Gregg Haddad

In early April, I issued a call for nominations of individuals in Mansfield who are going above and beyond, working and volunteering to help the community through the challenges of social distancing under Covid-19.

I wanted to take this week to reflect on the progress and achievements of previous nominees. 
 

• To date, Bette Stern has made some 1,600 masks that she has donated to various individuals and groups like the Mansfield nursing home and Horizons. She is semi-retired but still works part time at the Mansfield Community Center where she was a manager for many years. She also raises chickens in her spare time. Thank you Bette for continuing to make Mansfield and area residents safer through your extraordinary effort. Read about her original nomination here.

 

• Louis Goffinet has raised $37,981 and has delivered over 100 grocery trips and over 100 family dinners. After this past weekend, Louis has stopped scheduling new runs because his fund is down to just $160. Want to help keep his effort going?  The easiest way to contribute is through his Facebook fundraiser. If you don't use Facebook, or to avoid the pesky fees charged through it, you can send a check, made out to: "Louis Goffinet" to PO Box 242, Mansfield Center, CT 06250. Read about his original nomination here.

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• Sarah Kaufold and many volunteer singers have continued to produce YouTube videos through the "Songs of Comfort" project.  The group was also the recent recipient of a state grant to help keep the project going and to defray the cost of production. The Connecticut Office of the Arts awarded seventy-three grants for a total budget of $88,000 through its Artist Respond program and Sarah Kaufold and her team were one of the deserving recipients. At the request of hospital patients or their families Songs of Comfort has produced 17 videos since beginning in April.  They are still taking requests through their website: comfortsong2020.com. If you have any questions, contact Songs for Comfort at comfortsongs2020@gmail.com. Read about the original nomination here.

I'm still accepting nominations for community heroes! Those who have a nominee in mind can send in a photo, name, and a few sentences about why they are nominating a community hero to Gregory.Haddad@cga.ct.gov.