May 19 2025 newsletter

 

Good morning to you all! What a lovely day, even with that brisk breeze! I'm looking forward to maybe being able to spend a bit of time on our porch later today. We had a beautiful weekend as well and were fortunate that the rain mostly held off on Saturday morning so that everyone could come and get their groceries. We have more friends coming on foot now that we're closer to the town center, and bad weather on a Saturday can be a problem. My thanks to Tina, Jane, Lin, Charlotte, and Brian, who took care of the pantry so that I could have a morning off.

Since we have consistently seen more foot traffic, we decided to buy a couple of wire grocery carts. I found some that weren't too expensive but were still sturdy enough, and were easy to put together...always a bonus! We'll see how this goes: we've given out one to a guest who has no transportation and we have one in reserve.

It's never too early to start thinking about summer activities! Thank you to our friend Cathy C for telling us about Agassiz Village, a nonprofit camp which is located in Maine and removes all of the cost barriers for families who would love to allow their child the chance to go to camp! AV has a 96% rating and 4 stars on Charity Navigator. Look into it if it interests you! 

My request for you this week: Please contact your Federal Rep and Senators about a very dangerous piece of the new budget bill, which by the way, passed the House Budget Committee yesterday (Sunday, May 18, 2025) and is now going to the full House for debate. This provision grants the executive branch a new process through which it can effectively shut down any non-profit by accusing them of "supporting terrorism" and suspend their tax-exempt status without any due process.

It was defeated last year, but certain people are hoping to slip it through as a tiny little piece of the huge budget bill. There are already groups like the Lutheran and Episcopal churches who are literally being threatened for doing the very work that the federal government contracted them to do in the first place and provided them with the funding. If you need to know who to call or email, let me know and I'll help you figure out who your Rep is. When you call, please ask them to remove the provision threatening nonprofits from the tax bill. Just that simple, and thank you!
The ACLU also has an online petition that goes straight to your Rep and Senators, and you can sign that as well if you like. 

If you can shop for us this week, we will gratefully take any food off of our full pantry list, but we will be even more grateful if you make those calls and/or send those emails. We can take drop-offs at the pantry (through the gray door next to the parking lot on Cambridge Street) on Wednesdays from 10 to noon, Fridays from 4 to 5, and Saturdays only from 9 to 10. Please note that these are shorter hours than before, because of parking logistics. Please do not leave food at the door outside of these hours. The bin is always available at Shop n' Save if those times don't suit. Please leave a note in the bag with your name so we know whom to thank! We are located at 21 Washington Street, Suite C, Ayer MA 01432

Please take a moment or two this week to stop and smell the lilacs! It's such a short season. And as always, thank you for your help and support, and my love to all of you.