2024 Mission: “Remembering Barbara’s Love for Others”; Isaiah House

Greetings in Thanksgiving! We are excited to kick off our 16th Holiday Mission!

Whether you are new to our work or someone – and there are many – who have been with us over the years, THANK
YOU! In 2007, we decided to no longer purchase gifts for each other or our friends and family. Instead, we commit a minimum of $3,000 a year to help those in need. We reach out to our friends & family and ask that rather than exchanging gifts with one another, that they donate to our mission, and the rest as they say, is history. Fifteen Missions later with $185,497 raised not including items purchased individually and donated, our community of love is strong.

We lost a beloved friend this year. We met Barbara at an event years ago. She told us of her commitment to Isaiah House and their efforts to help those with housing insecurities. We were taken aback when later that year, we received her generous donation to our mission. We assumed she had her own mission to support. She generously supported our work throughout the years. At her funeral services, we learned from so many people how Barbara donated her time, energy and financial resources to help so many in need. She did this quietly and often in the background doing so many things that were kind and so touching. We were inspired by her legacy and knew this year’s mission would be a perfect way to honor & celebrate her love for others. Supporting the Isaiah House was the perfect way!

Facing challenges as a young person is difficult enough, let alone having to face those challenges during housing instability or even worse, becoming homeless. Isaiah House’s Mission is to create safe, sustainable and affordable housing units in Western Rockingham County, New Hampshire through alternative housing for families and individuals who are housing insecure. They provide supportive services, financial assistance, and life skills training to develop self-sufficiency. Many parents work; however, with increasing costs they have fallen into hard times and become homeless.

Our goal this year is to help 25 children, 26 Adults, and if possible 30 homeless people living out of their cars. If we have extra funds, we will help stock the food pantry and supplies needed for their shower area. Toys, Clothes, Educational Books, Household Items, games and family experiences are all on the list of items to purchase. We are always happy to shop for you. For those who would like to purchase items on your own, contact Dan at 978-944-8444 or at daploof@hotmail.com and he will be happy to provide a list of needed items. 100% of donations go directly to the Mission.
We are a 501(c)(3) Tax ID# 84-3094813. Checks can be made out directly to Foundation Dario, Inc. and mailed to P.O. Box 1192, Groton MA 01450. We have a Venmo Account: Daniel Ploof @Foundation-Dario.

Please have your donations in by December 15th

We are still in our apartment searching for our new home so we are not able to host our annual wrapping party. Thanks
to Isaiah House though, we are trying something new this year. We are going to host a gift-wrapping party for the children
with food, party games, activities and of course wrapping their parent’s gifts. Kids upstairs while parents wrap gifts for
their children downstairs. Stay tuned for our follow-up letter with fundraising results and personal experiences.

Happy Holiday’s! With Tremendous Love & Gratitude,

“Celebrating our 15th Year”
This Year’s 2023 Mission

!Si, Se Puede! “Yes, It Is Possible” Program

!Si, Se Puede! Inc. was founded in 1985 in response to the articulated needs of families who live in very low-income
housing in the Merrimack Courts and surrounding lower Tower Hill neighborhood in Lawrence. !Si, Se Puede! has
provided continuous services to youth and their families growing from a grassroots outreach to a vibrant center of
educational and social opportunities through:

After School Program [Grades 1-8]:
Provides safe space for educational support of 1:1 homework assistance; Access to computers, printers &
internet; Small group activities that encourage cooperation and creativity; opportunities to take art classes at the
Essex Art Center; Guidance for 8th graders transitioning into high school; Mentoring and support; Nutritious
after-school lunches; Field trips

High School Work/Study Program [Grades 9-12]:
Provides graduates of the after-school program the opportunity to be small group leaders at !Si, Se Puede! along
with students from Phillips Academy. In exchange for hours worked participants receive financial assistance for
educational pursuits. Safe Space to gather, College Applications, College Tours, Scholarship Essay Writing,
Mentoring, Sex Ed, Community Service.

Project Away 5-Week Summer Program:
Provides learning/enrichment experiences for youth who completed the !Si, Se Puede! after-school program.
Project Away provides both on site and field trip experiences. The structure and activities are designed to
emphasize community building, respect for differences and cooperation. Nutritious lunches are part of each
day’s program. All activities are done in small groups to provide individual attention/adequate supervision. Each
year young people eagerly anticipate the start of Project Away.

Your Donation Today will help us Purchase

School Supplies, Youth Holiday Wish List Items & A Make-Over for their Current Space

Greetings in Gratitude!

