|
Every once in a while, someone walks into the world of Horizons for Homeless Children (HHC), a Massachusetts based non-profit dedicated to improving the lives of homeless children and families, and works tirelessly to make a difference for the homeless children and families served by the organization. Looking for little or nothing in return, they remain behind the scenes as they quietly give back to our society’s most vulnerable population, with enormous impact as a result.
At Horizons for Homeless Children, one person who has made such a significant impact on the lives of homeless children and families has been Chestnut Hill’s Lisa Tucker. Lisa has been volunteering as a Playspace Activity Leader (PAL) with Horizons for Homeless Children for seven years. She started her weekly shift at Transition House in Cambridge and a year later transitioned to the Putnam Investments Community Children’s Center in Jamaica Plain, where she volunteered for several years. She later transferred to the Edgerley Family Community Children’s Center in Roxbury, where she currently volunteers with the children for three hours every Thursday morning.
Lisa Tucker is dependable, generous, and thoughtful. Over the course of seven years, she has given almost 1,000 hours of her time to the program and has touched the lives of several hundred homeless children. She has built strong and caring relationships with the children served by the agency; she can still recite the names of all of the children she has worked with, dating back to the first day she began as a PAL. Her warmth, dedication and contagious sense of humor make her a wonderful person to be around; the children look forward to her arrival week after week!
Lisa truly believes in HHC’s mission and embraces ‘the power of play’. By engaging one-on-one with the children each week, she brings a wonderful dynamic to the Playspace experience and ensures that the mission goes beyond words and reaches the children who need it the most. “Nothing in my life has been easier than dedicating a small part of it to help the incredible teachers and staff at Horizons for Homeless Children in their mission to shine light and warmth, play and education, into the lives of homeless children and their parents,” said Lisa. “To help them is a pleasure – the highlight of my week - no matter how busy or tired I might otherwise be.”
As if Lisa wasn’t doing enough already in going to such lengths to make this enormous difference in the lives of homeless children, over the past seven years, Lisa has spoken on PAL panels, has volunteered at numerous HHC events and she and her family have been longstanding financial supporters of the agency’s mission and work. She has also donated supplies to the classroom in which she volunteers – toys, arts and crafts, books – all of the tools needed to help the children learn and grow and she has played a significant role in recruiting several volunteers in her local community.
On January 14, as a charitable partner of the Boston Celtics Shamrock Foundation, Horizons for Homeless Children celebrated a special night at the TD Banknorth Garden, when the Boston Celtics played the New Jersey Nets. During the game, Lisa Tucker was presented with a “Heroes Among Us” Award by the Celtics, in recognition of her important work with Horizons for Homeless Children. “We are honored and proud to recognize Lisa in this way,” said Matt Meyersohn of the Boston Celtics Shamrock Foundation. “She is an incredible woman who has been dedicated to the mission and work of Horizons for Homeless Children for several years and has given back in truly significant ways. She is an inspiration to our community!”
|
PAL and Celtics Hero Among Us, Lisa Tucker with
Sue Heilman, HHC and
Matt Meyersohn, Boston Celtics Shamrock Foundation on January 14, 2009.
| 
