Somewhere in Massachusetts, a family living in poverty is forced to throw out their child?s bed after an infestation of bed bugs. Unable to afford a new mattress, the child is forced to sleep on the floor, or even crawl into bed with a sibling or parent.
Sadly, this is an all-too-familiar reality across the Commonwealth. But thanks to the generosity of the First Church in Swampscott, five fewer children will wonder where they are sleeping tonight.
Church members, along with the Swampscott community, joined the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless on Sunday, June 30 for a delicious meal and heartwarming event at the First Church Community Cookout.
Located on the First Church?s front lawn, across from the annual Strawberry Festival, the event featured a delicious meal of lobster rolls, burgers and hotdogs, and drew a large crowd.
First Church council member and event coordinator Holly Brauner estimated that between 200 to 250 people showed up to enjoy the gathering, which ran from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
According to Brauner, the event was very successful, raising $1,300 for the Coalition?s A Bed for Every Child initiative. The proceeds of the cookout, Brauner wrote in a letter to town members, will help to purchase beds for local children facing poverty.
?Your hunger on Sunday and purchase of our offerings helped make it possible for roughly five more children to sleep well at night and be rested for school (or camp during these weeks of summer),? Brauner wrote.
According to the Coalition, a child?s ability to come to school prepared to learn can be greatly impacted by the quality of sleep they receive on a nightly basis. This can have long-term consequences on their education, the Coalition wrote on their website, www.mahomeless.org.
First Church council member Jim Kinchley explained that church affiliates first conceived the idea for a cookout after a member of the Coalition, an advocacy and programming group created in 1981 with a mission to eradicate homelessness in the Commonwealth, attended a service at the church.
?The congregation responded that they wanted to get involved, so we did,? Kinchley said.
This is the second consecutive year the church has held the event, Brauner explained, but at one point, it used to be a yearly tradition to hold a lobster bake. The tradition was abandoned more than 10 years ago, likely due to busy work schedules, Brauner said.
?The lobster bake was held during a time when folks were home more often,? she said. ?It seems that between sports practice and family engagements, we have less time to volunteer and get involved in the community.?
Brauner hoped that the cookout, scheduled this year to coincide with the Strawberry Festival and parade, instead of with the fireworks ? as was the case last year ? would allow people to experience that past sense of community involvement.
?Our church is very mission-focused ? [we?re] focused on making the world a better place and benefitting the community,? Brauner said. ?This year we had the critical mass necessary to make a stronger tie with the Swampscott community.?
Brauner said she was very grateful to the parade and Strawberry Festival coordinators, chiefly Janelle Cameron, who made the cookout a part of the day?s festivities. Brauner hopes to hold the cookout again in coming years.
It was inspiring, Brauner said, to watch the community come together as the parade ended right in front of the First Church lawn.
?It was a really good feeling,? she said. ?A good community feeling.?
Brauner said she was also very grateful for the weather, which remained sunny despite the threat of thunderstorms in neighboring towns.
?Mother Nature was kind, despite the threats and rumor of doom and delays,? she wrote in her letter to the community. ?There was no rain on this parade.?
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