We are excited to kick off our 14th Holiday Mission! If you are new to our work, thank you so much for your interest in helping us this year! If you are someone – and there are many – who have been with us over the years, THANK YOU so much for your commitment and dedication
to our work! In 2007, Mario and I decided to commit $3,000 of our money to help those in need during the Holidays. We reach out to friends & family and ask that rather than exchanging gifts with one another, that they donate to our mission. Thirteen missions later with $108,500 raised [not including items purchased individually and donated], our community of love is alive & strong. What a gift!

Did you know there are almost 24,000 students currently experiencing homelessness across the State of Massachusetts? The number has been trending upward; however, there has not been a pandemic-related uptick thanks to the eviction moratorium, rental relief funds, and other programs. School support systems are concerned that the numbers will increase dramatically when the moratorium ends. Across the state, schools are becoming a resource for much more than education. We came to meet Arlin Santiago a few years ago when we included her homeless students in a few of our missions. As the Homeless Education Liaison for the Lawrence Public School system, Arlin is dedicated to each and every one of the currently 160 homeless students who have come to rely on her as a resource in their times of greatest need.
Facing the challenges of being a young person are difficult enough, let alone having to face those challenges during housing instability and food insecurity. Many of the student’s parents are working; however, with increasing costs, especially with food and rent, they have fallen on
to hard times. Of course, many of them would love to be able to support their children financially with say a pair of sneakers so they can join the basketball team or pay for a child to attend an after-school field trip, provide art supplies to a child who wants to become an artist, or money to shop at a bookstore; unfortunately, they need to allocate their financial resources to substantive priorities. We want to help these students who are not able to access such programs and related items so they can feel like everyone else. Yes, we have supported Arlin with many shoes and winter coats in the past and there may be some we help this year as well; however, Arlin is focused as we speak on sending out a survey to each of the students asking what they would like to do with regard to a school-related activity or community program.
Feedback will guide us on how we can best help students individually or in groups to gain access to these extra-curricular activities. Arlin also works with Project Home Again who provide essential items such as bedding, pillows, dishes, silverware, mattresses etc. to students and their
families who have found housing and need items to get them established again. Arlin will let us know of situations where a student is in real need of something right now and we will work with Project Home Again to supplement needed items.

As with each of our missions, we prioritize our ability to provide for everyone based on monies raised. We feel significantly challenged with this mission since our goal is to impact as many of the 160 students as possible. We are blessed with your tremendous generosity and know
each of you will provide us with the necessary funds to help achieve our goal. Together we can support these students who deserve access to programs that will help them grow personally while also feeling equal amongst their peers. 100% of donations raised will go directly to helping us purchase items. Donation can be made directly to Foundation Dario, Inc. [a 501(C)(3)] at P.O. Box 1192, Groton MA 01450 or through our Venmo Account Daniel Ploof @Foundation-Dario. We are always happy to shop for you. For those of you who would like to purchase items on your own, please reach out to Dan directly [978-944-8444 or at daploof@hotmail.com

It would be super helpful if all donations were to arrive before December 16th.

As we are still in our apartment searching for our new home, logistics make it a challenge to host an open house for gift wrapping this year.
Stay tuned for our follow-up letter and photos though to hear of our collective fundraising results!
If you have not had an opportunity to check out our website, please visit us at Foundationdario.org
With Tremendous Love & Gratitude,

Season’s Greetings!

Who knew that 13 Years, 11 Missions, and $72,616 dollars ~ not including items purchased outside of these funds raised ~ later that your constant love and generous financial support would inspire us to create Foundation Dario, Inc. 

Being a teenager is hard enough let alone facing remote-learning, limited access to socialization and the stresses of experiencing parents losing a job all as a result of COVID. As we thought about how to help these kids, Marya, a dear friend and dedicated contributor since 2007 brought St. Stephen’s Youth Programs (SSYP) [ssypboston.org] to our attention. 

As Boston implemented new phases of COVID restrictions, SSYP brought 35 teens [ages 15-18] together for an 8-week Virtual Internship that offered 5-7 hours a week in programming with a minimum of one hour in each of the following four core areas: Social & Emotional Support, College & Career Planning, Civics & Organizing and Academic Tutoring.  Teens receive a $400 stipend upon completion. Many use this money to support their families. The stipend is only a small part of this gift.  Before we sent our letter to you, we connected with program leaders and two teen participants.  

Viviana and Daisy communicated and validated for us the real GIFT! 

“I don’t know what I would be doing if this program did not exist.  I guess I would try to find a job at a grocery store.  This program helped me see I am not alone and other kids my age are experiencing the same emotional issues that I am.  This program allowed me the confidence to get on this zoom call to talk with you.   The career panel guests opened my eyes to pursue other careers outside of what I only thought were possible for me.”  – Viviana

“I have learned so much about civic responsibility like the importance of voting and the greater needs that exist in my own community.  As a result of this program, I have participated in work groups, learned about root causes, and have enjoyed working with others to analyze and take actions that will help resolve these problems.”  – Daisy

Although more than 20 teens have applied for the next program, we have committed to the first 20 stipends for $8,000.  Current Mission Balance is $4,800.  [$700 Received after last Mission, $1,100 from Dan’s Book & our $3,000 donation.]

We hope our 501(C)(3) status helps us to raise even more money to surpass our goal and include additional teens. 
This year every contributor will have an opportunity to meet all of the teens on a virtual celebration event. More to follow in our Thank You letter. For those who would like to be an active participant in a program, please contact Dan. COVID may not allow us to gather and wrap gifts this year; however, our good work continues.  We would like to receive all donations by 12/23/20.  Please make checks payable to Foundation Dario, Inc.   FoundationDario.org goes live on 12/7/20!

Thank you so much for making our 2019 Mission a tremendous Success!

Together we raised $9,058! That breaks down to $5,323 in cash donations, $400 written directly to North Star, our personal donation of $3,005 and $330 in Kohl’s cash. That puts us over $67,000 raised for our 11 years of missions and this does not include the cost of the individual items purchased outside of the cash donations.

The team at North Star Family Services and the six families we helped were so appreciative of all you did for them. In 2003 Bonnie Hathaway saw the need for homeless family services in Leominster. She approached her church and joined forces with others in her community. After a generous private benefactor purchased a home in Leominster she and her network now offer 5 homeless families at a time a place to live and receive services they need to get back on their feet.

Our total donation to the Shelter was $6,597.74 which breaks down this way: $4,558.06 used to purchase items donated directly to the shelter such as 5 small refrigerator’s, 25 blankets, 50 bed sets with sheets and pillow cases, 50 bath towels, shampoo, shaving cream, razor blades, brushes, deodorant, lotions, tooth paste, hand creams, games, shower caddies and laundry baskets. $2,039.68 was used to purchase items for the 6 families such as toys, clothes, blankets, diapers, baby wipes, gift cards for food, gas & clothing. For the $400 in checks written directly to North Star, we were able to have them purchase additional gifts cards. Again, these numbers do not reflect total cost of items so many of you purchased on your own.

In addition to helping North Star, $2,040.67 was used to purchase winter coats, boots, gloves and hats for 25 children in the Lawrence Public School system currently living in shelters. Thank you Arlin for making us aware of these children. t

Special thanks to Deborah & Larry for those late evenings helping us organize everything. Thank you Mo for bringing us to COSTCO to shop and load up the van, thank you for also making the other large shopping spree on your own mind you in a snowstorm and for finding that final size 10 boys winter boot we needed. Thank you Steve for making a large shopping run on your own at COSTCO and for helping us set up the food at the party. Thank you Gabby for entertaining us with Holiday Music on your piano. Thank you Ken for making the Chili for our party and to you and Ilene for helping us deliver everything. Special thanks to Mike, Carlos and Arlin for helping us load cars and trucks for delivery. Big thanks to each of the 35 elves that showed up for the wrapping party. We appreciate everyone more than you know!

Foundation Dario is very much alive because of you! Fingers crossed that we will receive the final IRS approval shortly so we can start planning a celebratory launch!

You are an integral part of our foundation! Together we make a difference!

We appreciate your love & support!

Our 11th Year of Holiday Missions is upon us! Our plan for this letter was to announce we were officially a 501(C)(3); however, although not yet, we are happy to report we have incorporated with the State of MA, we have an EIN and are awaiting the final approval from the IRS. Foundation Dario is very much alive and will be official soon! More to follow…

Over the past 10 years we have raised over $58,000 to help children at an orphanage in Costa Rica, homeless adults at a shelter in Haverhill, poor children at a school in Cambodia, families in crisis during the holiday in Groveland, children impacted by HIV throughout New England, Brenda a young girl with Cerebral Palsy have the Quinceanera of her dreams, homeless LGBT youth in Cambridge, families in Lawrence impacted by the devastating storm in Puerto Rico, of course the year we all performed random acts of kindness and shared our stories and last year when we delivered 6019 lbs. of food to Loaves & Fishes Food Pantry in Ayer. Through each and every Mission, together, WE have made an IMPACT!

