When I first met Colin Novick, the executive director of the Greater Worcester Land Trust (GWLT), he taught us about the organization, guided us around the city to show us the various green and blue spaces managed by the land trust, and spoke at length about both the current and past of conservation and land use in Worcester.

He completely opened my eyes to how much green space we have available to us as a city, and how the decisions made and patterns created by previous generations have shaped the city we live in today.

For our December non-profit, the Worcester Youth Center, transformation has been the name of the game. Prior to the pandemic, the Worcester Youth Center was, well, a youth center. Kids could gather to play sports, socialize, take various lessons, and more. But now, the Youth Center is focusing much more on remote learning and creative programs like arts and music.

Despite the pandemic, our June nonprofit - Simon Says Give Worcester, which provides middle school backpacks and birthday parties to kids aged 5-12 from low-income families in Worcester - has been on pace to deliver more backpacks and as many birthday parties than they did in 2019. That’s pretty inspiring.

Not many organizations represent the concept of community more than our nonprofit for May, the Worcester Community Skateshop. Check out our Q&A with some of the WCS’s founders about how the organization uses skateboarding as a way to help the city’s youth - and we hope you’ll consider adding a donation with your next curbside or home delivery purchase.

WARL was founded in 1912 by a group of women determined to save overworked and abused farm horses. Today, the organization is dedicated to protecting, caring for, and loving pets throughout Central Massachusetts.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, which makes SHINE the perfect non-profit for us to support this month. Throughout May, 100% of our tips will be collected and donated in support of SHINE.

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and we’ll be supporting Pathways for Change, a Worcester-based non-profit that provides services to victims of sexual assault and raises awareness around sexual assault prevention and education.

Ever since we announced our Tipping for Charity program, our customers have been crushing it. Together, we raised more than $3,400 for the Trustees of Reservations in February!

For March, we are thrilled to announce our featured non-profit will be Worcester’s Regional Environmental Council (REC)!