Full pg 5 3-31-11
- Details
- Category: Past Issues
caption:
Donation
Karyn DiBonaventura of Longmeadow Automotive, left, and Sue Esons, executive director of Day Kimball HomeMakers, in front of the 2007 Ford Taurus. Photo by Jim Goodwin.
Full cost of car
raised in
less than a day
PUTNAM --- The Day Kimball HomeMakers had a modest goal: raise $5,000 to purchase a newer car for the Travel Companion program. Sue Esons, executive director of the HomeMakers, said the drive started at 6 a.m. March 21 and they hoped to raise the $5,000 by the end of the day. They reached the mark by 9 a.m. "We were flabbergasted," she said. So they started to push to raise the remaining $4500 cost of the car and at 5 p.m. had the total of $9,500. The new car will replace the car that was donated to the group in 1992. "It is still running well, but we felt that we needed to plan for the future. We cannot be caught without a car," she said.
The car is used to help elderly and handicapped individuals who cannot drive get to their doctors and medical appointments, out for grocery shopping and errands, church or just a ride in the fresh air.
Esons said most donations ran between $2 to $20 to $100. "One woman drove (into the WINY lot) and emptied a cup she has in her car full of change," Esons said. At midday a local couple gave the agency a $2,000 donation. "We were speechless and ecstatic," Esons said.