Walk a Mile in Her Shoes Returns and More

People will be able to donate without leaving their vehicle to Berkshire Hathaway New England Properties, located at 1583 Post Road in downtown Fairfield.

Items that will be collected include: grocery gift cards, cereals, rice, beans, pasta, sides, tomato sauce, canned vegetables, non-bulk cookies, crackers, table milk, dried fruit, nuts, coffee, oil , peanut butter, juice, diapers, toiletries, toilet paper, paper towels, as well as canned stews, chicken, and tuna.

Another way to donate is through the organization’s Venmo app account @NourishBridgeport-Inc, PayPal at paypal.com/paypalme/NPUOI, or by check to PO Box 1859, Bridgeport, CT 06601.

Beach Bunny 5k returns with scrambled eggs

The Fairfield Parks and Recreation Department will showcase its Beach Bunny 5K on April 16 at Jennings Beach.

The event will include the timed 5K, food trucks, DJ entertainment, two free egg scrambles for kids, and a one-mile untimed family fun called the “Bunny Hop.”

Registration will begin at 7:45 a.m.

Registration is $35.

The 5K and family race will take place at 9:00 a.m. An awards ceremony will take place at 10:00 a.m. The egg race will take place from 10:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

To visit fairfieldrecreation.com for more information.

To visit runsignup.com save.

The Center for Family Justice hosts “Walk a Mile in Her Shoes”

The Center for Family Justice will host its 10th annual Walk a Mile in Her Shoes fundraising and awareness walk in downtown Fairfield on April 23, in support of the center’s programs and services.

Registration will start at 8 a.m. with the walk at 9 a.m.

For the first time since 2019, hundreds of walkers are expected. It had been a virtual event due to the coronavirus pandemic. The event is notable for the number of men joining in wearing women’s shoes, including high heels, to signify their solidarity with victims and survivors of sexual violence.

Gary MacNamara, executive director of public safety and government affairs at Sacred Heart University and former Fairfield police chief, will again lead the march.

The procession will take walkers down Post Road through the city, to the final destination of Fairfield City Hall at 611 Old Post Road.

Adult registration is $25. Students are $10. Children 10 and under are free.

Also visit centerforfamilyjustice.org, or call the Center Development Team at 203-334-6154 ext. 121 to register or to learn more about the event and sponsorship opportunities.

SHU Students Dedicate Spring Break to Service

Sacred Heart University students recently participated in projects in Bridgeport and the Carolinas, devoting their spring break to service projects.

Habitat for Humanity’s school chapter coordinated volunteers and projects in North Carolina and South Carolina, while week organizers CURTIS – Community, Understanding and Reflection through Center Service -city – organized activities in Bridgeport.

Fifteen students and two faculty and staff advisors traveled to New Bern, North Carolina, where they helped build a shed at the New Bern Habitat ReStore, Habitat for Humanity’s thrift store. They also replaced rotting floors in a critical repair house and helped with a newly built house that is almost ready for the owners it was given to.

A second group of 18 students and two staff advisors traveled to Georgetown, South Carolina, to work on two Habitat projects. They helped pack the earth into the foundation of a new construction to prepare it for concrete. They also built frames for the same house, signing them and leaving what will be hidden messages wishing the residents of the new house happiness, health and good health. The group has also painted the exterior of a home and helped out in the Georgetown Habitat ReStore as needed.

Twelve undergraduates and three graduate students participated in various activities in Bridgeport. They folded women’s business suits donated for Dress for Success, sorted and displayed donated clothing for the LifeBridge Community Closet, as well as organized and cleaned classrooms and built a lending library shack at the Hall Neighborhood House.

They also provided math and reading support to students at Wilbur Cross School, packaged non-perishable food for Bridgeport seniors with Connecticut Foodshare, prepared and served meals, and restocked the pantry at the Thomas Merton Center. , and created craft projects with Tina Klem Serenity House residents.

Greater Connecticut Youth Orchestra receives $75,000 grant

The League of American Orchestras awarded a $75,000 Catalyst Fund Incubator Grant to Greater Connecticut Youth Orchestras in Fairfield.

About 25% of the group’s 320 members live in Fairfield.

The grant will now enable Greater Connecticut Youth Orchestras to work with professional facilitators to become a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive organization by setting and executing EDI goals and activities, including data collection and analysis, educational training and self-assessment.

It will also support programming that brings a diverse selection of artistic voices to orchestra performances.

The three-year grants are given to 20 orchestras in the United States and just four youth orchestras. They were selected by an independent panel of EDI experts and arts and orchestra practitioners.

The grants are made possible by $2.1 million in leadership grants from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, with additional support from the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation.