$10,000 to expand successful Danforth program

Mark R. Haranas, president of Framingham Co-operative Bank, announced today that the Bank’s Charitable Foundation recently donated over $28,000 to benefit the activities of eight local non-profit organizations.

The sum of $10,000 was designated to continue and expand the Drop Into Art program at the Danforth Museum of Art. The program got underway in 2007 with an initial $10,000 donation from the Charitable Foundation. According to Katherine French, Museum director, nearly 1,500 MetroWest residents participated in the program in its first year. Each first Sunday of the month, the Museum opens its doors to children ages 5-10 and their families. The program provides free family admission, tours led by teen docents, and hands-on creative studio activities in the Museum School.

“The program has been successful beyond expectation,” said French.

Health & Legal Help
For the third consecutive year, the Foundation awarded $5,000 to the Natick Visiting Nurse Association to support its telemonitoring program, which utilizes technology to enhance home health care. Daily monitoring enables the VNA to track patients’ progress and identify possible warning signs that might require immediate attention or hospital care.

MetroWest Legal Services also received a $5,000 grant from the Charitable Foundation, toward the continued provision of free legal services to those with low-income, the elderly, and people with disabilities in our community.

Elders & Teens
This is the seventh year the Framingham Co-operative Bank Charitable Foundation has supported BayPath Elder Services. Its recent $2,500 donation will be used for BayPath’s Money Management Program for elders. The program currently has 62 trained money management volunteers who assist low-income elders with their day-to-day finances in order to support and prolong their independence in the community.

Samaritans, Inc. received $2,500 for its Samariteens Youth Suicide Prevention Program in Framingham. The teen program began in 1986 in Boston in response to high rates of youth suicide. Today, Samaritans has more than 100 active youth volunteers based in both Boston and Framingham who answer the 24-hour Samariteens Crisis Helpline.

Infants, Children & Families
The Charitable Foundation awarded $2,000 to the Framingham Rotary Club toward its renovation project at Butterworth Park on Bishop Street in Framingham. The Club is building a state-of-the-art playground, pavilion and tricycle/stroller path at the Park.

A $1,000 donation to the Framingham Housing Authority will help ensure that the children of local struggling families living in public housing receive a holiday gift.

A $300 award to the “Happy Birthday Baby” program of the First Baptist Church will provide baby care packages for low-income mothers and pregnant teens in the Metrowest area. Volunteers will use the donation to purchase diapers, baby clothing, and other new-baby essentials for needy mothers and their newborns.

$1.2 Million Plus
The Framingham Co-operative Bank Charitable Foundation awarded over $200,000 to local educational, civic and charitable groups in 2008. Since it was established in 1998, it has donated over $1.2 million to community causes as part of its commitment to improve and enhance quality of life for local residents.