The Foundation was very pleased to issue a grant of $1,200 to a young man in dire need in Lawrence. It is especially meaningful when we are able to see tangible effects of our grants, and he was extremely grateful. If you know of anyone in dire need of financial assistance who may fit the criteria outlined on the Foundation page, please reach out to us, as we are always looking for qualifying applicants!
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This year marked the (gasp!) 16th edition of our annual March Madness Pool. This year's pool saw a near-record number of brackets in both the Original Pool (460) and the Sweet 16 Pool (301). The 16-year run of this event has now raised over $48,000 for Peter's Foundation, which is truly an incredible number that has allowed the Foundation to greatly impact the lives of many. The pool’s popularity and success are due solely to the kindness of so many of you, be it through entering a bracket or two (or five!), recruiting friends to play, or giving extra donations along the way. So from the bottom of our hearts, an enormous THANK YOU to everyone for making this event such a success! This year's Original Pool (and its $1,000 1st Place Prize) was won by Zachary Poirier. The top 9 finishers received prizes, so also earning hefty amounts were Eric Poydar, Ashton Therrien, Carter Capodanno, Burns McKinney, Alex Popp, Cathy Ellsworth, Richard Paduch, and Joseph Dangelo. The Sweet 16 Pool was won by George Lavelle, who took home the $500 1st Place Prize with a perfect bracket. Also finishing in the money were Will Felcon, Paul Capodanno, Nancy Volel, Greg Monast, and Joe Foley. Congrats to all of the winnners, and once again, thank you to everyone for making this year's pool one of the biggest yet! For all information on the pool, including how to play next year and a complete history of the pool, go to the pool's permanent homepage at http://pfmffundraiser.weebly.com/.
With our (and Peter's) beloved Patriots back in the Super Bowl for the 3rd time in 4 years, we were very excited to host the Super Bowl Squares Fundraiser once again. With 2 grids to choose from, participants could select up to 10 squares total. Numbers were then randomly chosen to fill up the grid, and the score at the end of each quarter dictated who the winners of the pool were. Congrats to the 2 big winners for claiming the $200 Final Score Prize (Richard Paduch and Bill Meehan), and to the other 6 winners for their $100 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Quarter Prizes (Linda O'Brien, Raleigh Zbinden, Matt Sayers, Scott Dinneen, Jack Squeglia, and Laurie-Jean Herlihy). Just like with our March Madness Pool, half of the total money in the pot went to the winners and the other half went to the Foundation. So despite a heartbreaking loss for the Pats, we were very excited to raise $1,000. Thanks to all for participating!  The Foundation was very pleased to grant $4,000 to GlobBall Giving, a non-profit in Milwaukee that provides sports equipment to underprivileged children both domestically and abroad. Their mission ties in perfectly to Peter's character and beliefs. Since they started in 2012, they have sent over 18,000 pounds of equipment to 125,000 children around the world (including 8 countries in Central America and the Caribbean, 9 countries in Africa, 5 countries in Asia, and 2 countries in Europe, as well as 8 cities throughout the US).  As crazy as it is to believe, this year marked the 15th edition of our annual March Madness Pool. What started off with 172 brackets in the first year (most of whom were either Peter's friends or Chris' friends) has grown into a nationwide event that still continues to grow each year. This year's pool saw a record number of brackets in both the Original Pool (481) and the Sweet 16 Pool (330). There were participants from an amazing 25 different states and from 74 different towns in Massachusetts. The 15-year run of this event has raised $44,000 for Peter's Foundation, which is truly an incredible number that has allowed the Foundation to greatly impact the lives of many. The pool’s popularity and success are due solely to the kindness of so many of you, be it through entering a bracket or two (or five!), recruiting friends to play, or giving extra donations along the way. So from the bottom of our hearts, an enormous THANK YOU to everyone for making this event such a success! This year's Original Pool (and its $1,045 1st Place Prize) was won by Peter's Colgate brother John Blaise. The top 9 finishers received prizes, so also earning hefty amounts were Marie Ribadeneyra, Nicholas Woolf, John Morgan, Lynne Devaney, James Noble, Karen Bergin, Michael Devaney, and John Fleming. The Sweet 16 Pool was won by Jay Legendre, who took home the $530 1st Place Prize. Also finishing in the money were Nancy Volel, John Morgan (who completed the rare double of winning money in each pool), Sean Kessler, Van French, and Jon McDonald. Congrats to all of the winnners, and once again, thank you to everyone for making this year's pool the biggest one yet! For all information on the pool, including how to play next year and a complete history of the pool, go to the pool's permanent homepage at http://pfmffundraiser.weebly.com/.  