Long-running programs fulfill charitable ideals
The Twin Cities can claim several organizations that have stepped up to help those in need, or to raise funds and awareness for a cure to some debilitating disease.
But none could be more different — or more successful — than Our Father’s Table and the Cure NF with Jack team.
Two events held recently tell you all you need to know about these two incredible groups.
Gratitude and camaraderie provided the seasoning for the meal served at Our Father’s Table on Feb. 23, which celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Fitchburg-based outreach program that has faithfully served the greater community for decades.
Longtime Director and city resident Brenda Quidoz, along with a legion of dedicated volunteers, prepped, cooked, and served hot meals, as they do every Tuesday and Thursday from the basement of Faith Christian Church at 40 Boutelle Road.
The Our Father’s Table team prepares 150 meals a week like clockwork, even during the pandemic. Doors open and seating starts at 4:45 p.m. with dinner served promptly at 5 p.m.
The first meeting to discuss forming an outreach program to serve the area’s needy was held among local church leaders in January 1983. A little over a month later, the first meal was served on Feb. 22 at Christ Church on Main Street; in April of 2008, Our Father’s Table moved to Faith Christian Church.
Quidoz has been the director of the outreach program for over 20 years, a mission made possible by the efforts of more than 600 volunteers who’ve donated their time and expertise through the years.
It’s an initiative powered by individuals and institutions, many of which donate or prepare the food served at Our Father’s Table.
In addition to meals for homeless and food-insecure individuals — or anyone who may just want a home-cooked dinner and some company — Our Father’s Table also runs a food pantry.
And upstairs there’s a clothing closet operated by the church.
Bags imprinted with the Our Father’s Table logo were available for the guests and volunteers to take home in honor of the anniversary.
The prepacked volunteer bags included a 40th anniversary mug and chocolate covered cherries. “These are our regulars; some come once a week some come twice a week,” Quidoz said of the 15 or so on hand for the anniversary meal.
Running for a cure with Jack’s team
Running in your underwear in February might sound like a crazy idea, but the members of the Cure NF with Jack team have been doing it annually without a second thought.
About half on the 70-plus strong team hale from the Twin Cities or the North Central Mass. Dozens of them showed up in force for the annual Cupid’s Undie Run in Boston on Feb. 18.
And once again, they took home the top fundraising team crown, not only in the state, but in the nation by raising over $65,000 for the Children’s Tumor Foundation for neurofibromatosis — or NF — research as well as awareness.
Every February, thousands of runners in cities all across the U.S., whether in-person or virtually, converge to support those affected by NF, a genetic disorder that causes tumors to grow on nerves throughout the body, affecting 1 in every 3,000 births.
The annual event kicks off with socializing and dancing, and then participants jog it off with about a mile run. The Boston run proceeds down Lansdowne Street through Fenway.
Longtime Leominster resident Rebecca Soulliere is the Cure NF with Jack team captain.
Boston came in first among cities across the nation in fundraising totals, boasting over $178,000. Soulliere herself raised nearly $1,800 for the Cure NF with Jack team through donations from 120 people, while Jake Burke,
Jack’s dad, added a whopping $15,000.
When asked how she first got involved with the undies run, Soulliere said it “started nine years ago when my friend Liz asked me to do this crazy run with her for charity.”
“Figured it was a one and done, until I met Jake and Jack Burke,” she said of the team’s namesake battling NF and his father. “Jack was merely 9 years old and so damn cute with his brother Luke in their red union suits. I was so taken by the family I knew I would be back.”
Not long after her first undies run, Soulliere learned that her friend and fellow city resident Maria Joffrion’s son Tommy, whom she has known since he was 3, was diagnosed with NF on top of battling chronic myelogenous leukemia, or CML.
Tommy recently turned 17 and Jack’s now 18. Jake Burke said the support they’ve received from the Cure NF with Jack team and so many others across the country means the world to him and his family.
Two disparate, charitable organizations employing people power to sustain their common goals.