Recently, JFS’s Healthy Aging Initiative, NORC Program, and Children’s Clothing Closet joined forces to partner with the Framingham Housing Authority (FHA) to provide an action-packed afternoon for the Hastings House residents. Activities included a pop-up clothing distribution event, Resident Advisory Meeting, August birthdays celebration, and barbecue Lunch Bunch activity.
About the JFS Clothing Closet: Launched in 2016, the JFS Children’s Clothing Closet provides a seasonal response to the clothing needs of the elementary school-aged children in the Metrowest community, specifically focusing on the most economically challenged schools in Framingham.
Although JFS’s Clothing Closet events typically distribute children’s items, thanks to our generous donors, we’ve collected an abundance of adult clothing, prompting several JFS programs to collaborate on this distribution. Hastings House residents welcomed us with warm smiles and left with bags full of warm, new clothes.
The monthly Resident Advisory Meeting, run by FHA, allows Hasting House residences to discuss community and personal needs. It also offers JFS and FHA a platform to share current and upcoming activities and services.
Afterward, JFS Immigrant Services Team Intern Kayla Hoffstein led an August birthday celebration, during which residents sang Happy Birthday and enjoyed cake together. The birthday celebrations are important for getting residents out of their apartments to socialize with each other and the staff.
The birthday celebration was followed by a Lunch Bunch outdoor barbecue party! Lunch Bunch creates a warm environment that stimulates conversation, elevates the seniors’ moods, and informs staff about the residents’ mental and physical health to support them better.
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Volunteers are needed to sort and organize clothing and pack clothing orders to distribute to families. We’re also looking for volunteers to join us at events in various community locations for our pop-up children’s clothing store, where members of the community are able to shop for free. Volunteers unload clothes from the van, set up the racks of clothing, assist shoppers, and clean up.
Make an online donation to the JFS Children’s Clothing Closet today!
For more information, please Contact Gail Gregory, Manager of Volunteer Services and Community Engagement at ggregory@jfsmw.org