With our (and Peter's) beloved Patriots winning the Super Bowl for a 5th time in the most dramatic comeback in sports championship game history, we were very excited to host the Super Bowl Squares Fundraiser. With 2 grids to choose from, participants could select up to 10 squares total. Numbers were then randomly chosen to fill up the grid, and the score at the end of each quarter dictated who the winners of the pool were. Congrats to the 2 big winners for claiming the $200 Final Score Prize (Bob Arsenault and Joe Foley), and to the other 6 winners for their $100 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Quarter Prizes (Albie Macdonald, Dan Hennessey, Linda Nerrow, Bill Duncliffe, Patrick Brennan, and David Morse). Just like with our March Madness Pool, half of the total money in the pot went to the winners and the other half went to the Foundation, so we were very excited to raise $1,000. Thanks to all for participating, and Roger That!   Because of Peter's love for animals, the Foundation was very pleased to grant $4,000 to the Northeast Animal Shelter. Located in Salem (MA), it is one of the largest no-kill animal shelters in New England and has found homes for over 125,000 cats and dogs since its inception. A Cat/Kitten Cage and a Dog Run will be named in memory of Peter, so be sure to check them out if you're ever visiting the shelter!  One of the best March Madness tournaments in history, capped by the greatest ending in tournament history, helped produce another very successful year for our annual March Madness Pool. There were 439 brackets in the Original Pool, and the $1,000 1st Place prize went to Cathy Davis. Rounding out the top 8 prize money recipients were Bill Branley, Cathy Ellsworth, James Flynn, Paul Capodanno, Rob Kean, Sean Kessler, and Lynne Devaney. The Sweet 16 Pool saw 296 brackets, and the Davis family continued their Villanova-inspired dominance with Larry taking home the 1st Place Prize of $480. Also finishing in the money were Mario Caporale, David Morse, Natasha Mikus, and Chris Ryan. Another great showing by the Winchester contingent, as 6 of the 13 prize winners have Winchester connections. With half of everyone's entry fees going to the Foundation, we were able to raise well over $4,000. An enormous thank you to everyone who participated and helped to make this year's edition a huge success! The Peter French Memorial Foundation was very pleased to grant $5,000 to a local family to aid them during a period of extreme financial distress. It was especially gratifying that the recipient was a classmate of Peter's. We are always hoping to find qualifying candidates, so please contact us if you know of any such individuals (see "Foundation" page for details).
This year's edition of the pool was by far our most successful one yet, as it shattered records in all 3 major categories (pool members, Original Pool brackets, and Sweet 16 Pool brackets). The Original Pool (and its 481 brackets) saw Jason DeFilippo take home the top prize of $1,050, followed in the cash prizes by Vincent Cramer, Billy Ulacco, Jay Burke, Van French, Kim Burke, Patrick Brennan, Steve Baker, and Shaun Oliver. The Sweet 16 (and its 322 brackets) saw Chris Ryan earn the 1st place prize of $520, and Nick Seita, Dennis Boudreau, Tom Colbert, Paul Capodanno, and Jane Macdonald also won some money. A good showing by the Winchester contingent this year, with 8 of the 15 winners hailing from Peter's hometown. With half of all entry fees going to the Foundation, along with some very generous extra donations along the way, we were once again able to raise over $5,000 for the Peter French Memorial Foundation. A huge thank you to all for making this year's event the biggest and best one yet!
For all pool information (including results from all 13 years of the pool), or to participate next year, visit the pool's website at http://peterfrench.hoops.sportsfan.com/. |
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