WESTFIELD – City residents who may wonder about the legitimacy of callers seeking contributions to the Westfield Police Association may rest assured that, although the solicitors are not cops, the money they contribute will stay in the city and benefit charities which look to the police group for support.
Officer Mark Carboneau, the president of the association, said that police officers are enjoined by law from asking for donations directly so the association contracts with professional solicitors to raise funds to support the association’s efforts in the community.
The support provided by the group which includes officers of all ranks is perhaps most obvious on the jerseys of players in the city’s many athletic leagues but the association also provides support for organizations such as The Boys and Girls Club, the Westfield YMCA, Noble Hospital, the Westfield service units of the Salvation Army and American Red Cross and dozens of other community groups.
Carboneau said that although the vast majority of the groups supported by the association are in the city the group makes a donation “every year” to the fund to support the Massachusetts Law Enforcement Memorial on the grounds of the Massachusetts State House in Boston which lists the names of the Commonwealth’s fallen officers and includes the name of Westfield Officer Jose Torres who died, on duty, in July, 2012.
He said that the solicitors will start calling local residents on Monday, Jan.27 and will be asking for donations.
Carboneau said that the current funding drive is the only one that benefits local groups and should not be confused with solicitations from other police groups, such as the Massachusetts Police Association or the D.A.R.E. program, which also utilize contracted solicitors for fundraising.
Residents who are wiling to support the Westfield police group’s efforts for local charities are asked to make their checks (no cash) payable to ‘The Westfield Police Association’ and leave the donations on their doors.
Carboneau said that police, barred from soliciting, are not allowed to collect donations either. He said that contributors should not put their donations in their mailboxes as the representatives of the solicitors are not allowed to take anything from a mailbox but should leave their envelopes directly on their doors.
He said that the solicitors will advise contributors about when their donations will be collected so the residents’ donations will not be left outside for an extended period.
Persons with questions about the association or the programs supported may speak with Carboneau directly at 564-3100 or 246-3794.
The police are not the only emergency responders who raise funds to benefit local organizations. The city firefighters, through their union, Local 1111 of the International Brotherhood of Firefighters, also support a wide variety of local programs in the community.
The firefighters have also contracted with telephone fundraisers who have been calling residents to ask for donations to support the efforts of the firefighters since the beginning of January.
Firefighter Ray Neilsen, the event coordinator, said that every year some residents who are contacted express concerns that the solicitation is a scam of some sort and said that he wants to assure residents that their donations will stay in the community and be used to help local organizations.
The firefighters’ campaign will conclude on Saturday, Feb. 22, at the Amelia Park Ice Arena when a picked team representing the fire department will take to the ice against the Blue and Gold Legends, a team comprised of former members of the Boston Bruins, in what has become an annual event for the firefighters.
The hockey game will be at 4:30 p.m. and admission is free although cash donations will be accepted at the door to augment the funds raised by pre-game donations.
A program for the event will be available and, in addition to pictures and information about the Legends, will include pages for autographs.
The former Bruins players will be available to the fans to sign autographs between the two 25-minute periods of the game.
Young players attending the game will have another opportunity to get up-close and personal with the former hockey stars before the game when the Legends will offer two workshops for young hockey players.
Children will be able to “pick up some tips from some of the Black and Gold Legends” said Neilsen, who added “we’re going to charge for that.”
He said that pre-registration will be required for participation in one of two 45-minute workshops staged before the game.’
He said that a workshop for ‘Mites’ and ‘Squirts’ (children aged 4-10) will begin at 3 p.m. and a second workshop for older boys, ‘Peewees’ through ‘Bantams’ aged 10-14, will begin at 3:45 p.m.
The children will need complete hockey pads and gear and participants may register for the workshops in person at Amelia Park or by calling the ice arena at 568 2503, Neilsen said. The cost of the workshops will be $30.
Refreshments will be available at the game and will include firehouse chili.
