Newtown resident Betty Presnell visited the Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire & Rescue main station recently, when she made her latest donation thanks to an ongoing bottle and can drive.

On January 6, Presnell presented $500 to SHVFR Chief Bill Halstead. Presnell was joined for the donation by her son Michael, who often goes with her to turn in the bottles and cans that residents have been providing for over a year and a half.

While she is the one making the donations, Presnell is quick to tell those receiving donated funds that “it’s a lot bigger than me.”

Presnell began the drive in July 2020 to make up for funds lost after the pandemic forced the cancellation of that summer’s Annual Tag & Bake Sale presented by Nunnawauk Meadows Residents Association, of which she was president. Presnell made a request that month for returnable bottles and cans on the Buy Nothing Newtown (BNN) Facebook page.

That first post alone generated at least 50 responses, and the collection was launched. BNN members offered donations by the bagful, some even offering as many as four 50-gallon bags filled with bottles and cans ready for redemption.

Nineteen months later, the donations continue, and so does Presnell. As she receives bottles and cans to turn in, she keeps track of every receipt, often sharing photos on Buy Nothing Newtown and thanking those who provided the bottles and cans.

The funds collected are put into envelopes each time she visits a redemption center. They are never put into a personal account, so when Presnell donates to organizations, the recipients are given all of those separate envelopes filled with currency.

The ongoing drive has raised the initial $1,500 sought to cover the Nunnawauk Meadows event, more than $5,000 through multiple donations to FAITH Food Pantry, and $500 donations to Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps and Families United in Newtown, among others.

To add to the drive, contact Presnell through Facebook Messenger.

Donations can also be left at her home, 1D Nunnawauk Meadows. From Nunnawauk Road, use the entrance to the west of the community building (second entrance from Mile Hill Road South when traveling east on Nunnawauk Road). At the gazebo, look toward the right (east-southeast) for the unit marked 1D.

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Associate Editor Shannon Hicks can be reached at shannon@thebee.com.