By Melanie Petrucci, Senior Community Reporter
Photo/Melanie Petrucci
Shrewsbury – It is never too early to start teaching children about giving. Beth Hurley, director of God’s Little Children Preschool in Shrewsbury, and her students presented a check for $360 to Fisher House in Boston May 15.
“Every year we celebrate [the New England Youth Coalition’s] Week of the Young Child [through] the National Association of Education of Young Children,” Hurley explained. “Every year we do a fundraiser in relation to that, helping kids.”
This year, the idea stemmed from one of the school’s teachers, Alyson Kent, whose husband is in the military.
“She suggested we do Fisher House in Boston,” Hurley stated.
Fisher House Boston is a “home away from home” where military families can stay while a loved one is receiving treatment at a VA medical center or facility. All veteran or active military personnel, wartime or peacetime, are eligible.
Beginning in April, families of the students, who range in age from 2.9 to five years of age, were asked to make a donation to the cause.
Hurley said, “This is a great charity and it was close to our hearts because Alyson’s family has moved all over the country with the military…One of our students has a father serving in the military as well.”
Andi Piscopo, representing Fisher House, was on hand to receive the check and she was thrilled to be there.
“Every little bit helps to help a family and we are very grateful,” she said. “This is fantastic; getting the kids started at a young age really helps them grow. Coming from a military family, this helps bridge the gap between the military and civilian divide.”
This donation will go to the Fisher House Hotel Program that has housed over 1,000 families for over 6,000 nights, saving military families over $1 million in hotel costs while loved ones receive medical care.
To learn more about Fisher House Boston, visit www.fisherhouseboston.org.
