November is a time to be grateful – grateful for our family & friends, grateful for our health, and grateful for a wonderful community where we live! It’s also a time to be grateful to others around you. FairfieldMoms has put together Ways to Give Back to Our Community this month to give families of Fairfield a chance to lend a helping hand, whether it is a small gesture or a large one. Read more below about how you can get involved with helping others this Holiday season!
Al’s Angels
November 29th (6:30pm – 9:30pm) – Saugatuck Bridge Lighting Fundraiser (Westport)
Donut Crazy • Hot Cocoa & Spike Cocoa • Popcorn • Hot Dog Cart & Sundaes & MORE! Click here for tickets! Hosted by The Saugatuck Rowing Club. Proceeds to benefit Al’s Angels.
November 30th – January 1st – Holiday Toy Drive
As we approach the holiday season and prepare to celebrate with family and friends, please remember that there are countless children who suffer from cancer, blood diseases and financial hardships, all right within our reach. Al’s Angels was able to collect, wrap and distribute 15,000 toys last year and our hope is to increase that number. We have our toy boxes out and ready to receive your donations of new unwrapped toys. You can shop Amazon too! More info here!
December 7th (7am – 5pm) – Christmas and Hanukkah Meal Assembly
Sign up here!
Basket Brigade
November 23rd (10am – 12pm)
Join a dedicated group of volunteers to provide Thanksgiving dinner to families in need. Since 1993 we have fed over 40,000 people, delivering baskets with a turkey and all the sides for a traditional Thanksgiving meal to families in Bridgeport and surrounding communities, and we need your help to meet our 2019 goal of delivering 300 baskets! Sign up here!
Bridgeport Rescue Mission
November 20th – 26th – Great ThanksGiving Project
We’ll provide 3,200 families in need with a turkey and bag of fixings so that they can prepare a home-cooked Thanksgiving meal. We’ll also give out 15,000 winter coats, along with hats, gloves, scarves, and socks. Here’s how you can be part in this outpouring of compassion and hope – click here!
Blanket & Bedtime Bag Giveaway
Each Christmas we bring comfort to the homeless and working poor with a special Blanket Give-Away. Adults and kids alike will each receive a blanket, to ensure they’ll be warm during the cold winter months. Children will also receive a Bedtime Bag filled with a book, a small stuffed animal, a children’s toothbrush & toothpaste plus washcloth with mild soap. Click here to learn more!
Cesar Batalla School
November 1st – March 30th, 2020 – 1 Million Good Nights Pajama Program
Please join the Bridgeport Public Schools in collecting new pajamas and new books for local needy children.
Connecticut Food Bank
Learn more about how you can donate or volunteer here! Their Mobile Food Pantry Schedule can be found here!
Fairfield Parks & Rec
November 20th (7pm) – Thanksgiving Fowl Shooting Contest & Food Drive
Hosted at North Stratfield Elementary School. WIN A THANKSGIVING TURKEY! It’s a fowl day for turkeys when contestants get to shoot basketballs for them. Participants are divided into age categories, Kindergarten through Adult, and winners are decided by the most foul shots made per 10 tries. This event is sponsored by the Town Youth Council and will aid Operation Hope. Participants will be given ten shots for every non-perishable food item they bring (max # of foul shots is 40). If participants arrive late, a lesser # of foul shots will be given. Winners from each age category will be awarded a Thanksgiving Turkey! Winners must be present at 7:45 pm.
Homes for The Brave
Learn more about how you can donate or volunteer here!
LIVFREE
December 8th (5pm – 7:30pm) – Winter Wonderland
Westport PAL Rink at Longshore
Come enjoy a special night out with ice skating, an appearance from Santa, Holiday Carols from Green Farms Academy and a campfire from the Westport Fire Department. Bring an unwrapped toy to support Al’s Angels. All proceeds will directly benefit children fighting cancer.
Operation Hope
Learn more about how you can donate or volunteer here! Also, here is a direct link to Amazon to help Operation Hope keep their pantry filled!
The Black Rock Food Pantry
Learn more about how you can donate or volunteer here!
Food Drives
Check your local school or places of worship! Many are holding their own food drives to support a local cause.
Neighborhoods:
December 7th (11am – 4pm) – Stratfield Village Holiday House Tour
The tour will showcase five houses of varied architectural styles decorated for the holidays. While the tour is a fun, festive way to kick-off the holiday season, it is also a fundraiser for the SVA to support building community through neighborhood beautification efforts, community activities, and historical preservation. A portion of the funds raised from last year’s House Tour was used to landscape the traffic island on the corner of Putting Green Road and Stratfield Road, and ongoing maintenance of this area will also be paid for out of these funds. Proceeds from last year’s House Tour also funded grants to the North Stratfield School and Stratfield School PTAs to support beautification efforts in each school.
Restaurants:
November 28th (6am – 11am) – Chip’s Family Restaurant
All proceeds benefiting Operation Hope of Fairfield’s efforts to end hunger and end homelessness.
If you know of any events / volunteer opportunities, please send them to [email protected] so we can add them here!