For we need a little music, need a little laughter
Need a little singing ringing through the rafter…
CEA-Retired members from every corner of the state gathered last week for their first-ever Holiday Open House, enjoying seasonal music and treats, the company of colleagues, and a chance to put some finishing touches on this year’s Holiday Bear Project—a gift-giving campaign organized by the Connecticut Education Foundation, CEA’s charitable arm.
Every holiday season, hundreds of children in need are nominated by their teachers to receive gifts from generous Holiday Bear sponsors. This year, more than 800 students whose families are struggling financially were nominated.
“Sponsors typically shop for a child who’s been nominated, choosing and wrapping gifts that match the student’s likes and needs,” says CEF President Joslyn DeLancey. “But we also receive monetary donations, which means we purchase gifts on children’s wish lists and host staff and volunteer wrapping parties to get them packaged up.”
Making spirits bright
To help with last-minute wrapping, CEA-Retired held its first ever Holiday Open House, which included lunch, holiday music, a cocoa bar, and more.
“We thought this would be a great way for retired educators to get together, socialize, and enjoy some holiday cheer while also helping with an important charitable effort,” said CEA-Retired Membership Chair Susan Hart, eight years into her retirement from Southington schools. “We held the event at CEA’s Hartford office from mid-morning to mid-afternoon, which made it accessible to a lot of our members by enabling them to drop in anytime and stay for as little as half an hour or the full five, depending on their schedules and preferences. Everyone had fun wrapping presents, knowing it will add to the children’s joy this season.”
CEA-Retired members also brought cookies to swap and share, and everyone left with a festive package filled with holiday treats.
“I saw the invitation to the CEA-Retired Holiday Open House and thought it was a great way to give to children who are in need,” said Nancy Sasso Janis, who retired from Naugatuck Public Schools but has stayed on as the local association’s webmaster. “It’s wonderful to be wrapping gifts for children in the towns around where I taught,” she says, adding, “I didn’t know about this program when I was teaching, but now I’m so excited to get the word out. We brought it up at our last rep council meeting, so people are looking forward to next year’s sponsorship opportunities. CEF does such great work, and I’m happy to support it. Just this fall I went to CEF’s annual fundraising gala, and it was it was so much fun.”
It’s a Wrap!
Marilyn Cohen has known about Holiday Bear for years.
“My homeroom would collect and give to the Holiday Bear Project every year,” said the retired teacher, who still subs in Avon—one of the largest local association sponsors. “My cousins always came up to visit over Thanksgiving, and one of our traditions was to go Holiday Bear shopping together. Now that I’m retired, I saw this opportunity as another way to participate as well as enjoy the company of fellow retired CEA members. As an active teacher, I loved participating in CEA committee work, and this keeps me in touch with that work and my colleagues.”
“We have a lot of kids in need all over Connecticut, and CEF doing this is a great way to help those kids out,” said retired Bridgeport Education Association President Gary Peluchette, who lent a hand wrapping dozens of gifts during the Holiday Open House.
“In retirement,” he said, “you have more time to do this, so I’m glad to be here today. When I was teaching, we had a lot of students in Bridgeport who were nominated and benefited from this terrific program, so I’ve seen firsthand the joy it brings.”
Retiring soon? Stay active in your union and in touch with educators by joining CEA-Retired.
