Jay Lavrich, COM '22 and Ali Daly, COM '22 surrounded by all The Giving Tree gifts
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aesthetics of the local park by landscaping, picking-up trash, and other personal touches. “I used to be a landscaper,” Student Doctor Lavrich says. "So it was really fun to do a bigger redo. We got rid of a lot of plants that were dead… one of the local residents brought us a chainsaw one day to help.” They also host game nights at the McArthur Home, a retirement community in Biddeford, and volunteer at the Biddeford Soup Kitchen. The Giving Tree was the perfect opportunity to interact with and impact a different population, serving families directly and hopefully make a difference in their holiday season.
In order to uncover names of local schools that might participate, Student Doctor Lavrich tapped into a few connections. Her roommate works in the Biddeford School system and suggested John F. Kennedy Memorial School, a local elementary, since “it is all Biddeford families, and there’s just a huge need there.” She reached out to Bryan Litchfield, social worker at JKF Memorial, who said their timing was impeccable. The school typically works with the Salvation Army for a similar initiative but on a much smaller scale. This year, the company required parents to write essays, which would discourage families from participating. “He was very open about [The Giving Tree],” Student Doctor Lavrich recalls. “Whatever you want to do, whatever you want to give… he was really enthusiastic.”