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Carver’s Toy Drive brings holiday cheer to Norwalk families

On Friday, December 17, Carver employees and volunteers handed out nearly 550 gifts to over 240 families during our Holiday Toy Drive.

Tricia Massucco, Carver’s Director of Elementary School Based Programs, handed out gifts to families while looking extra festive.

There was an increased need for gifts this year, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact Norwalk families. Within an hour of our Toy Drive’s online registration form going live, over 100 families had signed up for over 300 gifts. We were forced to halt registration, unsure of whether or not we could accommodate more families. Thankfully, there was an outpouring of support from generous individuals and organizations in Norwalk and the surrounding communities that made it possible for us to register more families. Ultimately, we gave out more gifts than ever before.

Traditionally, we’ve held a Holiday Party at the Carver Community Center complete with games, dancing, and Santa Claus. Families would grab their gifts and join in the fun. When the pandemic hit, however, we had to make adjustments in order to continue meeting the needs of our families while prioritizing their health and safety. When last year’s Toy Drive proved to be a successful solution, we knew we had to repeat it again this year.

We’re thrilled we were able to bring joy to so many children while easing the financial burden weighing on families. We’re also humbled by the incredible generosity shown by the Toy Drive’s supporters:

  • Campbell’s Snacks

  • Greens Farms Academy

  • Mike Barbis Santa Toy Drive

  • Rowayton Civic Association

  • Rowayton Fire Department

  • Saint Jerome Church

  • St. Luke’s School

  • USPS Norwalk

  • Westport Police Department

  • And all of the compassionate individuals who made monetary and in-kind donations!

Many, many thanks to everyone who made our Holiday Toy Drive possible, including volunteers from Brien McMahon High School, Jensly Hernandez and Doulsina Sandoval; Greens Farms Academy, Max Kim and Cecil Reid; the Rowayton community, Joan de Regt and Jeff Walsh; and the Rowayton Fire Department. We are incredibly grateful for these wonderful communities. Together, we are illustrating the season of giving in action!

Fairfield County Sports Commission renews its annual support of Carver's youth development programs

Tom Chiappetta, FCSC Executive Director, presents Shannon Singleton-Bates, Carver’s Recreation Coordinator, with this year’s grant.

The Fairfield County Sports Commission (FCSC) partners with Carver to support our Girls’ Development Program.

FCSC also sponsors the Chelsea Cohen Fitness Academy at the Carver Community Center. This major initiative of the FCSC acts as an umbrella organization to supplement and complement existing fitness programs, as well as provide area youth year-round access to the best available trainers, coaches, dietitians, and health and wellness experts. The academy is designed to be the rallying point to engage all-important community stakeholders in children’s health, nutrition, and in the fight to combat childhood obesity.

The Commission, which is an all-volunteer organization except for the executive director position, is the one-stop resource for the sports communities in the county. The focus of the Commission is creating and supporting programs for fitness awareness education in the 16 communities it serves. Giving time, effort and money back to its county residents and partners is FCSC’s primary mission and role. Since 2008, the Commission has supported more than 30 county youth organizations and programs with financial support.

Carver’s Girls’ Development Program provides many supports, including tutoring; Ladies Night (recreation, activities and educational programs); mentors; nutrition education; academic support; SAT, ACT, and PSAT PREP support; community service opportunities; college preparation (college tours, FASFA, college essays), and assistance with and with obtaining financial aid; field trips and team-building activities; and so much more!

The Carver community is deeply grateful for the many years of support given to our youth by the Fairfield County Sports Commission.

Ny-Aja Boyd has many talents and strong aspirations

Helpful. Dependable. Involved. These are the words Carver employees use to describe Ny-Aja Boyd, a speech-language pathologist, children’s book author, aspiring university professor, and Carver alumna.

Ny-Aja graduated in 2017 from North Carolina A&T State University, where she double-majored in elementary education and speech-language pathology. She then went on to receive her master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology from Sacred Heart University. While in school, Ny-Aja helped form a cheerleading squad, volunteered at the Special Olympics’ Healthy Hearing program, and participated in Sacred Heart’s Interprofessional Global Health Program in Guatemala. She also served as a member of both the NC Association of Educators and the National Black Association for Speech-Language and Hearing (NBASLH), and as the Connecticut Representative for the National Student Speech-Language and Hearing Association (NSSLHA).

In Charlotte, North Carolina, Ny-Aja is working at a private practice outpatient clinic as a pediatric speech-language pathologist, evaluating and treating children with autism spectrum disorder, cleft palates, hearing impairments, Augmentative Alternative Communication systems, and intellectual disabilities. She will soon be pursuing her Ph.D. in speech-language pathology to achieve her dreams of becoming a university professor. But it doesn’t end there; she also hopes to open a clinic one day to provide speech therapy, occupational therapy, and physical therapy to her community.

The accomplishment she’s most proud of, though? Self-publishing her first children’s book called Grandfather’s Garden, dedicated to her great-grandfather, Michael.

Bursting with vibrant illustrations, Grandfather’s Garden tells of the lessons a granddaughter learns from her grandfather as they tend to his prized rose bush and vegetable garden. Ny-Aja echoes the wisdom bestowed on her by her great-grandfather to craft a simple yet powerful story applicable to children of all ages. “I have spent the last decade reading and listening to my family heritage stories, and I love to share my memories with others,” she says. “I believe that sharing stories can change the world, and I use my stories to inspire and empower young people.”

As the story’s grandfather and granddaughter cultivate his garden, Ny-Aja cultivates words of encouragement, writing, “In a person’s life, a dream is like a tiny seed. If nurtured properly with attention, planning, and hard work, a dream can become a reality.” Ny-Aja is the living embodiment of that sentiment.

Life-changing experiences at “The Carver”

Ny-Aja with Carver CEO Novelette Peterkin at Carver’s 43rd Annual Testimonial Dinner in June 2013.

Before her book, before undergrad and graduate school, Ny-Aja was a Carver kid.

“The Carver has always been in my family,” she explains. Her father played basketball at the Carver Community Center in high school and her mother worked there when Ny-Aja was young. She began attending Carver’s after-school programs in elementary school, jump-starting her 13-year involvement with Carver that continues to this day.

Her first job was at the Carver After-School Program for Education and Recreation (CASPER). The program’s manager recalls Ny-Aja being reliable, hardworking, and “an all-around good kid.” In high school, she attended many of Carver’s college tours to states like Georgia and North Carolina; on one of these tours, she discovered her dream college and alma mater, North Carolina A&T State University.

When asked about her favorite memory from her Carver days, she fondly reflected on her experience with NicaPhoto, an organization focused on empowering disadvantaged families living in the poorest barrios of Nicaragua and breaking the cycle of extreme poverty. Carver’s partnership with NicaPhoto enabled students like Ny-Aja to learn about photography and exchange images with children in Nicaragua. At the end of the program, Ny-Aja and her peers traveled to Nagarote, Nicaragua to meet their pen pals and gain a deeper understanding of their culture.

Ny-Aja credits Carver with broadening her horizons by providing her with opportunities to explore the world outside of her local community. Carver enabled her to travel to a different country; introduced her to schools outside of Connecticut and to historically black colleges (HBCUs); helped her financially with college scholarships; and supported her journey to become an author and give back to her community. “[Carver] is a place where I met my friends, grew relationships, and learned a lot,” she adds.

A role model for the next generation of Carver students

Ny-Aja’s advice for current Carver students is to “be confident in the village the Carver has created for you. Whether that be the administration, mentors, Carver kids before you, or those who follow after you. We are all a family and will do anything to help you succeed in your dreams.”

Thank you, Ny-Aja. We’re so proud of all that you’ve accomplished and look forward to seeing where your life’s journey takes you next.

Ny-Aja’s children's books can be purchased at WWW.NYAJABOYD.COM. She recently released her second children’s book, Christmas at Hattie’s.

