Fluffy hats, cozy sweaters and big jackets are all signs of cold weather. With living in Boston, these items become a norm for many. But what about the ones that do not have or cannot afford it? This is a possible question that Malden High School’s Basketball Cheer Team was thinking when they began their donation drive to the Warming Center in Malden.
The idea of having a donation drive for the Warming Center came to be by the head coach of Cheer, Melani Philbrook, during the holiday season. Philbrook had encouraged the cheerleaders to do “something for the less fortunate” in Malden. She had given them various options and suggested things they would like to do.
The team had soon came to the agreement of collecting donations for the Warming Center. This is their first time doing a drive, but also not their last. “[The team looks] forward to continuing to serve the community for years to come,” as Philbrook expressed. The donation drive had come in good timing considering that the Warming Center is new to Malden and had opened the first week of January.
Sophomore co-captain, Mackenzie Smith, had expressed a similar feeling as Philbrook, saying that she would love for the cheer team to continue the donation drive in the future because “[it is] a really eye-opening experience to see how by contributing even a small donation can make a huge difference in somebody’s life.”
The team had scheduled pick up and drop off times for the donations via Snapchat and iMessages on iPhones. “Most of the collections were dropped off to them at the main office of the high school.” The team also “reached out to their friends, family, and members of the city through their social media accounts for donations,” according to Philbrook. The girls even had help from the coaching staff who picked up donations from “the people who were unable to get them to the high school during the scheduled drop off times.”
Smith stated that “[she is] really happy that [they] decided to do this donation drive,” continuing to say that “[she] feel [it is] a great way for people to give back to those who are less unfortunate.”
Philbrook continued to say that “[they] look forward to continuing to serve the community for years to come. It's extremely rewarding to see the girls giving to those less fortunate.” And that they are learning “life lessons including time management skills” along with learning to be “caring, humble and kind.”
“They are also learning to be grateful for what they have including food on their tables, a roof over their heads and clothes on their backs. You never know, someday you could be the one in need.”
Some of the girls on the team had also “showed interest in volunteering in the kitchen of the Center,” which the director had given them information on “how to volunteer and his business card for them to contact him when and if [they were] interested in volunteering.”
On January 11, the team went to the Warming Center to drop off donations between 7pm and 8pm. While they were there, Philbrook stated that they “played games with the people at the Center” and “helped sort and organize all the collections.” They also got to see how the center works on a daily bases as well as performing a few cheers for the people.
The team had collected 25 bags filled with a variety of hygiene products for both men and women, clothes, and school supplies like pens and notebooks. They also donated adult coloring books and novels. Smith said that “the cheerleaders are very grateful for all of the donations [they have] received over the past few weeks!”
Philbrook also added that “[she is] extremely proud of [the team for] collecting so many things for the homeless in Malden.” The Warming Center serves the homeless and is open 7 days a week from 7pm to 6am.
