The Snowmobile Association of Massachusetts charity committee and the SAM Delegates decided at our first meeting in the fall to continue our support Camp Sno-Mo in providing a week of camping for a Massachusetts resident. Camp Sno-Mo is an Easter Seal camp providing camping for children and young adults with disabilities and special needs. Our goal was to raise $1,600, which would provide two persons a week of camping.
Let’s put our heads together to be able to find a way to raise that amount next year. We as snowmobilers value our time spent outdoors, working in the woods, preparing our trail systems for a winter of fun. I am sure as kids most of us spent a lot of time playing outdoors, swinging on rope swings, swimming in lakes, jumping over logs etc. People with disabilities are not that fortunate to have those opportunities, Camp Sno-Mo allows these kids to experience (safely) the great outdoors.
We also repeated our Toys for Tots program. This has been a growing charity each year with more and more clubs participating. We were able to present the Oakridge Detachment under the direction of The Marine Corps League out of Westover with over $250.00 and almost 200 toys. These were distributed to many different organizations in our area that provide presents to needy families. It was great to see their faces as we brought in bag upon bag of toys. Thank you to all who were able to give.
There are a few definitions for charity; benevolent goodwill towards humanity, generosity and helpfulness especially towards the needy or suffering, aid given to those in need… when I think of charity I think of it in three terms: time, talent and treasure. The first is time, the most important and least expensive way to give of ourselves. Whether it is taking a child for a walk on the trails, driving someone to a doctor’s appointment, reading to children, or sitting with someone who is grieving, our time is a wonderful way of giving. The second is talent, we were all given special talents we can use to help others. Some of us are good with building, some good with writing grants, some cooking for spaghetti dinners or delicious pancake breakfasts, whatever the talent it can be used to help others. The last is treasure. This one has been difficult for many in these tough economic times. We can dig deep and give what we can… as the saying goes, “every penny counts.”
So, as we move into the next year let us remember to give often, give much and continue to do our charity works. Also remember to write them down so we can record them next year in our reports (see below). Snowmobilers are a terrific group of people. We can feel proud of what we do for others not only in keeping trails open for all to enjoy but in the good works we do to help those in need.
SAM charity by the numbers:
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