Celebrations & Transitions

FROM CO-PRESIDENT GEORGIA COSGROVE

The end of the school year and the beginning of July each year mark important milestones for GABC. This is when we watch our seniors graduate from GHS and leave us to prepare for their next steps on their educational paths. This year’s graduate, Arianna Alvarez Pena, will be heading for Tufts in the fall with a full scholarship. We are thrilled for her and couldn’t be prouder of her many accomplishments during her four years under our roof. We have watched her blossom from a shy, observant freshman into a self-assured, motivated young woman who knows what she wants and is going after it.

We look forward to watching our two dynamic rising seniors follow in Arianna’s footsteps as they navigate the challenges and choices of senior year. After ending her junior year having been elected Co-President of the senior class, Kilee Simon is traveling to Ghana with CIEE this summer on a full scholarship. Janelle Wilkinson will be spending a month in London, also on a full scholarship from CIEE. Stay tuned for reports on their experiences in the fall!

We kicked off our summer with the annual MJ Petretto Foundation golf fundraiser at the Wallingford Country Club in June. Despite storms that shortened play it was a great event! We are grateful to all who participated on our behalf, and to the M.J. Petretto Foundation for once again supporting GABC with a portion of the proceeds from this event.

July 1 marked a changing of the guard on our board with retirements and election of new members. As I write this, I have just begun my second year as Co-President. Long-time board member Judy Wright has stepped up to the other Co-President spot as Marie Berry makes a well-deserved transition to the Advisory Board after more than 15 years of service, the last 3 as board President. Heartfelt thanks to both Marie and Judy for their dedication and hard work supporting our scholars and keeping GABC running smoothly despite COVID-19 and the many day-to-day challenges of overseeing a household of active teenagers.

Others departing the board include Susan Renner, who served ably and tirelessly as our Treasurer for 3 years; Lisa Rogers, who did an amazing job with overseeing the recruitment and screening of new scholars; Susan Welsh, who headed up Student Life and will continue to manage insurance for us as a member of the Advisory Board; Cathy O’Keefe, who served as Vice President and headed the Personnel committee; and Mary Lane, who served on House and Grounds. We are grateful to all for your commitment to GABC.

Finally, we welcome a multi-talented roster of new board members: Mary Cosgrove, Pam Glasser, Dani Howard, Mike Hryb, Mark Mackowiak, and Jenny Schaffer. We will also welcome two talented new freshmen in September, Kyra and Tamojah.

We are deeply grateful for all of our donors and sponsors, volunteers for GABC and the Hole in the Wall, and our amazing staff who all work together to support our mission. Visit guilfordabc.org to check the latest news or make a donation—and enjoy the summer while it lasts!

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GABC will mark its 50th anniversary in 2024. To honor this milestone, please consider providing for the next 50 years by adding a legacy gift to GABC to your estate plans. If you have questions about this please contact Georgia Cosgrove at gabcmain@gmail.com.

GABC College Education Fund

Guilford ABC began soliciting gifts to establish a GABC College Education Fund at the Guilford Foundation in 2019. Thanks to the generosity of GABC supporters who share our belief that education is a great equalizer, we were able to award our first GABC Education Fund gift in May 2019 to our graduating senior. With ongoing donor support, the fund continues to grow. This year we will be able to award four education gifts, one to our current senior entering college in the fall, and three to graduates who are continuing their studies. These education gifts, awarded yearly to ABC graduates to help defray college expenses, are managed by the Guilford Foundation. Donations to this fund should be sent to the Foundation, with a note designating the gift to the GABC Education Fund. t

Everyone Loves Hole in the Wall!

The Hole in the Wall has shown amazing growth, despite being closed for a while during the pandemic, as many households decided they had time to clean out closets and offer donated items. Net proceeds for 2021 made up for the four months we were closed in 2020, and we continue to see an increase in sales for 2022.  As Guilford ABC’s primary source of operating income, we appreciate the many donated items from local residents.

Above left, HITW manager Joan Simonetti will Lucille Jenkins who has been a faithful volunteer for over 30 years! And right, Manager Katie Cooney and Volunteer Yoko Alpert.

On the Town with GABC Host Families

Host Families are a very important part of the Guilford ABC program. We started the school year with a modified visiting schedule and by January we were back to full weekend visits. The weekends were filled with picnics, family celebrations and sporting events. The relationship between host families and scholars is incredibly significant and frequently results in life-long friendships. We appreciate all of our host families for opening up their homes and being a part of the girls experience in Guilford.

Behind the Scenes at GABC

Every winter the board House and Grounds committee, currently ably headed by Ann Street, creates a list of summer home maintenance projects to be completed while the house is empty of scholars. A well-loved old house occupied by teenagers never fails to yield a robust list of routine annual maintenance jobs, deferred items from previous years, and a few “surprises” that crop up from weather events and general wear and tear. 2022 is no exception!

In addition to the usual yard clean-up, deep cleaning of the entire house, carpet and upholstery cleaning, shower caulking and grout repair, painting and carpentry touch-ups, and septic pumping, contractors will be completing some necessary exterior work, including rebuilding the bulkhead basement door, adding an outdoor faucet on the patio, and improving drainage near the rear foundation of the house

Stay tuned for information about our annual spring volunteer workday to be held on a Saturday morning in late April or early May. Projects will include garden bed spiffing, planting outdoor pots, power-washing, cleaning outdoor furniture, commissioning bikes, and cleaning out the garage. t

Hole in the Wall featured as “11 Best Thrift Stores In CT”

Hole in the Wall was recently listed as one of the “11 Best Thrift Stores In CT” by the folks at Sustainable Jungle, who share sustainability related ideas, tips, tricks, hacks, products, brands and stories of people & organizations doing meaningful work to future-proof our planet.

