TBBCF one of many groups to benefit from her generosity
By KATHLEEN EDGECOMB
Well look who we found out and about recently doing what she does best – raising money for others.
Julie Holland of Pawcatuck was hosting the seventh annual Light It Up Blue fundraiser at the Malted Barley in Westerly to raise money and awareness about autism. Funds from donations at the door, raffles and a silent auction all went to Autism Speaks and unified programs in the Stonington area.
Holland is passionate about her community projects and has been especially generous over the years to the Terri Brodeur Breast Cancer Foundation.
For about seven years, when she was not raising money for autism, or for her daughter’s graduation party, or working as a coordinator for Stonington Human Services, or serving on the Stonington Beautification Committee, she was holding fundraisers for TBBCF.
She is always working to promote the foundation’s goal of committing 100 percent of fundraising dollars to cancer research. Her events have included Monday Night Pink Football at the Malted Barley and Pink Ladies Night at the Twisted Vine.
Busy with her own two children who are now teenagers, Holland said she never had time to commit to walk in TBBCF’s annual marathon fundraiser, a Walk Across Southeastern Connecticut. But she’s good at rallying the crowd. She hosted monthly parties at her home where friends and acquaintances gathered to identify unmet needs in the community.
“One thing we’re good at, is socializing,” she said. “We’re just a group of girls who wanted to do something.”
Sandy Maniscalco, a co-founder of TBBCF, called her a “community service superstar.”
Holland said she was inspired to help TBBCF after a mother she knew from the PTO in Stonington was diagnosed with breast cancer and died, leaving behind a young son.
“I was so taken with her never-give-up attitude,” Holland said. “She had a positive spirit and wanted to do it all, she was ready to do it all.”
Other groups that have benefited from the work of Holland and her friends include the Westerly Library, Wilcox Park, Autism Speaks and the Pawcatuck Neighborhood Center. She said her events raise an average of $2,000 to $3,000. She’s given TBBCF around $25,000 over the years.
Hey Julie, you can light up the town blue for autism awareness, pink for breast cancer awareness or any color for any good cause. We’ll support you.