Catching up with Colin's Joy Project's Recent Charitable Contributions

Colin’s Joy Project is excited to share our most recent experiences with charitable giving! While we are still continuing to fundraise in order to continue our mission to enhance play spaces and fund family-focused programming in South Boston, we especially enjoy being able to see how the money that’s been raised so far has been able to make a difference in our community.

We are so grateful for the opportunity to partner with several organizations in Southie and provide donations to help those in need. 

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We are pleased to share that we donated $5,000 to Julie’s Family Learning Program to support their supermarket gift card program.  This program provides gift cards to local supermarkets to moms who are struggling with food insecurity, when they need it most. Sarah Ryan, our liaison through Julie’s, shared that the charitable contribution was able to remove the burden of food insecurity and help families who are working hard to create a better life for themselves. Meeting this basic need helps families worry about one less thing in their day to day lives, and it allows them to focus on their continuing education. In addition, Sarah explained that when moms receive support like this, it really binds them more deeply to the other programs at Julie’s, which allows them to help these families even more. 

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Prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, Colin’s Joy Project was also able to provide support to The South Boston Neighborhood House’s Holiday Helper program with a $5,000 contribution. An upwards of 300 children and families were supported with this donation, and the Ollie provided gifts and Christmas dinners to these deserving families in the South Boston area. 

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Colin’s Joy Project continued to support the Child Life Program at Boston Medical Center by gifting them $500, part of which went to purchase a high chair designed to support children with special needs. The high chair was placed in the Pediatric unit and will be used to support many patients with varying degrees of disabilities. BMC was grateful for this gift which they know will make a huge difference for families, and Colin’s Joy Project was happy to be able to support a program that was so instrumental in helping the McGrath family recover after Colin and Sloane’s accident.

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Lastly, Colin’s Joy Project donated $2500 to the South Boston Branch of the Boston Public Library. The money went towards the library’s children’s programming, and this donation effectively doubles the organization’s annual budget for children’s programming. They will be able to use the donation to provide programs and activities for many children in the community throughout the coming year.

With these partnerships. Colin’s legacy is able to live on and continue to bring joy to the lives of others. Stay up to date on current projects and partnerships by visiting our website here

It’s a Big Weekend for Colin’s Joy Project!

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There’s some great things happening in Southie this Saturday that you don’t want to miss! Grab the kids and come check out some awesome family-friendly events while also supporting Colin’s Joy Project!

Colin’s Joy Project 5k Run/Walk

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The first ever Colin’s Joy Project 5k will kick off this Saturday, June 1st at 8:00am. Online registration has closed, but you can sign up in person at the event.

The race will begin and end at South Boston Catholic Academy (866 East Broadway). The day will start with 2 youth races followed by the 5k. The 5k is a walk or run and is open to all ages! The youth races begin at 8am and the 5k will start promptly at 8:30. The South Boston Catholic Academy gym will be open at 7am for packet pick ups and same-day signups.

Post-race refreshments will be served along with live entertainment, awards, a Colin’s Joy Project pop-up shop for merchandise and great raffle prizes! Awards will be given to the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishers for males and females.

Come out, get some exercise and support a great cause!

Southie Family Fun Day

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Also this Saturday the MOMS Club of South Boston will be hosting their annual Southie Family Fun Day at Marine Park in South Boston. This 100% volunteer-run event started 10 years ago by two moms who just wanted to create a free event open to everyone in the South Boston Community, and it’s grown into a huge celebration attended by over 1,000 people. The event supports many local businesses as well as several community nonprofits, including Colin’s Joy Project.  This year is their 10th anniversary and it’s sure to be an extra special day!

The main stage will feature attractions such as: The Magic of Bonaparte, the Toe Jam Puppet Band, Busy Bee Jumpers, Music with Sarah, Knucklebones play equipment, face-painting, a princess meet and greet, and finally, a special Touch-a-Truck dedicated to the memory of Colin McGrath.

The McGrath family attended this event last year and the Touch-a-Truck was Colin’s favorite part, so it’s fitting that this year it’s here to honor him and bring joy to all the kids who attend.

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Colin’s Joy Project will have a table set up with free Colin’s Joy Project bubbles, and a special project where kids are encouraged to paint rocks. The rocks will be placed at Colin’s Community Courtyard - a space at the corner of L and 5th Street that will feature a reading corner and other features for people from the community to gather and spread joy in memory of Colin. All of the rocks previously painted and left for the McGrath family will also ultimately be incorporated in this space.

Mayor Marty Walsh will be in attendance, as well as several other local politicians. This event is  a great way to get out of the house and have fun with your family while also connecting with your community and supporting local organizations. There are activities for children of all ages and a food truck will be present to provide refreshments.

The Southie MOMS Club hopes that this will be their biggest year yet, and that everyone comes out and has a great time!

If you’re interested in having your business or nonprofit present at Family Fun Day next year, or if you want to volunteer your time, check out the official Southie Family Fun Day website. This event is completely run by volunteers so they depend on the kindness of community members to make it a success!

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The MOMS Club of South Boston is also a volunteer organization made up of over 350 moms in South Boston; they get together for playgroups, coffee dates, moms night out and more in addition to supporting each other and other families in the community. If you want to know more about the MOMS Club, check out their website here.

Both events are guaranteed to be a blast, so join us and spread joy for Colin.

image 1: southiefamilyfunday.org

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image 4: southiemomsclub.com