Tell Patch About Your Favorite Local Charities In Charlestown

CHARLESTOWN, MA — In a typical year, the holiday season is the time when many nonprofit organizations have to turn away volunteers.

But 2020 is not a typical year, and the coronavirus pandemic has left many local charities with fewer donations and volunteers. Fidelity Charitable released a study showing that 2-in-3 volunteers had decreased or stopped contributing time to nonprofit organizations since the start of the pandemic in March.

The study also found that 64 percent of people weren't sure how to find or participate in remote volunteer activities nonprofits have offered since the start of the crisis.

We are asking what your favorite charities are, as part of an effort to help increase awareness of the nonprofits.

Here's what people have said so far:

Harvest on Vine Food Pantry

"The food pantry has been a mainstay for years, but today's needs for food has multiplied dramatically due to the virus," said Kathleen Giordano "I support their efforts and encourage everyone to support their efforts."

"e" inc. Learning and Action Center: https://www.einc-action.org/
"e inc. provides fun, hands-on science and environmental education for elementary and middle school kids, focusing primarily on under-resourced schools in metro Boston," said Jordan Garfinkle of Stoneham. "Through the pandemic, they have worked hard to transition to an online model, supporting schools and summer programs. In addition, they've developed a series of free videos giving fun science and nature lessons on a range of topics. Like for many small organizations, the pandemic has exacerbated "e" inc.'s financial struggles, but they've continued to work tirelessly every day to bring science and nature into the lives of those for whom it is least accessible."

We're collecting the responses and will add to the list of Charlestown favorite local charities throughout the holiday season.

If you have a favorite local charity, fill out the form below, so we can let our readers know about the work it does, as well as its current goals and needs: