Above: NECC is shared their gratitude this month for community support and donations. (contributed photos)
New England Center for Children passed on some news items worth sharing and a Thank You to the community.
This month, Dunkin’ Donuts donated $10,000 to the Southborough based education and research center for children with autism. The donation came on the heels of NECC’s successful annual 5K fundraiser.
According to NECC’s letter of thanks, more than 1,500 runners/walkers raised $218,311. (That’s more that 10% more runners and over 20% more funds raised than last year!)
All those donations go towards NECC’s Annual Fund. Funds provide adaptive physical education equipment, communication devices for our non-verbal students, and technology to support vocational training and education. The donations also enable their students to participate in Special Olympics.
NECC’s CEO Vinnie Strully shared a letter thanking the community. (Read that here.) In it, he acknowledges the efforts of Town emergency personnel and officials and resident volunteers.
Strully also extends an invitation to the community for a ribbon cutting on October 17th for their new Autism Institute under construction at 33 Turnpike Road.
The building is funded under a separate capital campaign (not the annual fund donations). According to their Director of Operations, Beth McGonagle, the building will house the research division, Autism Curriculum Encyclopedia (ACE) development department and administrative and team offices. She explained:
In addition to being a school that educates children on the autism spectrum, a big part of NECC’s work involves the training and educating of special education teachers, specialists and clinicians. We have three onsite master’s degree programs for our teachers.
Dedicating the new building to those purposes will free up much needed space in the main building. NECC plans to substantially renovate the main building to improve student space including a dedicated music room, art room, student library, computer room and leisure center.
As for Dunkin Donuts’ donation, NECC shared that the grant was given on behalf of the Dunkin’ Donuts Baskin-Robbins Community Foundation (DDBRCF). Chief Development Officer Jared Bouzan thanked them for their generosity:
The New England Center for Children is honored and grateful for the generous contribution of the Dunkin’ Donuts Baskin-Robbins Community Foundation. . . These funds will be used to further educate, foster independence, and maximize the skills of children with autism.
Updated (5/28/16 6:48 pm): I accidentally misspelled NECC CEO Vinnie Strully’s name.
