Business

ABCD Food Pantry Filled by Whole Foods Fundraiser

Customers and volunteers join City Councilor Mike Ross (center); Jeanne Belmonte, ABCD West End NSC; and Serena Hsu Bray, Marketing Team Leader, Whole Foods Market, to celebrate the $1,200 raised at the “Wish-List” fundraiser to benefit the ABCD West End Emergency Food Pantry. Thank you Whole Foods! ABCD thanks Whole Foods Market on Cambridge Street Read More…

Business

Whole Foods To Aid Local Food Pantry

Whole Foods Market Helps Seniors, Families in Need;
Hosts Food Drive to Benefit ABCD West End Food Pantry

Shoppers May Contribute to “Wish List” to Combat Hunger
on Saturday, January 8 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.

Shoppers at Whole Foods Market at Charles River Plaza, Boston, now have the opportunity to participate in an innovative approach to ensuring that West End neighborhood seniors on fixed incomes and others struggling in the current harsh economy have nutritious, appealing food on their tables.

The novel “Wish List” food program will help to stock the ABCD West End Food Pantry located inside the West End Public Library at 151 Cambridge Street. The demand for food at the pantry has skyrocketed in recent months and staff members from Action for Boston Community Development (ABCD) are working with nearby Whole Foods Market to stock its shelves with healthy food for the seniors and families who depend upon it.

On Saturday, January 8 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., Whole Foods Market at 181 Cambridge Street, Boston, will have staff and volunteers from the ABCD North End/West End NSC distributing a “Wish List” to customers entering the store. The list is based on items that are frequently requested and that contribute to healthy nutrition. Shoppers are asked to consider purchasing one or more of the items from the list and then to leave donations with the ABCD crew on their way out of the store. The “Wish List” items will be highlighted on the shelves to make choices easy to find.

Whole Foods Market will also donate $500 worth of food from the “Wish List” which includes items that last on a shelf such as oatmeal, rice, dry beans, peanut butter and tuna fish.

Community

Holiday Appeal for ABCD North End / West End Neighborhood Service Center

A message from the ABCD NE/WE NSC: Happy holidays!  Many of the 2,400 clients we serve a year in the North End, West End, and surrounding neighborhoods are immigrants, elderly, non-English speaking, homebound, disabled, and alone.  They are the “hidden poor” and without the NE/WE NSC, would have been forced out long ago by gentrification, Read More…

Health & Environment

ABCD & Boston Shine Sponsor Open Enrollment Event

There are very important changes in Medicare plans and it is vital that seniors are aware of them and get solid advice regarding the plan that meets their needs. Advocates have expressed fear that without this advice seniors may end up going to their pharmacies in January and finding that their medicine is not covered.  Read More…

Event Notices People

North End Community Volunteer Honored at ABCD Dinner

North End community volunteer Rebecca Mattson is congratulated by keynote speaker Victoria Reggie Kennedy at the annual Community Awards Dinner of Action for Boston Community Development. Mattson made her mark managing numerous redevelopment projects in the city, including Boston Garden and Trinity Place. Vacating her former role as chief operating officer at Raymond Property Co., Read More…

Event Notices People

North End Community Hero, Rebecca Mattson, to be Honored at ABCD Awards Dinner

North End Community Hero to be Honored

at 36th Annual ABCD Community Awards Dinner, October 29

Victoria Reggie Kennedy to Keynote

FOX25 News Reporter Nicole Jacobs to Emcee

Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau’s ,

Pat Moscaritolo Chairs “Friends Committee

North End community hero Rebecca Mattson is among 28 honored for their contributions to the community at the Action for Boston Community Development (ABCD) 36th Annual Community Awards Dinner on Friday, October 29 at the Seaport World Trade Center. The dinner celebrates the voluntary efforts of individuals who work tirelessly to address and placate the plight of Boston’s underprivileged communities through voluntary leadership and service.

The North End/West End NSC acknowledges Rebecca Mattson for devoting her time, energy and talents to bettering the welfare of those less fortunate.

Until earlier this year, Rebecca was the Chief Operating Officer of Raymond Property Company in Boston. During her tenure, she was involved in numerous high-profile redevelopment projects, including the Boston Garden and Trinity Place in Copley Square. Having established herself as a reputable manager, she recently struck out on her own, currently developing innovative artist live/work housing in Lowell.

