2024 was a year of growth and change for the Worcester Area Mission Society, United Church of Christ, known to many as “WAMS.” In one special way, it also brought a return to our roots.
New and Expanded Activities
- In 1829, our organization was created to help workers, most of whom were Irish immigrants, who were building the Blackstone Canal. Over the years that followed, WAMS developed other mission work and explored new directions, leaving services for migrants to specialized social service agencies. Then, in 2023, when a wave of Haitians arrived in central Massachusetts, we enlisted UCC congregations and individuals in successful clothing, diaper, and toy drives.
In 2024, our commitment to helping struggling migrant families grew. A group of churches that were participating in a Gathering WAMS had organized to discuss mission work, voted to choose migrant support as their area of joint focus. They asked WAMS to create a coordinator position to support the joint mission activities. With a grant from the Massachusetts Woman’s Home Missionary Union, a UCC grant-making organization, WAMS was able to create the part-time position of Migrant Support Project Coordinator. We were especially fortunate to recruit Frances Graveson, a former businesswoman who had answered the call to ministry, had graduated from divinity school, and had just successfully passed her Ecclesiastical Council. Fran had knowledge about migrant needs from a previous position and was familiar with many UCC congregations and ministers in central Massachusetts. She built the new position into a hub of information gathering and sharing, volunteer recruitment, and collaboration, not just with interested UCC congregations, but also with some other faith organizations. Fran organized a wonderful group of volunteers from various communities in central Massachusetts who participated in various ways including providing support for the Temporary Protected Status legal clinics for Haitian migrants.
The other way in which we grew our commitment to migrant support work was that during 2024, we agreed to allow the narthex at 6 Institute Road to become the collection and distribution center for diapers, personal care products, and sometimes clothing. Approximately twice a month, we host “distribution days” that bring 100-200 migrant families to WAMS. This project is a collaboration with the Friendly House Office of New Americans.
It has felt right to return to our 1829 roots as part of our mission work on behalf of UCC churches. - Through our work in collaboration with the Office of New Americans, we learned of a very special need in central Massachusetts: medical services for migrants. Existing hospitals and clinics were unable to keep up with the need for newly arrived families to be examined, vaccinated, and treated. Maternal health care was another significant challenge. In 2023, Dr. Olga Valdman, a skilled and compassionate doctor at Family Health Center and UMass/Memorial Healthcare, had created Worcester RISE for Health, a trauma-informed program to provide medical services to new arrivals. In 2024, RISE was opening a clinic, but did not have the funds to buy essential medical equipment. They asked WAMS to help. This was a unique situation, because WAMS is not a grant-making organization. After research and careful consideration, the WAMS Board of Directors voted to give RISE a gift of $10,000 to enable them to buy essential equipment. They were able to buy their first EKG machine, thanks to WAMS. We were very proud to help. Although this gift was a first for us, using our resources to help another not-for-profit reach a goal they could not reach on their own, is embedded in the WAMS principles and traditions.
- The Annual Book Drive that WAMS leads, with strong support from United Congregational Church, grew amazingly in 2024. What started a few years ago as a small drive in connection with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in January has now become a six-month project. For the first time, WAMS was able to expand the drive to provide new books to all the second and third graders in a total of six schools, one in Fitchburg, one in Southbridge, and four in Worcester. We chose schools in low-income neighborhoods where children need books very much, and where getting something brand new of their own is special. For the first time, we were able to deliver 1,000 new books to the children, double the number in 2023, which had been a record that year. Delivering the books to the classrooms, and watching the children’s faces, is a significant high point of our year.
- Summer CUBS 2025 was bigger and better than it had ever been. We enrolled 50 children, and about 47 came regularly. Classes met for more days than in 2023, and thanks to funding from Clark University, the children, interns, and staff went on an exciting field trip every week. The field trips were related to the CUBS science class. We were very grateful to Clark and to United Way of Central Massachusetts, which awarded us $10,000 as our third and last ASOST (state-funded out-of-school time) grant.
- Terrible apartment building fires in Worcester and Southbridge left many people homeless and without even their basic articles of clothing. When the first fire happened in Worcester early one morning, residents were taken to the Senior Center, some in pajamas, some in underwear, and several with their pets. We took some clothes that we had been storing for a migrant distribution day to the Senior Center, then got a list of some urgent items that were needed. We did some quick, limited fundraising and then shopped for the most needed items. When fires burned apartments in Southbridge, we reached out to churches and were able to buy and deliver Walmart gift cards with their generous donations, as well as $1,000 in WAMS funds. We chose Walmart because it has clothes, food, and household items.
Ongoing Activities
- Our Play Group Plus collaborations with Worcester Family Partnership and Fitchburg’s MOC agency continued to run well. Attendance dipped briefly in Worcester, but then increased to nine or ten children per session, which is a comfortable number for that location. In Fitchburg, the beautiful, newly renovated space at MOC was filled every Friday morning. Some weeks there were more than 20 children, in addition to their parents, grandparents and caregivers. Attendance was strong and regular. Teachers and parents watched the children develop social skills and become accustomed to being in a classroom setting, with teachers. At both locations, WAMS continued to provide a new book and a light lunch each week for every child, plus a grocery gift card for the family. We were grateful for grants in support of this program from Webster Five Foundation, Berkshire Bank, Greater Worcester Community Foundation, and United Way of Central Massachusetts.
- In 2023 we had, for the first time, served as fiscal sponsor for a new and valuable program that needed grants, but had not yet received 501(c)(3) tax exempt status. In 2024, we were approached by another start-up organization in a similar position. HollyWoo Studio’s founder, Angelo Padin, an experienced videographer with a studio in Leicester, wanted to teach young people skills in videography and photography that would prepare them for jobs in those fields. After getting references that assured us of Angelo’s skills and background, WAMS agreed to serve as fiscal sponsor for his program.
- WAMS continued to be part of the UMass/Memorial Healthcare Anchor Mission program, with Executive Director Karen Ludington serving on the committee that approves projects for loans. At the end of 2024, WAMS identified a program that needed and deserved support, and the WAMS Board voted to loan $50,000 to the Regional Environmental Council (REC), a highly respected food equity not-for-profit, to help them buy property in the Main South neighborhood on which to grow food and expand their headquarters.
Facilities
- We completed several important facilities projects in 2024.
- We did more repairs on our roof at 6 Institute Road, including replacing much of the flat roof.
- We had the plaster repaired in the kitchen and had it completely repainted. We added bright posters in English and Spanish. The kitchen is used by both Central Massachusetts Housing Alliance and United Congregational Church.
- The three restrooms outside Merriman Hall, where the church meets for worship, were renovated.
- The Public Meeting Room acoustics project was finished, and it made a huge difference in the effective use of that room. Both the Public Meeting Room and the Gallery are used not only by WAMS and Central Massachusetts Housing Alliance, but by other area not-for-profits such as Mechanics Hall, Worcester Latino Dollars for Scholars, and the Boys & Girls Club, that once again brought their beautiful Festival of Trees to WAMS.
We also began planning for the replacement of the old knob and tube wiring in the Gallery. That is a huge project that we hope to complete in 2025.
We are grateful for the support of the United Church of Christ Central Massachusetts Association, UCC congregations and congregants, and local foundations. Thanks, too, to the wonderful staff members and volunteers, including our all-volunteer Board, who make our work possible.
Respectfully submitted,
Karen
Karen E. Ludington, Executive Director