Annual Women’s Leadership Awards Dinner
Last Thursday, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Dorchester hosted over 400 club members and guests at the 19th Annual New England Women’s Leadership Awards Dinner at the World Trade Center. We congratulate the following women who were recognized at the event: Circle of Giving Award – Joan Cutler (posthumous), Philanthropist; Leadership Award – Erin McDonough, Senior Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Vice President, Sean McDonough Charitable Foundation; Community Spirit Award – Corinne Grousbeck, Nonprofit Advisor; Pioneer Award – Ruth Ellen Fitch, President & CEO, The Dimock Center; Courage Award – Monica Sprague Jorge, Mother and Survivor and; Outstanding Dedication Award – Mary O’Brien, Teacher and Community Activist. The six award winners were presented their awards by Club members: Marissa Sneed, Noreen Walsh, Melanie Barros, Caroline O’Brien and Regina Crawford, while Aisling Kerr served as the Keynote Speaker. We would like to thank our Benefactor Sponsors - The Marr Companies, The Grousbeck Family Foundation and Liberty Mutual; as well as Patron Sponsors – Arnold Worldwide, BNY Mellon, The Boston Globe, State Street, The Cutler Family, John W. Henry Family Foundation, Inc. and Rodman Ford Sales. Also, thanks to our many corporate table sponsors who supported the event. Finally, many thanks to our Event Chair, Linda Pizzuti Henry, Director, Boston Red Sox Foundation and John W. Henry Family Foundation, and Master of Ceremonies, Lisa Hughes, WBZ-TV, and the entire Event Committee for their hard work.

City Year and Dana Hall School Service Project at the Club
This past Sunday, in partnership with City Year, the Dana Hall School in Wellesley and The Four Seasons Hotel, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Dorchester broke ground on The Jennifer Kelly Garden. In the summer of 2009, Jennifer Kelly, a mother of three young children who lived in Milton died unexpectedly.  Prior to her death she had become involved with a new program at The Boys and Girls Clubs of Dorchester called Project B.I.N.D. Project B.I.N.D. is a program that insures that children of all abilities have the opportunity to participate in all of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Dorchester’s programs. When Jen passed, her family felt that donations made in Jen’s memory to the Club could be used to create a garden. Jen had a passion for children, gardening and the outdoors. The Jennifer Kelly Garden will be a place where children will dig in the dirt, climb on logs, and splash in water. They will play in a fort and read on a bench, they will make mud pies and chase butterflies. The space will also allow for children to grow vegetables and flowers in raised beds. The Four Seasons will be spearheading the gardening project, incorporating a curriculum and working side by side with the children on a weekly basis. Many thanks to our friends from City Year who led the service component on this project working alongside a volunteer group from the Dana Hall School. In addition to the donations made in Jennifer’s memory, major sponsors include Roche Christopher Architecture, Towne Tree and Landscaping Inc., Richard Hunt Landscaping, Inc., The Marr Companies, The New England Regional Council of Carpenters Local 67, Farrell Excavation, ATS Equipment, Inc., and Calcagno Construction. For more information on Project B.I.N.D., please contact Program Coordinator, Deb Collins at ext. 1125.

Intramural Swim League
After three weeks of competition the Intramural Swim League is enjoying a great season and heading towards the league championship meet. This past Saturday the first of three meets saw the Barracudas edge out the Piranhas 150-108 followed by the Stingrays defeating the Sandsharks 150-100. In the final meet of the afternoon the Kat Fish defeated the Dolphins 135-121. There will be two more weeks of dual-meets followed by the League Championship Meet on June 4th when all six teams come together to determine the 2011 champion. Each team has swimmers made up of veterans from the Marr-lin Swim Team, graduates of the Lesson program and general club members trying the sport for the first time. These new swimmers have utilized their once a week team practice time to sharpen all their strokes and help their team’s chances in the final meet. New swimmers who have come on strong for their teams include: Barracudas – Aidan Geary, Charlotte Airosus, Andrelino Cardoso, Damien Biedrzycki and Sedric Johnson; Stingrays – Serena Krejei-Papa, Allesandra Krejei-Papa and Aiden Sullivan; Sandsharks – Betzalee Matos, Aisling Mannion, Twelve Seekins, Giselle Barros and Sean Dykens; Katfish – Orla O’Drsicoll; Piranhas – Eric Mischler; and the Dolphins – Curt Boyd, Adam Regan, Shannon Greene, Ivanildo DaMoura and Armando Garcia. For more information please contact Aquatic Director, Aquiles Gomes at 617-288-7120, ext. 2220.