MGH Institute of Health Professions President Janis Bellack, left, donates $1,500 to Charlestown YMCA Director Steve Telesmanick to support the Dennis McLaughlin House, which is housed at the YMCA.
The faculty, staff, students, and alumni of the MGH Institute community have come together to generously support several charities in Charlestown and other worthy organizations during this season of giving. The organizations supported include:
• Dennis McLaughlin House, Charlestown. The Institute contributed $1,500 to help support homeless mothers who are recovering from drug or alcohol addiction and striving to return to the workforce. The 20-year-old non-profit organization is housed in the Charlestown YMCA in the Charlest0wn Navy Yard.
• Harvest on Vine Food Pantry, Charlestown. Organized by the Office of Student Affairs and the Student Government Association, cereal, peanut butter and jelly, canned vegetables and fruits, soup, and rice were donated to the non-profit, which serves Charlestown residents regardless of race, religion, or way of life.
• Charlestown Boys and Girls Club. The Shoes4Kids! Initiative provided shoes for nearly 50 children, and was sponsored by the Physical Therapy Club.
• Charlestown Chamber of Commerce. The Institute sponsored holiday wreaths which are displayed on street pole lights along Main Street and Bunker Hill Street.
• Charlestown Against Drugs (CHAD) Winter Coat Drive. The Institute contributed $300 to support the purchase of ten children’s winter coats.
• Sante Fanm Ak Lafanmi, Boston. More than 100 toys for children in Haiti were donated to this non-profit, founded by MGH Institute School of Nursing graduate Sherline Chery-Morisset ’06. The toys were the “price of admission” to the Institute’s annual employee holiday party.
• Salvation Army, Boston. Clothing and toys for 35 needy Boston children were distributed through the organization’s Angel Tree Program, sponsored by the MGH Institute Staff Council.
• Community Servings, Boston. Organized by the MGH Institute Staff Council, 27 pies were bought through the non-profit’s Pie in the Sky bake sale, with 90% of the proceeds, going to feed 1,300 critically ill and homebound residents in Eastern Massachusetts.
• Holiday Mail for Heroes. Organized by the Office of Student Affairs, members of the Institute community wrote holiday messages on more than 200 cards that were delivered through the American Red Cross to service members in all branches of the military who are either deployed, or have been wounded and are receiving treatment in the hospital.
“I am so proud of the spirit of giving and generosity displayed by our students, staff, and faculty that these charitable gifts represent,” said President Jan Bellack. “They are one more way the Institute supports the needs of our community neighbors and beyond.”
MGH Institute of Health Professions, founded by Massachusetts General Hospital in 1977, is an innovative and independent graduate school in Boston that is a member of Partners HealthCare. A progressive leader in developing compre-hensive models of health care education, the MGH Institute prepares advanced practice professionals in the fields of nursing, physical therapy, and speech-language pathology through a distinctive combination of academic study, clinical practice, and research. More than 1,200 students are enrolled in graduate level and certificate programs, with an increasing number of courses available online. The Institute is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC).