On March 10th, as COVID-19 began to change the way we live, work, pray, play, and learn in our neighborhoods, Newton resident Shalini Tendulkar launched the Facebook group Newton Neighbors Helping Neighbors. In the first week, over 1,000 of you joined the effort looking for ways to support your community. Only 6 months later, our Facebook group is almost 4,000 members strong!

In these six short months Newton residents have:

• Showed tremendous courage in offering, asking for, and accepting help during unprecedented times, making it possible for others to do the same.

• Fulfilled over 400 requests through our Facebook page and our Google form answering urgent calls for groceries, medical supplies, baby monitors, diapers, and wipes—and yes, lots of toilet paper.

• Stepped up to ensure that our community and the resources we possess are accessible to all, sharing everything from language skills to professional expertise.

• Drove all over Newton to deliver almost 600 bags of groceries, helping our local pantries to feed close to 200 family members, including almost 90 children.

• Navigated community wide porch drives scattered around our city to drop off hundreds of pieces of clothing and items for children including books, puzzles, baby equipment, and riding toys.

• Supported harder-hit Massachusetts communities, including Boston, Brockton, Chelsea, Lynn, and Waltham.

• Donated hundreds of yards of fabric, thread, and baby bands to enable our small but mighty group of neighborhood sewers to make over 330 masks for children in grades K-12, and enable sewers in other communities to do the same.

• Shared hot soup and warm robes with neighbors, moved furniture, installed air conditioners, delivered dolls and birthday cakes, cleaned yards and wrote inspirational notes to slip into pantry grocery bags.

• Gave generously to cover everything from rent payments, utility bills, college tuition, iPads and eyeglasses to freezers for the food pantry, food for empty pantry shelves, and food to fill empty fridges in the homes of our seniors.

• Enthusiastically spread the word about local struggling businesses, buying gift cards and ordering takeout, to support small businesses in our community.

• Started your own successful initiatives, providing grocery delivery, making thousands of masks, beautifying Newton through Neighborhood Art Walks, nourishing overworked healthcare and frontline workers, coordinating tutoring services, raising money for food pantries through front-porch portrait sessions, and feeding hundreds of residents in other communities.

So much accomplished in so little time by so many generous and giving neighbors! We hope you know that every way in which you support a neighbor matters. Thank you for all you have done these past six months.

If you are interested in getting more involved with Newton Neighbors Helping Neighbors you can: