Happy New Year!
 
Mommy and Me Music Class
Monday January 28 at 4:00 pm at Soul Spirit Studios
Please join us at Soul Spirit Studios (next to Coffee Haven) for a Mommy and Me Music Class for all ages. Music and fun for all!
 
Crafts & Snacks
Monday February 12 at 3:45 pm at Mission Springs
Halloween trick or treating here was so fun, we want to do more! We will have snacks and make fun Valentine crafts with the residents at Mission Springs to spice up our winter months.
 
RSVP for both events on Facebook or e-mail juliannecatlin@gmail.com.

Julianne
Children’s Activities Chair
Julianne Catlin   juliannecatlin@gmail.com

The 2018 Gingerbread House Grant Fundraiser was a huge success this year with help from Mount Hollis Lodge, the National Honor Society, and the many Holliston Newcomers Club members who donated candy and their time! Over 70 decorated houses adorned the lodge hall over three fun sessions. We wish to give a special thank you to our volunteers who helped make this event such a success!

Excited guests young and old walked into the Lodge to tables of fresh houses. They then went to our candy station where they chose an assortment of goodies to adorn their house. This year there were also giant Gingerbread men to add to the festivities and decorate. Not only is it fun to beautify one’s own house, but it’s also a treat to see the creativity of others. The atmosphere is not only jolly, but exemplifies the spirit of the season as the money raised is given right back to the community.
 


The Langlois family of Hopkinton came back for their second year in a row, as it has become a tradition to which they look forward.
Pictured are
Tess 5, Theo 7, and their parents, Gayla and Steve Langlois.
 

 
 
For the Wegrzyn family this was their fourth year attending the festivities. “We love this event and we look forward to it every year!” said Kerrin.
 
This is one of the many events that fund the Newcomers Community Grants. Some of the 2018 grant recipients were the Holliston Fire Department’s personal CO2 monitors, Parks and Recreation Summer Concerts in the park, discounted library museum passes, and the Senior Center vegetable garden, among others.  Thanks to all of our decorators for helping us to give back to Holliston!

Beth and Tracey
Gingerbread co-chairs
Tracey Geden   traceybc93@yahoo.com
Beth O'Dea-Ng   Betty242424@yahoo.com

Hi HNC Family,
 
We’ve had a fun and busy fall, and now we’re looking ahead into 2019. We still have a number of open positions that need your help, notably, two additional co-chairs for our brand new Rock ‘n’ Roll BINGO fundraiser, one more co-chair for our Princess and Superhero Party and four co-chairs for Touch-a-Truck.

Robin Bowman is bringing a fun new adult event to our town, Rock ‘n’ Roll BINGO, on Saturday, March 30th. She attended a similar event and it was a ton of fun. If you would like to put your own touch on this please reach out and partner with Robin. She’s already done a lot of the groundwork so if you’d like to gain valuable experience in event planning, here’s your chance!
 
The second annual Princess and Superhero Party is scheduled for Saturday, April 6th, and two of the chairs, Katrine and I, did it last year so you’ll be in good hands if you join us.
 
Lastly, our beloved Touch-a-Truck has been lovingly chaired by Leah, Angela and Christine the past two years and has grown in attendance and success thanks to their creative ideas and dedication. They will still be around to advise and help along the way, so if you’d like to learn more about what goes on behind the scenes please reach out and continue this fun and important event.
 
Please email President@hollistonnewcomers.org or HNCExecutiveBoard@gmail.com if you are interested in any of these positions. Please keep in mind, this club is only as strong as its members make it, and we have a lot of great people already running things, but need to see new faces in the mix. Why not you?
 
I hope you enjoy the magic of the holiday season, and I look forward to seeing you soon!
 
Warm hugs,

Christel DiPippo, HNC President   
president@hollistonnewcomers.org

The HNC Book Club will take a December break and reconvene on Tuesday, January 15 at 7:30pm for a discussion of, Tell Me More: Stories about the Twelve Hardest Things I'm Learning to Say  by Kelly Corrigan. Please plan to join us then, location TBD.  Copies of the book will be on reserve at the library circulation desk and available for checkout mid-December.  

 
 "Tell Me More is a funny, wise and insightful exploration of seven sentences adult life requires. With Kelly's signature candor and good will, each chapter draws from her sometimes ridiculous, sometimes profound struggles with parenting and marriage, career and friendship, illness, aging and mortality. Each chapter is animated by poignant, hilarious stories from Kelly's own life and is focused on one of seven sentences: Onward, a one-word sentence that celebrates the moment we stop raging against people and situations that will not be changed and decide to just get on with it. I Don't Know, a candid and liberating statement to help us make peace with uncertainty, unknowns and unknowables. Tell Me More, a prompt to squelch our instinct to fix, fix, fix ... and just listen. No, a mighty two-letter sentry against dangers of all sorts, including martyrdom. You Got This, an empowering message that honors, embraces and possibly multiplies personal capacity. I Was Wrong, a deep dive into how to apologize and the astonishing corrections a perfect apology can make possible. You Can Go, for the excruciating moment when it's time to say goodbye to someone you hardly think you can get through a day without"
- Provided by the publisher
 
Contact the Book Club Co-Chairs with any questions:
Cindy Carr: carr.cynthiad@gmail.com
Sue Hatton: hncbookclub@outlook.com

Thank you all for a great 2018 with Children's Activities!
 
We do not have a December event planned, as everyone is busy with the holidays, but we're working on a possible music class, more events at Mission Springs, and much more for the New Year.
 
If you have any ideas or suggestions for future events, please feel free to let us know.
 
Happy Holidays to you and all of your families!

Please contact the Children’s Activities Chair with any suggestions or questions:
Julianne Catlin: juliannecatlin@gmail.com

The Holliston Newcomers Club will organize and arrange a meal to be delivered to new parents. Please let me know if you or another club member is expecting! We are happy to do this and will be respectful of time and meal preferences, special diets and food allergies.

Please feel free to contact me by email with any questions.

Cindy Carr, HNC Corresponding Secretary
carr.cynthiad@gmail.com

• Sandra Lally
  
• Mary Klecan & Christopher Canney
  
• Tracy & Jay Dupuis
  
• Michael & Robyn Lawrence 
  
• Angie & David Bloom
  

Thank you and we're delighted to have you as a part of our community!

Click here to become a member.

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! And with the help of Holliston Newcomer volunteers and our local businesses and community members, many deserving families who would not have otherwise did as well.

The Holliston Historical Society Barn was bustling with activity on the Saturday before Thanksgiving as our member volunteers and their families assembled over 160 Thanksgiving Baskets for the Holliston Food Pantry and other local organizations. 

It was so satisfying to see our community come together to make this project such a success.  We had so many generous donations from our local businesses and community members, which helped to purchase all the produce and gift cards. 

Food drives were held by almost every organization in town - so much so that they collected almost all of the non-perishable items that we needed!  And between the Girl Scouts at our food drive, HKHO (Holliston Kids Helping Others) making over 150 cards, and the Holliston High School Hockey Team helping with assembly, our job was made so much easier.  
 
We couldn’t be more thankful for the support we received from the community on this project. We are so proud that the HNC had a part in making Thanksgiving such a great day for so many of our neighbors.

We have had such a huge outpouring of support for this project from the community, and we feel so grateful to live in such a wonderful town! So many groups have already committed to helping out by collecting the needed non-perishable items, making cards to be included in the baskets, or signing up to volunteer at our food drive at Shaw’s Ashland. And the donations have already starting rolling in!

Every year there are local families who struggle to put a meal on the table at Thanksgiving. With your generous support this Thanksgiving we hope to provide a complete holiday dinner for over 150 Holliston area families. Your help is critical to reaching this goal!

Here are the ways you can help:

1. Donate funds online or mail your donation to Katrine Giroux, 147 Mohawk Path, Holliston. We rely on donated funds to purchase produce, turkeys, and other basket items.
   
2. Volunteer at our Food Drive on Saturday, November 3, 9am-4pm at Shaw's Ashland. Sign up here.
   
3. Volunteer at the Basket Assembly on Saturday, November 17, 9am-12pm at the Holliston Historical Society Barn. Sign-up here. Note that we are in need of another truck to pick up produce on the morning of assembly at Shaw’s Ashland and deliver to the Holliston Historical Barn. Time commitment is 730 am -830 am.
4. Contribute items to help fill our baskets:
   • Gift Cards to Shaw's or Market Basket are always welcome
   • Canned or Jarred Gravy
   • Bag or Box of Stuffing
   • Box of Brownie Mix
   • Box of Cranberry or Pumpkin Quick Bread Mix
   • Box of Black Tea Bags
   • Can or Bag of Coffee 11-16 oz
   • Roasting Pan - large

Items can be dropped at these locations:

Please contact the Thanksgiving Baskets Co-Chairs with any questions:

Debbie Colburn: cd.mp@verizon.net
Katrine Giroux: katrinegiroux@gmail.com
Melissa Marien: melissa.a.cloutier@gmai.com

The Ladies Escapes group is happy to announce its very last event of the year, a Crazy Socks Exchange Party. We decided to put a fun twist on the highly popular ornament exchange and came up with the Crazy Socks Exchange. Each person will bring a pair of new, crazy, funny socks filled with small goodies and receive a pair from someone else. The price limit is $20. Pizza and drinks will be provided, and please feel free to bring a dessert to share. The party will be at Timea's house on Friday, December 14 starting at 7:30 pm. Her address will be provided upon RSVP, so please do not forget to RSVP to Timea at timusch@yahoo.com!
 
We can't wait to see you!
 

Crazy Socks Exchange Party
Friday, December 14, 2018 at 7:30 pm
Location: Timea's house
 

Contact the Ladies Escapes Co-Chairs with any questions:
Jennifer Mott: hncladiesescape@gmail.com
Timea Kovacs: timusch@yahoo.com