Beverly YMCA Day Of Volunteering Returns After Year Absence

BEVERLY, MA — A day of volunteering in Beverly helped remove more than 5,000 pounds of trash from the city and collected more than 1,000 pounds of food for Beverly Bootstraps on Saturday.

The Beverly YMCA's Project Y 1 Day/400 Hands Project included volunteers spanning out across the city in support of several Beverly organizations.

The day started with a message from Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and included help from more than 200 children and 35 adults helping 17 community partners.

Among the projects were the removal of approximately 5,000 pounds of trash and debris from throughout the city, the collection of 1,125 pounds of food from Shaw's, Stop & Shop and Henry's for Beverly Bootstraps, the cleaning of more than 50 headstones in Beverly Farms cemetery, the pickup of grounds around Beverly Public Library, the painting of hallways at the Living Faith United Methodist Church as well as cleanup and carpentry work at the Wenham Habitat for Humanity homes.

"We are so thrilled to bring Project Y back after our successful inaugural 2019 event that helped so many in our community," Beverly YMCA Executive Director Judith Cronin. "We were saddened to have to cancel in 2020 due to COVID-19 but knew as soon as it was safe to do so, we would come together again for this wonderful event that really makes an impact.

"It has been such a roller coaster year for all of us, and this was an incredible opportunity for our local kids to get together safely and give back in support of our Y and other organizations that need our support, now more than ever."

Organizations involved in the day included: Beverly Bootstraps, Beverly Farms Gardens, Gordon College La Vida Camp, Habitat for Humanity Essex County, Hamilton Wenham Community House, Henry's Market, City of Beverly Veterans, Riley Rocks Foundation, Salem Sound Coast Watch, Stop & Shop, Shaw's, The Friendly Garden Club, The Garden School, Appleton Farm Trustees of the Reservation, Crane Estate Trustees of the Reservation, Long Hill Trustees of the Reservation, United Methodist Church and the West Beach Association.

"We can't thank all the volunteers, sponsors and local leaders enough for their commitment to making a difference and making Project Y 2021 a success," Cronin said.

Sponsors included local businesses Frontier Technology Inc., Aubuchon Hardware, Lowe's, Home Depot, Stop & Shop and One Junk Haul.

Did you find this article useful? Invite a friend to subscribe to Patch.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)