When temperatures drop, heating bills can start to pile up for families across Massachusetts. Community advocacy groups say with pandemic unemployment and economic rollbacks, the number of people needing help to heat their homes this winter could soar. They told Boston 25 News anchor Kerry Kavanaugh, there is now a scramble for funding happening right now to make sure everyone…
The President and CEO of ABCD, John Drew, outlines emergency aid being provided (fuel, rental, housing, food assistance), heightened needs due to the pandemic, and efforts to enlist more support from the local community. WATCH NOW
The coronavirus pandemic didn’t stop the Salvation Army Massachusetts Division from hosting its annual Christmas Castle event in Dorchester Monday. About 5,000 families were able to get food and toys for Christmas, including Alice Ramos and her nephew. “This COVID’s been really hard. My sister tested out positive at the beginning of COVID and it made it difficult for her…
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEDecember 11, 2020 CONTACT: Cherrelle Norris617.455.7212 Susan Kooperstein617.875.3619 Put a smile on a child’s face.Make a difference during a challenging holiday season. Join in the ABCD Winter Fund 2020 Emergency Heating AssistanceRental/Housing AssistanceToy Drive DonationsClothing/Food Drive Requests for help are out-pacing donations in this difficult time: WE NEED YOU!Call 617-348-6559 TODAY During a normal year, New England’s bitter cold…
A toy drive for recently fired Boston hotel workers and their children brought a spark of holiday spirit in tough times as the call for donations also circulates across the city. Friday’s toy drive at the Marriott Copley and Revere Hotel organized by UNITE HERE Local 26 joined together struggling hotel employees who have lost work due to the pandemic, some…
In the nine months that the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged the U.S., the most vulnerable Americans have struggled to keep up with monthly expenses. Eight million Americans have fallen into poverty since May, and today, there are 10 million fewer employed people than there were before the pandemic. By quickly passing the $2.2 trillion CARES Act, Congress was able to stave off…
As winter approaches along with the persisting pandemic, more families are staying home. This means facing potential significant hikes in household heating bills. Fueling up a tank can cost anywhere from $200 to $500. Depending on the frequency of use, the tank may need to be refilled at least 3-4 times over the winter months. This is a significant cost,…
Is this holiday season shaping up as a replay of Charles Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol” without the redemption and joy of that story’s ending? It looks that way from David Abel’s pre-Thanksgiving story of food pantries across Massachusetts (“ ‘I’ve never seen anything like this kind of need,’ ” Page A1, Nov. 25). We at Action for Boston Community Development are…
This holiday season is punctuated by unrelenting need – a need sparked by pandemic-induced job loss in neighborhoods already afflicted by poverty, health and economic disparities, and racial inequity. Children, families and seniors in Dorchester and other city neighborhoods can’t wait any longer for the federal government to pass virus relief funding that will keep food on their tables and…
Lines at food pantries and soup kitchens normally grow around this time of year, but the pandemic has doubled them, aid workers say. With an unprecedented amount of need, relief centers are pooling their resources to make sure everyone is fed, though it may not be enough. ICNA Relief, a Muslim charity in Roxbury, has started a delivery service for…
