The New England Gas Company employees from the Construction and Maintenance Department recently initiated a toy drive to benefit Citizens for Citizens’ (CFC’s) Operation Christmas.  Rick Enright, Gas Distribution Manager, and Paul Leite, NEGC Chief Steward, UWUA Local 369, organized the effort.  

“These are very difficult economic times and this toy drive was our way of bringing some joy to families in need during this holiday season”, stated Mr. Enright.

On December 15th, Barbara Travis, Director of Operation Christmas, visited the Company’s Anawan Street facility in Fall River to thank the employees and accept the presents.  “New England Gas Company continues to be a big supporter of Operation Christmas.  It is amazing, but the employees have managed to surprise me again this year.
There were so many donations, that a flat bed and dolly had to be used to deliver the gifts!”

New England Gas Company is a supporter of many community charities in the greater Fall River and North Attleboro service areas. Headquartered in Fall River, Massachusetts, it serves over 50,000 residential and commercial customers in Massachusetts.  It is a division of Southern Union Company.

The 25th annual Citizens for Citizens, Inc. (CFC) Operation Christmas Telethon was held at the New Harbor Mall in Fall River on December 2 through December 4. Operation Christmas purchases and distributes new toys to families in the Greater Fall River area in order to ensure that even families struggling with poverty are able to provide gifts from Santa Claus for their children on Christmas Day.

Barbara Travis, the long-time CFC Director of Operation Christmas, was present during the broadcast of the Telethon, overseeing the hard-working volunteer staff and greeting local dignitaries who lent their support and encouragement to this worthy endeavor.

Many of the same volunteers participate every year, helping in any way they can, be it answering the phones to record bids on auction items or bringing the bids to volunteers who change the prices for auctioned items on the “big” board. Other volunteers record the winning bids and ensure that the identity of each auction winner is verified. Students from the B.M.C. Durfee High School FRED TV Program broadcast the entire three days of telethon activities to cable Channel 17 in Fall River Channel 9 in Somerset and Channel 98 on Swansea public access cable channels also carried the live feed from FRED TV.

Fall River Mayor William Flanagan and State Senator Michael Rodrigues made an appearance at the Telethon headquarters to encourage bidding on the items donated by local businesses, charitable groups, and Operation Christmas individual supporters, along with other city and state officials lending their enthusiastic in-person support to the event.

Items available to this year’s auction bidders included two Amazon Kindles, Boston Celtics tickets, flat screen TV’s,  and many other electronic items.

Not only were there many useful and interesting items being auctioned off during the Telethon, but there was also seasonal entertainment being provided by area youth singing groups, and musicians playing live music for the crowds of shoppers at the New Harbor Mall. Area restaurants provided a delicious bounty of food and beverages for the volunteers.

A group of local Morton Middle School students are learning in a hands-on fashion about helping families that are suffering from economic hard times in their own city.

The CFC Food Pantry recently received donations of both food and money from the Fall River Morton Middle School’s Comets Care community service group.Comets Care is an after-school club for 8th grade students that focuses on involvement in the local community, under the leadership of Morton Principal Sheila Fisher and teachers Kathy Kelly, Chris Blanchette, Jennifer Brakefield,Dawn Farinha,Karen Ouellette and Audrey Viera.

The students in the Comets Care club found several inventive ways to help the Citizens for Citizens, Inc. Food Pantry in its mission of providing bags of healthy food to low-income families and individuals on a monthly basis. The 8th grade students in Comets Care held a bake sale during this fall’s parent-teacher conferences with a total of $300 in profits made to support the food distribution services of the CFC Food Pantry, along with  monies  raised by soliciting donations directly from Morton Middle School staff members

Citizens for Citizens, Inc. is very appreciative of the Food Pantry contributions made by the Comets Care club members. These youngsters are learning at an early age that it can be rewarding and satisfying to help others in need in their local community.