Boys and Girls Club receives tablet donation, hosting virtual 5K

Jan. 27, 2021 | Carolyn Noel
carolynn@thereminder.com

The Chicopee Boys and Girls Club received a donation of 30 tablets and $1,500 from Spectrum to help support their members with remote learning.
Reminder Publishing submitted photo

CHICOPEE – Before COVID-19, local Boys and Girls Clubs were primarily utilized for before and after school care. Due to the pandemic, many of these clubs have had to shift their models to allow for kids and teens to stay all day. According to Lynn Morrissette, marketing & development director at the Chicopee Boys and Girls Club, about 25 kids and 10 teens come to the club daily for remote learning. To help support the members, Spectrum recently donated 30 tablets and $1500 to the Chicopee Boys and Girls Club.

Spectrum and the Chicopee Boys and Girls Club usually connect on a yearly basis, according to Morrissette. This donation began with Spectrum donating $1,000 to the club for their annual turkey dinner and then grew from there once kids returned to the club after winter break.

“After we started talking about the kids coming back, they offered the 30 tablets to be donated to help,” said Morrissette.

Kids who participate in remote learning from the club are supplied with a Chromebook from their individual schools. The tablets will be used to help supplement their learning. Kids can use them to take notes, look something up online and more.  

“I know personally I have my phone, my laptop, an iPad... sometimes you need multiple devices to help make the day run smooth,” said Morrissette.

The monetary donation will also be used to help keep the remote learning running smooth, she said. With COVID-19, all kids need to have their own school supplies to avoid contamination. The club has bought more of these supplies and has also purchased cushions for each chair to help keep the children comfortable while in class.

With kids and teens now at the Boys and Girls Club all day, there are more mouths to feed and costs to cover. According to Morrissette, local residents have relied on the Boys and Girls club greatly this past year and the need keeps growing.

“The need keeps increasing, especially as time moves on and people are returning to work or whatever their situation is and they need some additional help with the kids,” she said.

To help support services at the Chicopee Boys and Girls Club, they will be hosting a virtual 5K fundraiser on April 3. The Great Futures Virtual 5K will be the first 5K event the club has hosted. The club typically hosts a basketball tournament fundraiser in March. This event has been canceled this year due to COVID-19. The 5K will replace the tournament and they hope it will encourage kids and their families to get up and get moving.

“We are hoping that this replaces that and kind of helps with the revenue coming in,” said Morrissette.

The cost to participate in the virtual 5K will be $25 per person. Participants will be able to pick up a t-shirt and goodie bag the week prior to the race as their prize. They will then be able to run or walk a 5K at their own pace on April 3.

Registration for the virtual 5K will begin on Feb. 1. Those interested in signing up for the event will be able to at https://bgcchicopee.org/.

Right now the club is looking for sponsorships for the event. Any interested company or group can purchase different levels of sponsorships which offer different perks. For example, a bronze level sponsor will be able to cover the cost of two race registrations, among other benefits, and a platinum level sponsor will be able to cover the cost of 10 race registrations. All sponsors will also have their name or logo featured on the 5K t-shirt and will have the opportunity to place items in the goodie bags. Those interested in learning more about sponsorships are encouraged to reach out to Morrissette at lynnm@bgcchicopee.org.

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