• Read the full article here: “11 Best Thrift Stores In CT If You’re Inclined to Consign”

Proud of Our Scholars

This winter, I had many reasons to be proud of the scholars. From helping others to entertaining the masses, they have given 100% effort and represented Guilford ABC with generosity and enthusiasm. Their empathy for those in need is genuine. They wanted to get more involved with giving back this year. A successful coat drive in New Haven helped many homeless people and gave us a chance to hear the stories of so many wonderful people. Working with board member Kyma Ganzer, the girls worked on a house in New Haven for Habitat for Humanity.

As you may have heard, The SpongeBob Musical was the spring musical at GHS. Andrea, Arianna, and I were lucky enough to see the fabulous production twice. Janelle not only made many of the props, but helped to run the house during the show like a professional. Jasmine danced and sang as numerous different types of fish and didn’t stop smiling the whole time she was on stage. Kilee knocked the role of Sandy the Squirrel out of the park with her dancing, singing, and acting. They felt the support and love of many family members, board members, and friends. I am so proud of them for their dedication, late nights practicing, and being part of such an active school organization.

As we head into the end of the school year, I know I will have many more moments to be proud of my scholars. t

Senior Arianna Alvarez Perez coordinated collection of over 160 coats that were distributed at Trinity Church on the Green’s Chapel on the Green in December .

The girls joined board member Kyma Ganzer and the New Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority on a project with New Haven for Habitat for Humanity.

Spring is in the Air!

From Co-President Marie Berry

As we come across warmer weather, we can start to feel that Spring is in the air! Schedules are busy and spring activities are being planned. For our scholars, there will be a spring visit to Mystic Aquarium, new course selections for the coming year, GHS Junior and Senior proms in April and June, and the Guilford High School play returned after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. We were excited to have three ABC scholars in the play — including our own ABC junior, Kilee Simon, as one of the leads! Congratulations to our scholars for the dedicated effort and time they put into a wonderful production of the The SpongeBob Musical.

In addition, our scholars have excelled academically this year. We are proud to congratulate our Guilford ABC senior, Arianna Alvarez, who was inducted into the National Honor Society and has been accepted for early decision into her first college choice, Tufts University in Medford, MA with a full academic scholarship!

Our Guilford ABC Annual Appeal was sent out in December and generously supported by our donors despite the many challenges we are currently facing in our country. We are overwhelmed with gratitude for the gifts we continue to receive, including grants from community organizations, and contributions to the College Education Fund at the Guilford Foundation which has exceeded expectations and ensures our ability to provide education funds for our eligible ABC graduates.

It’s that time of year. The MJ Petretto Foundation Golf Event is looking for foursomes at this year’s Golf Classic. It is on Monday, June 27 at The Farms Country Club in Wallingford. Details can be found at mjpfoundation.org. Please let us know if you will have a foursome or will have friends/family who would like to have a foursome. Any questions please contact: Jeff@ ajzeitlin@comcast.net.

As always, we also want to thank all our staff and volunteers, and our many sponsors and donors who continue to support our mission to provide an excellent quality high school education to our talented scholars. Donations are always welcome by visiting the Donations page on our website at guilfordabc.org. Enjoy your spring! t

Back-to-School at Guilford ABC

From Co-President Marie Berry

After a summer filled with family vacations, summer plans and outdoor Post-COVID activities, our returning scholars and new scholar, Andrea Kaluma, a sophomore from Belmont, MA arrived at the ABC House on September 6th. They were welcomed by our Resident Director, Lynn Prendergast, as their families helped them unpack. They are happy to be here and have settled in comfortably for the school year ahead.

Most of our scholars participated in high school summer academic programs and our senior, Arianna Alvarez Pena, went to Barcelona, Spain as part of a high school cultural exchange program with CIEE. They started the school year actively engaged in their academics and also visiting Host families, volunteering at Hole in The Wall and spent a fun-filled afternoon with ABC Madison playing outdoor games and enjoying pizza.

We also welcome back our after-school tutors, Sharon Risse and Heather Bracken. During the school week they provide academic support to our scholars 2:30-4:30pm daily. In addition, we welcome our new cook, Kathy Sharon, who started in October and is looking forward to creating delicious and healthy dinners. She has a culinary background, has operated a bed and breakfast and is excited to spend time getting to know our scholars as she prepares meals for the ABC house and dinner guests.

As we look ahead, we anticipate watching our scholars grow as they pursue their varied interests, manage their rigorous academic schedules, participate in many GHS activities and prepare for the college of their choice. As always, it takes a village, and we want to thank our many sponsors and donors who continue to support our mission to provide an excellent quality high school education to our talented scholars.

Donations are always welcome by visiting the Donations page.

We are excited to welcome back our scholars, staff and volunteers for the 2021-22 school year!

Leave a Gift to Guilford ABC

Leaving a gift to Guilford A Better Chance in your will or trust is a worry-free way to help sustain this program and memorialize the values that are important to you.

A bequest can have a profound impact on a small nonprofit like ours. Last year, thanks to one bequest, we were able to undertake a much-needed major kitchen renovation at the ABC house. This gift created a welcoming place for the scholars to gather and made meal preparation considerably easier and more efficient.

Please consider a gift to GABC when it is time to update your will or trust. Your legacy gift can make a lifetime of difference to our scholars. For more information, please contact Christine Dokko (cdokko@gmail.com) or Connie Dickinson (cdickinson240@gmail.com).