easter baskets to Circles of Mercy to conclude the annual “Baskets for Cate’s Kids” drive.Project coordinator Shannon Romanowski and a team at the Greenbush YMCA where she is executive director assembled the baskets, which will be distributed to children in need in the Rensselaer area.

“I can’t say enough about the amazing community we live in,” Shannon says. “Rotarians, Greenbush Y members and our dedicated volunteers came together to provide this amazing gift to the children in Rensselaer. 

“Thank you to all who helped make these baskets special, and a huge shout-out to Roberto and Jim for their help in making the delivery.  Our community continues to deliver when it comes to helping those in need.”

Thanks to all who participated by donating baskets, basket contents, and money to purchase some necessary items. We have been partnering with Circles of Mercy for about seven years on this particular effort and have created and donated approximately 800 baskets.

Deadline near for aiding Easter basket push

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This Friday is the final day for dropping off checks or items purchased from the shopping list for our annual Easter basket project.

The drop-off site is the Greenbush YMCA, 20 Community Way, adjacent to the East Greenbush Public Library, during regular hours.

THE SHOPPING LIST

• Baskets
• Toothbrushes (ages 1-12)
• Toothpaste
• Dental floss
• Hairbrushes
• Combs
• Hair ties, bows or barrettes (ages 1-12)
• Socks
• Children’s books (ages 1-12)
• Coloring books
• Crayons / markers
• Small games (ages 1-12)
• Small toys (toy cars, dolls, blocks, airplanes)
• Bubbles
• Small stuffed animals
• Assorted traditional candy (must be individually wrapped)

Easter basket timeline, shopping list

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This year, we are looking to collect items to fill up to 175 Easter baskets as part of our effort to assist Circles of Mercy, the family assistance organization. Our project coordinator, Shannon Romanowski, also is recruiting the assistance of the Greenbush YMCA and Columbia High School to once again make our effort a successful one for underprivileged kids.

Shannon will be setting up an “Amazon Wish List” and a “Target Registry” for people who are not comfortable shopping in-person and prefer to order online. Items can be designated for delivery directly to the Greenbush YMCA, 20 Community Way, East Greenbush, NY 12061. Links for those items will be made known soon.

Meanwhile, here are the key elements of the initiative:

THE PROJECT TIMELINE

Monday, February 1: Donated items will begin being accepted at the Greenbush Y during normal operating hours — 5:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2:15 to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday, and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.

Friday, March 19: Final day to drop off donations at the Greenbush Y.

Friday, March 26: Basket assembly at the Y, 2 to 5 p.m.

Saturday, March 27: Basket assembly at the Y, 9 to 11 a.m.

THE SHOPPING LIST

• Baskets (Jennifer Felts already has donated 16 baskets, so we need another 159)
• Toothbrushes (ages 1-12)
• Toothpaste
• Dental floss
• Hairbrushes
• Combs
• Hair ties, bows or barrettes (ages 1-12)
• Socks
• Children’s books (ages 1-12)
• Coloring books
• Crayons / markers
• Small games (ages 1-12)
• Small toys (toy cars, dolls, blocks, airplanes)
• Bubbles
• Small stuffed animals
• Assorted traditional candy (must be individually wrapped)

Time to shop for Easter basket items

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Screen Shot 2020-03-06 at 2.04.59 PMIt’s that time of year again, when SRC and others join with Circles of Mercy for its “Easter Baskets for Cate’s Kids” drive on behalf of needy children ages 1 to 12. Last year, SRC pledged 75 baskets but came up with 106!

Circles of Mercy is an outreach center for poor and low-income families which is sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy Northeast Community. SRC has partnered with the organization for years on a number of effort, including holiday family “adoptions.”

“Last year, over 150 requests for Easter baskets was met, but given the current economic times, no doubt Circles of Mercy will have not only the same number of children, but possibly more,” says Circles’ director Richard Zazycki.

Easter this year will fall on Sunday, April 19, and we have agreed to meet an April 1 deadline by which to deliver gift baskets to Circles in time to get them distributed to the client families the week before the Easter holiday.

President Phil Kellerman will be contacting some of you about possibly coordinating the club’s portion of the effort and staying in contact with club member Shannon Romanowski at the Greenbush YMCA which is undertaking a companion effort.

Meanwhile, our practice has been to have the club purchase baskets, artificial grass, and transparent wrappings, and ask members to purchase items for the baskets from the shopping list below, getting them to our event coordinator as they are purchased.

Since we’re on a tight turnaround, you may want to begin shopping now. Here’s what is needed:

THE SHOPPING LIST

• coloring books
• crayons
• color pencils
• facial tissues
• toothpaste, tooth brushes, and dental floss
• combs and brushes
• small, age-appropriate (1 to 12) stuffed animals, toys, small games
• reading books
… and, of course, different types of traditional candy

 

Here’s the wish list for our Adopt-a-Family drive

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Screen Shot 2019-11-22 at 6.00.46 PMAs we head into the holiday season, we plan to mix some giving into the equation as once again we help people less fortunate than we. It’s our annual participation in Circles of Mercy’s Adopt-a-Family holiday project.

This year we have one family, consisting of a mom and dad (ages 45 and 44), a teen daughter (17), a young son (4), and a baby girl on the way. Their “wish list” is modest, mostly clothing and personal items, but with a small smattering of other practical items.

The deadline for delivering donated gifts to Circles of Mercy is Monday, December 16, so we’re on a tight schedule.

Debbie Rodriguez is serving as project coordinator this year. We need your involvement, but we would appreciate it if you would contact Debbie BEFORE you do any shopping to let her know what you would like to provide. That coordination will help us be sure we cover the list without duplications or omissions. (Of course, duplicating clothing items never is a bad thing, but we need the communication nevertheless).

Here is the wish list. Please remember, all gifts (1) need to be gift wrapped, (2) must be labeled with the recipient’s names, (3) and need to be delivered to Debbie in time for her to coordinate her dropoff at Circles of Mercy by the deadline.

Thank you in advance for your generosity in the true spirit of Rotary and of the season.

Hazzard Family Wish List

Finish line near for school supplies drive

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Screen Shot 2019-07-12 at 12.04.19 PMSRC members, family, and friends are once again helping less-fortunate students prepare for their return to school — yes, it’s getting that close! — by participating in the annual Circles of Mercy Back-to-School Supplies Drive.

The program, as in other years, focuses on all high school grades (9-12) and on pre-school students, and SRC is always a major contributor. The shopping list recommended by Circles of Mercy:

• pencils (regular lead #2 and color)
• pencil sharpener
• erasers (for pencils)
• pens (black or blue ink)
• markers (dry-erase and Sharpies, assorted colors)
• pocket folders (assorted colors)
• 3-ring binders (in 2” and 3” sizes)
• loose leaf paper (college ruled)
• graph paper
• spiral subject notebooks (1-, 3- and 5-subject, college ruled)
• subject dividers
• plastic zipper pencil cases/boxes
• 3”x5” index cards
• highlighters (yellow)
• rulers (regular with metric)
• Kleenex tissues
• hand sanitizer (small bottles)
• Post-It notes
• backpacks (no rollers/wheels)
• hole reinforcement stickers
• combination lock (for gym lockers)
• flash drives
• ear buds (for computer use)
• scientific calculators

We have one final drop-off date for your donations: 6 p.m. Thursday, August 8, at the Drumm residence in Valatie.

If you do NOT plan to attend that get-together, please contact President Phil Kellerman to arrange a dropoff/pickup for your donations so we can meet the necessary delivery schedule. We are hoping to at least meet the level of help we have provided in past years, but we can do it only with your generosity.