PFD Foundation recipients

 The Peter F. Dalton Foundation set up a scholarship at Peter's alma mater Norwich University located in Northfield, VT.    Since inception we have given out 15 scholarships!

Their mission is to give our youth an education that shall be American in character—to enable them to act as well as to think—to execute as well as to conceive—“to tolerate all opinions when reason is left free to combat them”—to make moral, patriotic, efficient, and useful citizens, and to qualify them for all those high responsibilities resting upon a citizen of this free republic.

The distinctive terms and phrases found in this definition provide important clues in understanding the essence of this organization, and ultimately the directions we will seek and the outcomes we will require of our students. The most distinguishing terms are:

• American in character
• Global in perspective
• Mutual respect
• Service
• Thinking and acting
• Conceiving and executing
• Making moral and patriotic citizens
• Making useful citizens
• Qualifying graduates for responsibilities of a free republic

 Queens Centers for Progress is committed to providing person-centered services and supports to children and adults who have developmental disabilities.  The goal of these services and supports is to promote independence, community involvement, and quality of life.

Queens Centers for Progress will:

1. Provide individually-designed services and supports which will maximize:
   (a) independent decision-making capabilities;
   (b) integration into community life; and,
   (c) daily living, educational, and work-related skills.
2. Advocate for the rights and entitlements of persons with developmental disabilities.  Demonstrate our commitment to these rights by always treating those who use our services, and their families, with dignity and respect.
3. Engage in community outreach and public education to further awareness of the Agency’s services and the contributions made by persons with developmental disabilities.
4. Establish relationships with community and governmental organizations involved with services and funding for people with developmental disabilities.
5. Attract, train and retain staff who are committed to providing services of consistently high quality, who are compensated fairly for their work and who are treated with respect.
6. Operate the agency in a manner which demonstrates adherence to high ethical standards and assures financial stability and thereby protect the ongoing ability to carry out the Agency’s Mission.

The Pauline Baldwin Food Pantry in Madison, CT plays a vital role in the Madison community  helping to feed the needy. Formerly called the Madison Community Services Food Bank, the pantry serves some 110 families, which includes 70 percent seniors and 30 percent families with one or two children. Some 68 clients pick up their orders weekly.

In addition to the nonperishables, the pantry has three refrigerators that hold milk, eggs, and a variety of fruits and vegetables and a freezer for pork, beef, chicken and fish.

They also distribute personal hygiene items, including toilet paper, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, feminine products and Depends.

From July through August, as part of the Summer Lunch Program, additional cereal, snacks, mac and cheese, canned tuna, Ramen noodles, peanut butter and jelly, chicken nuggets and juices are allotted to families who have children home for the summer.

  “I just feel really blessed that we have such fantastic volunteers and donors,” she said. “It is the lifeblood of us. It does take a village because we can’t do it alone,” Mary Hake, Manager of the pantry.

“There are so many big hearts out there,” she said. “It’s the ripple effect, just a little bit of generosity from one person goes an incredible distance.” 

Pauline Baldwin Food Pantry, 50 Mungertown Road, 203-245-3031; mailing address P.O. Box 148, Madison, Ct 06443; madisoncommunityservices.org

With the recent major hurricanes Helene and Milton, the foundation will be donating to the American Red Cross.  So many families lost everything the American Red Cross is already on the ground helping families with shelter, clothing, food and essentials that are much in need.

Right now, the American Red Cross is helping and supporting people across the Southeast living with the heartbreaking destruction from Hurricanes Milton and Helene and, with our partners, we’ll be helping for weeks and months to come.

WE NEED YOUR HELP The Red Cross can’t do this alone. Please help by making a financial donation, an appointment to give blood or platelets, or signing up to become a volunteer by visiting redcross.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767). Financial donations to help people affected by Hurricanes Milton and Helene enable the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from these disasters. You can also text the word HURRICANES to 90999 to make a donation.

Thanks to the generosity of blood donors in unimpacted areas of the country, the Red Cross could ensure lifesaving blood products were available to patients ahead of these storms. Those outside of affected areas are encouraged to continue giving blood and platelets by scheduling a blood donation appointment here.

If you want to make a difference in the lives of others, consider becoming a Red Cross volunteer.

RED CROSS RESPONSE Some 2,100 Red Crossers, alongside our partners, are providing food, shelter and a shoulder to lean on in Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas and Tennessee.

In Florida, several disaster kitchens are ready to produce tens of thousands of hot meals a day and dozens of emergency response vehicles are on the roads providing meals, water and supplies to those struggling to clean up their homes. In North Carolina, more than 60 emergency response vehicles are delivering meals and relief supplies where possible. Depending on the damage, different areas have unique needs and we’re working with partners to deliver things like laundry and shower trailers, cooking stoves, even spark plugs to keep generators going and machinery running to support cleanup.

With the help of partners, we have provided more than 770,000 meals and snacks, and some 58,000 relief items like cleaning and hygiene supplies for thousands of affected families. Disaster health volunteers are caring for minor injuries and replacing things like eyeglasses and medications and mental health volunteers are providing comfort to those affected.

People continue to search for missing loved ones and Red Cross reunification teams are working nonstop to help. If you need assistance, visit redcross.org/helene.

SHELTERS ARE OPEN Almost 3,900 people spent Sunday night in emergency shelters across the affected states. If you need a safe place to stay visit redcross.org, download the free Red Cross Emergency app or call 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767). People don’t have to stay overnight to access Red Cross services.

Red Cross shelters are open to everyone in need, regardless of race, ethnicity, age, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability or citizenship status. All disaster assistance is free. We don’t require people to show any kind of identification to enter a shelter — just their name and where they were living before the disaster.

Xavier High School located in Middletown, CT is an all boys Catholic School. Peter's son and John's brother Pete attended before he suddenly passed away in 1985.  We have an annual scholarship given each year in his honor.

Since opening its doors in 1963, Xavier has remained true to its Xaverian tradition of fostering excellence in scholarship, leadership and service.

 This requires the commitment of a large community of alumni, parents, family, friends, faculty, coaches and staff. In that community, we all share a common bond of helping preserve Xavier as a top-tier private, all-boys Catholic high school that challenges its students to use their God-given talents in service to others.

We send out to the world outstanding young men prepared to meet any challenge. They step out from our community, their home for four years, and become even more engaged in the larger community, our world. Yet they never step away from Xavier. It is always home.

Says Bernie Hallums ‘81, a retired Manchester Police Officer who now is on the Board of Directors:

“The high standards set forth by Xavier more than prepared me for college and future successes beyond as a Xavier man.    A caring and supportive community truly made me feel like family … the faces have changed since my days at Xavier, but every time I walk in that building I am home.”

The school is home to nearly 10,000 alumni.