Impressed by the large impact the North End NSC has in the community, quietly out of sight of the many visitors that stream into the neighborhood, Rebecca was inspired to be a part of their efforts to help those in need. Despite a demanding career and young family, she is extraordinarily generous with her time, serving as a special member of the organization’s advisory board. She brings a repertoire of professional skills to the benefit of the agency and they people they serve.  Particularly deft in marketing, she quickly established herself as vital asset to the team, currently leading their fundraising efforts. Thanks to her vision, the NSC recently launched a new development campaign targeting new sources of revenue to off-set dwindling federal resources.

“Rebecca is such a warm and giving person, with a heart of gold,” says Lia Tota, Director of the North End/West End NSC. “Her days are amazingly full yet she still manages to find time for our community. Her boundless energy is an incredible motivator for me and my staff.”

Health & Environment

North End ABCD Center Offers Medicare Counseling

Medicare Annual Open Enrollment Approaches!

Don’t Miss Your Annual “SHINE” Check-up!

ABCD Urges Medicare Beneficiaries to Sign Up for Plan Assistance; Medicare Open Enrollment to Run Nov. 15 to Dec. 31

SHINE Counselors Available to Answer Questions

Many Medicare plans are changing next year and, for the first time in many years, SHINE leaders – Serving the Health Information Needs of Elders – are spreading out to Boston neighborhoods to answer questions and enroll beneficiary in the best plans for their needs.

“Plans have different deductibles, co-pays, covered drugs and restrictions,” said Elaine Cronin, Regional Director for Boston’s SHINE program, adding that Part D plans, for instance, are set to increase with monthly premiums ranging from $14.80 to $210.10.

Site hours, only available through reservation on a first call-first served basis by calling the Boston SHINE office at (617) 348-6226, will occur during the Medicare Annual Open Enrollment Period set to start November 15 and continue through December 31. Coverage will begin January 1, 2011.

Scheduled neighborhood sites include:

  • North End: Fridays, 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.
    at the ABCD North End/West End NSC, 1 Michelangelo St.
  • West End: Mondays, 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.
    in the West End Library, 151 Cambridge St.

Massachusetts General Hospital’s Senior HealthWISE members may call Krista Landsman at (617) 643-6304 to schedule appointments in the Amy Lowell House, Beacon House, or the Blackstone Building.

Medicare beneficiaries will be notified by mail if their plans are set to change. They are asked to visit www.medicare.gov to review plan costs and what is covered, compare them with other eligible plans, and choose a plan that meets their requirements and budget.

About SHINE:

Health & Environment

North End and West End Agencies Kick-off “Community Table” for Low Income Seniors

Community Table, a free lunch program for eligible senior citizens of the North End, West End and Beacon Hill, was recently celebrated at a kick-off event at Community Work Services at 174 Portland Street in Boston.   Over 50 senior residents of the local neighborhoods attended the kick-off luncheon as well as John Drew, President and Read More…

Community

New “Community Table” Program to Aid North End Seniors

North End/West End Agencies Join Together to Aid Seniors; Program Kick-off for “Community Table” on April 8 Community Table, a free program for eligible senior citizens of the North End, West End and Beacon Hill, will kick off on Thursday, April 8 at a gala luncheon celebration at Community Work Services at 174 Portland Street Read More…

Health & Environment

ABCD Center Accepting Donations to Fight Hunger

ABCD North End/West End Neighborhood Service Center Participates in the Annual Feinstein $1 Million Giveaway to Fight Hunger NOW THROUGH APRIL 30th Please send monetary donations, gift certificates for food, or non-perishable food items to the: ABCD North End/West End Neighborhood Service Center 1 Michelangelo Street Boston, MA 02113 (off Charter Street – in former Read More…

Community

Free Tax Preparation at North End ABCD Center

FREE TAX PREPARATION AVAILABLE FOR INCOME-ELIGIBLE MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY THROUGH APRIL 15th Our staff and volunteers are IRS-certified, and are fully capable of helping you find hundreds of dollars worth of tax credits for which you may not have even known you were eligible! ABCD North End/West End Neighborhood Service Center 1 Michelangelo Street Read More…