For those of you who are new to our Holiday Mission – eleven years ago we looked at what we were spending on holiday shopping and decided to use that money to help those we felt were more in need. We let you, our friends and family know that instead of exchanging gifts, we would prefer a donation to our Mission. We donate the first $3,000 and you, our friends and family continue to amaze us with your additional love and support.

This year finds us literally following the North Star. In 2003 Bonnie Hathaway saw the need for homeless family services in her community of Leominster. She approached her church and joined forces with the Montachusett Interfaith Hospitality Network (MIHN) and started housing homeless families in local churches; however, due to strict fire and building codes had to seek other housing locations. In 2015 a generous private benefactor purchased a home in Leominster that affords 5 families a place to live and receive services they need to get back on their feet. In 2019, MIHN changed their name to North Star Family Services, Inc.

This year’s mission has us working on a wish list from each of the 5 current families living at North Star along with items needed for the home. As in all years, if you would prefer to send a cash donation, we would be happy to do the shopping for you. To ensure we are able to provide each of the personally requested items, we have not included the list with this letter to avoid duplication. For those who choose to shop for items yourselves, please reach out to us directly at daploof@hotmail.com or SuperLMario2014@gmail.com and we can provide you with a list of items not yet purchased. Please bring your items to our Open House Wrapping Party on Sunday December 22nd between 1PM-5PM. We love seeing our home fill with gifts, the energy being created as we all wrap and the reactions of those who are impacted by our collective efforts to help those in need. If you are not able to attend, we would be happy to coordinate a time to pick up your donated items.

Here’s to another great Mission! Best Wishes for a Joyous Holiday Season!

With So Much Love,

Our 10th Year of Holiday Missions is upon us! Our plan for this letter was to announce we had incorporated as a 501(C)(3) and let you know of the rather large event we were going to be hosting; however, this did not happen. Now with this said, Foundation Dario is very much alive and will be official soon. In the meantime, we are so happy we decided ten years ago to let you, our friends and family know that instead of exchanging gifts, we would prefer a donation to our Mission. Each year we donate the first $3,000 and you, our friends and family continue to amaze us with your additional love and support. Over the these 9 years we have raised over $52,000 to help children at an Orphanage in Costa Rica, Homeless Adults at a Shelter in Haverhill, Poor Children at a School in Cambodia, Families in Crisis During the Holiday in Groveland, Children Impacted by HIV throughout New England, Brenda a young girl with Cerebral Palsy have the Quinceanera of her dreams, Homeless LGBT Youth in Cambridge, Families in Lawrence impacted by the devastating storm in Puerto Rico and of course the year we all performed Random Acts of Kindness and shared our stories and their impact. Through each and every Mission, WE have made an IMPACT!

This year finds us in a funny situation where a mission has not revealed it self, leaving us last minute and a bit delayed in getting this letter to you. As we discerned a bit, we realized that no matter what, there are many within our own communities struggling to make ends meet, not always who you would think. Many living like us until a life-altering event impacts their main source of income for their family. What if we could help fill a pantry with food and other items for those in need? Loaves & Fishes Food Pantry, LLC, a 501(C)(3) non-profit in Ayer has been doing this for our surrounding communities since 1983. We recently met a few folks who support this great organization and loved the power of One Green Bag campaign. It is simple. Provide bags to those you know and coordinate pick up.

Our Mission this year is to fill at a minimum, 100 of these bags. We know we can exceed this! You always help us too! As in all years, if you would prefer to send a cash donation, we would be happy to do the shopping for you. For those who choose to shop yourselves, please bring your items to our Open House on Sunday December 16th between 1PM-7PM. We will have green bags you can fill. We will also have the items we have purchased with our personal contribution and your cash donations that will need to be placed into bags. We love seeing our home fill with our gifts and the reactions of those who are here feeling the energy of our collective efforts. If you are not able to attend, we would be happy to coordinate a time to pick up your donated items. All non-perishable items are needed. For other ideas or to learn about the organization, please visit loavesfishespantry.org.

Here’s to another great Mission! Together we make a difference!