Follow her author journey on instagram at @BOYDBOOKSPUBLISHING

She loves to help and mentor any aspiring authors. Please feel free to contact her!

You can now donate Bitcoin, Ethereum, NFTs and other cryptocurrencies to Carver!

Carver accepts cryptocurrency donations!

Donating Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is one of the most tax-efficient ways to support Carver for the holidays. Check out The Giving Block's tips and talk to a tax professional.

Through Carver’s cryptocurrency donation platform, The Giving Block, Carver also benefits from their Cause Fund program by which we receive support from donors across the nation who give to support a cause, in our case Children & Youth. These donations are distributed evenly to each participating charity once per month. All charities on The Giving Block platform that also receive these Cause Fund distributions have like Carver been thoroughly vetted and approved.

The Mike Barbis Santa Toy Drive brings holiday magic and joy to Carver kids!

Rowayton volunteers deliver a mountain of gifts to the Carver Community Center today

For many years, the Rowayton Civic Association has supported Carver’s annual holiday party with a mountain of gifts. And this year was the most generous of them all.

The co-founders of the Toy Drive, Joan DeRegt and Mike Barbis, personally delivered the holiday season’s veritable “plum pudding stuffed with good things” for more than 10 years.

This year, the annual Santa Run was renamed THE MIKE BARBIS SANTA TOY DRIVE to honor Mike, Rowayton’s late commissioner and longtime Carver friend and advocate. Among his many commitments to the Carver community, the Toy Drive was one of Mike’s favorite. And this year’s response in Mike’s memory was truly overwhelming.

Joan and Mike were both volunteer firefighters in Rowayton. Joan’s favorite memory of Mike is when they delivered the toys one year.  “He was in his convertible with the top down, wearing a Santa hat with a big grin on his face.  I was following him in my Jeep and smiling the whole way.”

Volunteer Rowayton firefighter Silvia Doyle, aongside co-founders of the Rowayton Fire Department Toy Drive Joan DeRegt and Mike Barbis, at the Dec. 2018 Toy Drive

Santa made his annual visit to Rowayton this year as always aboard his big red fire engine sleigh last Sunday. Santa started at the Rowayton Train Station, then made rounds through Rowayton, stopping at the corner of Crest and Ridgewood, The Rowayton Library, the Bell Island Gatehouse, South Beach, The Beach Association boathouse, and Brendan’s 101. Children were able to visit Santa at the Rowayton Fire Station later in the afternoon.

Rowayton residents generously brought their gifts to the Rowayton Fire Station as the Rowayton volunteer firefighters collected the new toys and gift cards for the Carver Center’s holiday party.

We miss Mike terribly. We are deeply grateful to the Rowayton Civic Association for keeping his memory alive and for this year’s event sponsors William Raveis Real Estate and Classic Prep Kids and all the participating Rowayton residents for helping to make Carver kids feel so special and loved.

THANK YOU, EVERYONE!

Carver needs Toy Drive volunteers on December 14, 15, and 17!

Looking for ways to give back this holiday season? Come volunteer at Carver’s Holiday Toy Drive!

We need volunteers to help us wrap presents on Tuesday, December 14 and Wednesday, December 15 from 10 am to 3 pm. We’re also looking for volunteers to help hand out gifts during the Toy Drive on Friday, December 17 from 3 pm to 6 pm. (If it snows, the event will be held on Monday, December 20 instead). All volunteering will be done at the Carver Community Center in Norwalk.

If you’re interested, please contact Rachel Moledo at rachel@carvercenterct.org.

The 2nd Annual Blessing Bag Giveaway will be held on December 18 at the Carver Community Center

The Norwalk community is welcome to participate in the 2nd Annual Blessing Bag Giveaway on December 18! Entry is free to all.

Items being collected include:

  • Shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and lotion*

  • Toothbrushes and toothpaste*

  • Lotion*

  • Deodorant

  • Hand sanitizer, wipes, and disposable masks

  • Socks, gloves and hats

  • Bottled water

  • Gift cards to Dunkin, McDonald’s, Burger
    Kind, etc.

*Travel size recommended