Hometown: New Town Fundraiser Brings in $2K for Sandy Hook Families
New Town’s “We Care” fundraiser raised $2,000 for families and victims of the December shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.
New Town’s recent “We Care” fundraiser brought in $2,000 to help families in Newtown, Conn., as they cope with a mass shooting at an elementary school that happened there on Dec. 14.
Local New Town residents and friends gathered last Saturday at Legacy Hall in Sullivan Square for an evening of music and food to help raise money for the Sandy Hook School Support Fund, a co-op created by the United Way of Western Connecticut and Newtown Savings Bank to help families and victims of the tragedy.
“I think the event went very well,” said Scott Grafton, owner of Iron-Bound Gym in New Town who helped to coordinate the fundraiser. “Attendance was a little lower than we hoped, but it was short notice and during the holidays, and we had bad weather, but the people who came really had a good time.”
Grafton said there were no expenses incurred for the event because all the food, raffle prizes, music and other items were donated by New Town businesses and other community groups, so all the proceeds could go directly to the people in Newtown affected by the shooting.
“A lot of people came together to help with this event,” Grafton said. “I am very pleased with the great show of community support and how we can work together as a community to help others.”
Grafton has received some additional checks in the mail from folks who could not attend but who still wanted to help, and he also said some New Town businesses are still collecting funds that will be submitted next week.
Businesses that participated in the fundraiser by donating time, talent or items included Cogan’s Deli, Opus 9, Buon Amici, Williamsburg Cupcakes, Ichiban, Martins, Sweet Frog, Art Café 26, Silk Salon, Iron-Bound Gym, Paisley, American Family Fitness, B-Defined, Fine Signs, Parlett’s Paper Expressions, Holland Designs, Williamsburg Event Rentals, Grand Rental, James City County, Williamsburg Host Lions, Chickahominy Masonic Lodge #286 and musicians Johnny St. Clair, John Spence and Doug Deberry.
The idea for the event came from Mike Putt of Old Point Realty – he suggested that New Town host a benefit for the town that shares its name. Grafton also had lots of help from Elaine Obie of Nationwide Insurance and New Town’s Catherine Upton.
Posted by Desiree Parker
on January 4, 2013. Filed under Hometown.
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2 Responses to Hometown: New Town Fundraiser Brings in $2K for Sandy Hook Families
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kat
January 4, 2013 at 11:10 am
Thank you for all those business and personal donations. It’s a great thing to show how much you care.
I agree 100% with the comment…having never understood why any private citizen ever needed to have access to assault weapons and large amounts of ammo.
Citizen
January 4, 2013 at 10:19 am
Excellent and Congratulations.
Now to REALLY honor and memorialize lost lives in Newtown, Blacksburg, and elsewhere, call your elected officials today and urge them to ban assault weapons and massive ammo clips. No self-respecting sportsman or American needs those.