Rotary, Franklin Regional club reach out to social service nonprofits for the holidays

Murrysville-Export Rotary member Theresa Gutierrez didn’t have to look far to find a worthy recipient for a holiday donation drive.

“Theresa is a resource parent for us,” said Annette Gross, foster care director at Wesley Family Services in O’Hara. “The Rotary had me come out to speak with them about Wesley and what we do.”

What they do is provide social services, behavioral healthcare and therapeutic support to more than 20,000 people each year in Western Pennsylvania. It was a perfect opportunity, Gutierrez said, for the Franklin Regional Rotary Interact Club that she advises alongside fellow Rotarian and school board member Traci Eshelman Ramey.

“We did a ‘Polar Express’ collection for both Wesley and the Sojourner House, a social service agency in Pittsburgh for women are coming off of drug addiction,” Gutierrez said. “We also made up Christmas cards that I’ll be delivering to veterans, nursing homes and some other local folks.”

Both the FR Rotary Interact Club at the high school and a group of students at Franklin Regional Middle School collected gloves, hats and mittens for Wesley Family Services and donated sheets for Sojourner House.

“The women in the Murrysville Bible Study group come to our programs twice a month, and they reached out to the club,” said Liz Wasel, volunteer coordinator at Sojourner House. “In the world we have right now, with all the negativity, this shows me how young people want to help if they’re given the opportunity.”

Wasel said the sheets are a huge help.

“It’s not a huge expense, but some of our apartments have four beds, and everyone loves clean sheets, so it’s really wonderful,” Wasel said.

Gross said that in addition to the club’s donation, Murrysville-Export Rotary members also contributed to Wesley’s annual Angel Tree, which collects gift donations for children in foster care and from underserved families.

“It’s heartwarming any time of year,” she said. “But it means a lot when people take the time in the hustle and bustle of buying for friends or co-workers or family, to recognize that there are a lot of people out there in need.”