New Look - New Vision- One Community
February 2023 newsletter
Hello!
With a new year laid out in front of me, I see opportunities to move homeless families into secure housing; to connect people with the resources they need to live independently, and to improve the quality of life for all of the people that are a part of HFHS.
The past few months have been spent setting up some great partnerships with local agencies that share the same passion for making our communities safe and productive. We have completed renovating our first floor, launched our social media channels, and kicked off our partnership with KeyBank.

Beginning in March, KeyBank will be holding the first of many “Financial Literacy” classes for our residents and members of our community. This partnership came to be through a fantastic volunteer and student at UCONN, Jordan Ferro. Jordan has been a long time volunteer and member of Phi delta theta CT gamma. Phi delta theta CT gamma has also volunteered many hours of community service by completing many projects at our shelter on Jackson St.
Our partners have had an amazing impact on the lives of those we shelter. The Willimantic Rotary held their 100th Anniversary Golf Tournament and named HFHS as the recipient of the proceeds. The Rotary generously raised $18,000 for the residents of HFHS. HFHS was also the charity of choice for Storrs Congregational Church when they held their annual move-in day for the students at UCONN returning to school.
The main living floor at the shelter has been renovated thanks to Bill Bender & Bender Wallpaper & Painting www.billbenderpainting.com. A special thanks to Bill and his team for the great work they do and the positive environment they have created.
Thursday, February 9th, we hosted an open house for several guests with a passion for helping others. Our staff participated in giving tours and talking about the work they do. We have three other open houses on February 23rd, March 9th, and March 23rd. Everyone is invited to come see the progress we have made with the building upgrades, have lunch, and learn more about the work we do.
We appreciate the support. You can follow our progress and engage with staff by following us on social media.

Events & Campaign
RallyUp has partnered with HFHS to run our community campaign. There are multiple options and ways to support HFHS residents and our community. Please visit our campaign page: https://go.rallyup.com/a71f9e.
You can also access the campaign by texting “Community” to 855-202-2100.
You can purchase apparel, buy packages that will assist our current residents, or make a general donation. We appreciate your generosity.
Media
I had the pleasure of discussing our vision with WILI Radio on two occasions. Thank you to Ernest Eldridge Wayne Norman, Bill Correll, and Colin Rice for inviting me to the studio. The interviews are available by clicking on the links below:
○ Wayne Norman, Ryan Fitzgibbons, Bill Correll – https://www.mixcloud.com/wili1400/71522-holy-family-home-and-shelter-in-willimantic/
○ Ernest Eldridge & Ryan Fitzgibbons – https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HZbqsz502Qyv-jlpD2GjHIZaRM0lmEV-/view?usp=sharing
Please visit our campaign and support us in serving our community.
https://go.rallyup.com/a71f9e
Thank you for all your support and keep looking for future updates.