Local Needy Benefit From

Newtown Fund’s Holiday Program

By Andrew Gorosko

About 50 volunteers demonstrated the spirit of Christmas last weekend at the Newtown Fund’s annual Depot Day event, which is part of the group’s Holiday Basket program.

At their base at Sandy Hook Elementary School, fund members collected, organized, and then oversaw the distribution of hundreds of holiday gifts, food items, and household goods to 77 needy local families.

In the program, local groups and families “adopt” needy families for whom they provide the gifts, nonperishable foods, and household supplies.

Those donors had delivered the items to the school early on the morning of Saturday, December 13, after which volunteers organized, wrapped, and sorted the items for delivery.

Later in the morning, other residents arrived in SUVs, pickup trucks, and autos that were then loaded with the gifts for delivery across town.

The town’s Social Services department acts as the agent for the Newtown Fund in determining who is qualified to receive gifts.

The Newtown Fund formed about 60 years ago. It has operated the Holiday Basket program for about the past 20 years. It is estimated that about 200 people benefit from the organization’s Holiday Basket program.

People who do not contribute gifts, food, or household items, may donate money to the organization, which is used in its charitable programs. The organization conducts other programs to help local needy people during the year. Such programs help the needy cover heating fuel costs and medical bills, among other expenses.

Doreen Kostecki is the president of the Newtown Fund. 

“Even during these difficult economic times, Newtown residents found a way to make the Holiday Basket program another successful one for 2008…It was a busy day, but a very rewarding one…We are unable to thank all the volunteers individually, but appreciate their help year after year to this wonderful and fulfilling event…What a wonderful and generous town we live in,” Ms Kostecki wrote in a letter to The Newtown Bee.

Ms Kostecki asked that people who are interested in helping the Newtown Fund in its charitable work contact the organization at The Newtown Fund, PO Box 641, Newtown CT 06470.