In March, the Boston Globe featured volunteers that have opened up their homes to refugees and asylum seekers in Massachusetts. We were excited to learn of an organization working nearby and checked out the ArCS Cluster which helps refugees and asylum seekers in Arlington, Cambridge, and Somerville. ArCS Cluster is an all volunteer organization, with no office and no overhead, so every penny donated goes to support a local refugee or asylum seeker. Many of their guests have to stay anonymous because of the danger to relatives in their home country, but here is the story of one of their extraordinary guests....

When we first opened gather here back in 2011 we were located just two blocks away from On The Rise on Broadway. We've been fortunate to be able to be one of the sponsors of their annual event: Empty Bowls Project over the past few years and to coincide with this annual event we decided to raise funds for their organization this month as well. On The Rise was founded in 1995 on the idea that dependable relationships catalyze healing and transformation. They commit to relationships with chronically homeless women and transgender/non-binary people that are long-term and relevant to their...

On December 19, 2023, Barbara A. Tahhan-Petrella passed away after a long struggle with cancer. Barbara was an important figure in gh team member, Ciara's, life - mother to her longtime partner, Jenna, and "Glama" to Sky and Moose, their two dogs. In lieu of flowers, the family requested donations be made in Barbara's name to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and the Dear Jack Foundation. We were not familiar with the Dear Jack Foundation and after learning more about their work providing impactful programs benefiting adolescents and young adults (AYA) diagnosed with cancer and their families to improve their...

How is it a new year?!? Even as we consider our annual purge of things we don't need/want we also are spending a little time reflecting on the things that we do need in the coming year. Like more community building. And more social justice. And more celebrating the wins. In 2023 we donated over $14K to nonprofits and mutual aid funds doing essential work in the community. That's 20% more than we raised from We Care Wednesday in 2022! Thank you to everyone that shopped with intention on Wednesdays, who shared the We Care Wednesday initiative with other organizations,...

Remember when Twitter was *the place* to find out if you'd just experienced an earthquake or if there was a flyover to open Fenway Park but you were the last to know? It was also a place where you could find people doing really amazing work and writing about it. We connected with artists and craftspeople all over the world, we joined conversations about public transit and affordable housing, and we went viral for an evening for using swear words while discussing the Vice Presidential debates. It's also where we found invaluable resources in 2020 and until that very rich...