By Dakota Antelman, Contributing Writer
Photo/submitted
Marlborough – Santa came early to the region December 11 and his first stop was a Marlborough hotel. With the holiday season in full swing, the Marlborough Regional Chamber of Commerce and the nonprofit Kits for Kidz partnered at the Holiday Inn in Marlborough with the goal of building 200 kits for area teenagers whose loved ones may not be able to afford a gift for this Christmas. A larger than expected turnout for the event actually yielded 275 kits.
“We wanted to bring the community together, and have some fun,” said Jay Johnston of Kits for Kidz. “We also wanted to work with the Chamber of Commerce to create the Networking with a Purpose event to bring more awareness to the children in our surrounding communities who need assistance year-round.”
While Kits for Kidz’ work benefits children of all ages, Johnston noted this event focused solely on teenagers for a particular reason.
“Many times, younger children get most of the attention this time of year, while teenagers get passed over,” he said, later adding, “It’s tough to buy gifts for teenagers, so we had a special event to focus on providing the proper gift.”
With the event now in the past, United Way Tri-County will deliver the kits to teens across the MetroWest area. Still excited about surpassing their initial 200 kit goal, Johnston, Kits for Kidz in general and the chamber are grateful to the community at large for making everything possible, whether their support came through donations or other support.
“Community participation is paramount to our goal,” Johnston said. We want to put smiles on both children and adults, and at every event we’ve done, everyone has a really fun time…We’re looking forward to having this Networking with a Purpose event in the upcoming years.”
Donations to future Kits for Kidz events can be made at https://www.buildkits.org.