Big Love,

“Soon to be” Foundation Dario

As we enter the month of Love, what a great time to thank each of you for your generous love and contribution to our 2013 Holiday Mission in Cambodia!

Because of you, we raised $3,170! Combined with our personal contribution of $3,000, we had $6,170. When one of Suwannee’s customers heard what we were doing, he contributed $2,000. The final Result: $8,170!

We are forever grateful to Suwanne, Stanley, Yuwaree, Yuri & Manee for coordinating everything! Without you, the mission would not have been possible.

Each child personally received a pant & jacket outfit along with a backpack filled with school supplies. For the school, we purchased volleyballs, basketballs, soccer balls, badminton supplies, nets, a ping pong table, jump ropes, pencils, pens, erasers, pencil sharpeners, rulers, notebooks, pencil boxes, coloring books, crayons, and water color paint supplies. We purchased chalkboards for each of the three classrooms and of course a big supply of chalk! We had also planned to build a playground; however, the teachers felt two more toilets and a new roof were much more of a priority. As we speak, construction is underway on the toilets, roof and for new panels on the outside of the school that will allow additional protection during the rainy season. We want to send you pictures of the final project. To ensure we have your email, please email us at: lmarioalvarez@hotmail.com

Because of you, 243 children, their respective teachers, friends, family and folks in town are forever grateful to you and what you did for them. As the trucks were being unloaded, we gave each child a bag of cookies and some milk and were able to spend time getting to know each other. We were humbled with their overall happiness and calm gentle spirits while living in such a challenging environment. We were struck by their extreme intelligence and eagerness to speak English and get to know us.

We noticed many children without shoes and knew we wanted to see what we could do. Upon returning home, we found a few more checks in the mail. After a final reconciliation, we identified additional funds. Although shy of what is needed to purchase 243 pairs, the $490 will allow 163 of the most in need to receive a pair.

As each child was given their items, they would bring their hands together as if they were about to pray and would place their hands under their chins and bow to us in a warm gesture of a truly heartfelt “thank you”, or as they would say in Cambodia, “Aakoon”.

Thank you for helping us “Spread the Love”…

Thank you so much for making our 2016 Holiday Mission a great success!
Because of you, our combined donations totaled $7,755! [$3,445 Cash, $400 Checks to “Youth on Fire”, $3,200 Dan & Mario, and $710 in Kohl’s Cash].

With $7,355, we purchased: 34 Hats, 28 Back Packs, 27 Scarves, 33 Winter Coats, 15 Games, 24 Pairs of Socks, 18 Zero Degree Sleeping Bags, 21 Pairs of Winter Boots, 21 Pairs of Gloves, 12 Pairs of Dress Shoes, 8 Head Covers, 9 Ties, 6 Belts, 5 Sweatshirts, 6 Dress Shirts and 4 Dress Pants.

In addition, there were personal donations of 27 Holiday stockings filled with toiletries, 4 Pairs of Gloves, 1 Head Cover, 5 Pairs of Jeans, 4 Zero Degree Sleeping Bags, 1 Back Pack, 2 Shirts, 1 Sweater, Board Games, Cards, Markers, bags of used clothing and additional individual toiletries and medications. We have $432.93 remaining that will be used to purchase specific items for transgender youth that will help them with their transition.

Thank you to each of our special elves; Marilyn, Tom, Deborah, Jason, Jack, Helene, Ilene, Ken, Charlie, Tracy, Jayne, Piper, Tony, Moe, Steve, Christine, Shawn, Finn, Emily, Gianna, Leia and Diane for helping us individually wrap each gift with great love and intention. Special thanks to Ann & Haley for making 40 packages of homemade cookies. Thank you Ilene & Ken for letting us use your two Trucks to transport the gifts. Thank you Charles for helping us pack the trucks, thank you Ilene for driving that day. Special thanks to our friends at Dick’s in Nashua & Salem for your help with the sleeping bags!

Thank you Diane for bringing BostonHandyWorks.com to our attention. We encourage each of you to consider this as a next gift option. We love ours!

Special thanks to Katherine, Rich, Kaitlyn, Mandy and others at “Youth on Fire” for the work you do every day to let homeless youth who are feeling disheartened, scared or alone know that they are truly loved and they matter.

The beauty of Gratitude is in giving and receiving. The more we give the more we receive, the more we receive the more we are inspired to give. It is in Gratitude that we learn to look at life through new eyes and can be grateful for what we have and who we are. ~ studio pennylane

May 2017 find each of us grounded in Gratitude and giving to others.

Thank You!