WILMINGTON, MA — The Charity Girls of Northeast Massachusetts, an innovative philanthropic group of women from the greater North Shore and Merrimack Valley, met recently to distribute the collective $16,500 raised during the past year. A representative of each of the six deserving North of Boston charitable organizations received a check at a celebratory dinner on December 3rd in Georgetown.
“Charity Girls of Northeast, Massachusetts is extremely pleased to be able to distribute grants that will enhance the programs of several organizations North of Boston. Participating in this group provides a tangible opportunity to positively impact our communities,” said Jude Martino, Founder, Charity Girls of Northeast Massachusetts.
One of the group’s grant recipients was the Hope and Friendship Metastatic Breast Cancer Foundation of Wilmington.
The Hope and Friendship Metastatic Breast Cancer Foundation enhances the lives of women and men with a diagnosis of Metastatic Breast Cancer (Stage IV), and their families, North of Boston. The foundation offers FREE programs and services including: a support group for patients, resources for learning and networking, therapeutic symptom management activities, scholarships to national breast cancer conferences, creative retreats, and bereavement programs for families. The foundation also supports research focused on Metastatic (Terminal) Breast Cancer treatments.
The Charity Girls of Northeast Massachusetts is an innovative philanthropic group of two dozen women from the greater North Shore and Merrimack Valley. Started by Jude Martino as a creative way to support non-profit organizations in her community, and imitating a similar group in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. Charity Girls is modeled after a traditional giving circle that allows members to collectively raise money, decide on the use of those funds, and make donations to charities of their choice.
In return for a year-long commitment and a monthly donation, each member enjoys a tax-deductible dinner with friends and the ability to be a philanthropist in her community. Members team up to host one dinner per year in their homes, and invite a local charity to present to the group. Annually, the Charity Girls vote to grant a portion of their combined funds to causes of their choice.
The Essex County Community Foundation (ECCF) collects the pooled donations and manages the fund affording the group the benefits of non-profit status without the administrative tasks involved. The Charity Girls NEMA Fund was established at ECCF in October 2009, and the first dinner was held in November of that year.
By the end of 2015, its sixth year, Charity Girls had raised and distributed a total of $91,500 to twenty-four different non-profit charitable organizations.
(NOTE: The above press release is from the Charity Girls of Northeast Massachusetts and was posted on the Hope & Friendship Metastatic Breast Cancer Foundation’s website.)
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