Mt. Ascutney Prevention Partnership (MAPP) is pleased to share some good news in an otherwise challenging start to the school year during a pandemic. The efforts of several Windsor-area organizations and individuals raised funds to purchase $6400 of school supplies for the Windsor Southeast Supervisory Union (WSESU) School Supply Drive.
The initiative was organized by Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center, Old South Church, and Mt. Ascutney Prevention Partnership’s Sled Dog Disco group (which finds different ways to bring "kids are assets to our community" messaging and opportunities to local town officials, businesses, and faith-based organizations).
Funds raised helped alleviate costs for the families of more than 450 students who qualified for free/reduced lunches. Individual donations poured in from Windsor, Hartland, Weathersfield, and West Windsor—as well as from a few friends across the river in New Hampshire. Additionally, the organizers received a grant for $1,750 in Regional Prevention Partnership funding from the Vermont Department of Health, which covered the cost of calculators for 5th- 12th graders.
Volunteers from Rotary Club of Windsor (see photo) sorted, packed, and delivered the supplies, while Mascoma Bank played a fundamental role in collecting the funds. The bank even saved envelopes so organizers could write thank-you letters to donors.
“We would not have been able to reach our goal without everyone willing to work together,” said Mary McNaughton, an organizer from Old South Church.
“This was truly an outpouring of love and support from our wider community: Neighbor helping Neighbor,” she added. “It is our privilege to have been a part of this initiative.”
The Mt. Ascutney Prevention Partnership (MAPP) is a community-based public health coalition operated under the auspices of Mt. Ascutney Hospital and Health Center. MAPP works with local people and organizations dedicated to creating lasting change at the population level. As the Hospital's public-facing community health initiative, the organization works with multiple regional partnerships and collaborations.
Volunteers from Rotary Club of Windsor pack school supplies from a community fundraising effort organized by Mt Ascutney Hospital and Health Center, Old South Church, and Mt. Ascutney Prevention Partnership’s Sled Dog Disco group.
