B2B Connexions helps Schools on Wheels with back packing and donation

CONTACT: Jim Farrell, PR First, 781-681-6616, jfarrell@prfirst.com

“Back to School” for networking group B2B Connexions; members work with Brockton-based School on Wheels to fill back-to-school packs

BROCKTON, MA, ISSUED SEPTEMBER 17, 2014…It’s back to school for thousands of students across the region; and one local business networking group got a chance to lend a helping hand (actually, about 40 hands) one recent afternoon at School on Wheels, 790 West Chestnut Street, Brockton.

Twenty members of the business group B2B Connexions (www.b2bconnexions.net) volunteered to pitch in and help pack back-to-school bags at School on Wheels just prior to the opening of school. In addition, the group donated $500 to the organization to help with its ongoing fundraising efforts.

School on Wheels of Massachusetts (SOWMA) was founded in 2004 by Cheryl Opper, teacher and child advocate, after reading a magazine article about Agnes Stevens, the founder of School on Wheels of California. She was inspired to bring the one-on-one academic program to Massachusetts to support children struggling to stay on track in school while experiencing homelessness. Opper started SOWMA out of her home in Easton, where she trained community volunteer tutors at her kitchen table. She worked with local universities to recruit her first tutors. Her basement was filled with backpacks and school supplies. Community volunteers came together to prepare the backpacks for the children. In 2004, SOWMA worked with 20 children a week in two family shelters. SOWMA now provides customized services for over 200 students in grades K through 12 at 12 program sites, as well as 26 college students currently enrolled at 10 different schools throughout New England.

School on Wheels of Massachusetts is the third program in the country. SOWMA is primarily privately funded through individuals, civic organizations, businesses and foundations.

“We had heard about the good work that School on Wheels does for families in need, and we wanted to do something to give back to the community,” said Jay Pike, a partner in the CPA firm Sharkansky LLP and Treasurer of the networking group B2B Connexions. He and B2B founder/facilitator Itamar Chalif, a Vice President at Rockland Trust Company, helped coordinate the event; a large number of the organization’s membership turned out to help.

Since 2004, School on Wheels has launched 22 sites, trained 1,535 volunteers, recorded more than 25,837 tutoring hours, distributed 4,928 backpacks, served 1,584 students, and seen 33 students enrolled in college. For additional information on School on Wheels Massachusetts, and how to help with backpacks and other community projects, please contact Dianne Sproul at 508-587-9091 or email Dianne@sowma.org. For more information on the program itself, please visit www.sowma.org.

About B2B Connexions

B2B Connexions is a group of business people who meet every three weeks, and who understand the value and importance of business relationships that are developed for the long term. Referrals and introductions are a key part of what the group does, along with the exchange of ideas, advice and regular contact. The membership invites guests to attend the meeting and learn more about the group and its members. The organization is structured to provide a professional, well managed meeting with a relaxed approach that appreciates genuineness of purpose and open dialogue. Each seated member represents a different type of business or function, which is a determining factor of membership. B2B Connexions meets every third Thursday in Brockton at the Rockland Trust Company’s 120 Liberty Street, Brockton location. For an invitation to attend a meeting, please contact Itamar Chalif, itamar.chalif@rocklandtrust.com.

Photo caption 1: B2B Connexions, in addition to volunteering to pack back-to-school bags for School on Wheels, also contributed $500 to the organization to help with its ongoing efforts. Shown, left to right, are Jay Pike, of Sharkansky LLP and Treasurer of B2B Connexions; Dianne Sproul, Community Outreach Coordinator, School on Wheels; and Itamar Chalif, Rockland Trust Company and Facilitator of B2B Connexions.

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