Tis the season to help Santa make every child’s Christmas a merry one. The best helpers in the Newport area can be found at The Willey-Perra Community Giving Program. Since 1981, the family and friends of Jimmy Willey have made sure no child is left behind at Christmas.
After collecting money and toys and giving them out, anonymously, to those he knew might need them, starting in 1981, the Christmas of 1989 was in jeopardy. One week after Thanksgiving that year, Willey passed away of a sudden heart attack at the age of 39. In a whirlwind that included rallying friends, the Willey Family decided the best way to honor him would be to keep the Christmas give going. Enter Ron Perra and Dartmouth Motors, who offered their showroom and huge Christmas tree for donation drop offs. The Staff at Dartmouth sent out letters asking for financial donation and thus began “Jim Willey Christmas Giving, Chapter 2.”
In the ensuing years, the Willey and Perra families made sure hundreds of gifts were stacked around the tree for families in need to choose. When Anne Perra lost her battle with cancer, the program adopted the current name, “The Willey-Perra Community Giving Program,” to honor her and her family’s contribution to keeping Willey’s mission going.
Fast forward to 2021 and he would be amazed and, probably, bittersweet about the program’s success. He would certainly be surprised it has continued for another thirty two years, but sad that so many in his hometown need the help. In the last four years, Willey-Perra has averaged three hundred and eight children each year, representing one hundred sixty families including some who are third generation.
The Willey-Perra Program now has a Board of Directors lead by president Donna Mahair.
“Were it not for Donna and her 100 percent belief in this program, it may not have thrived over the past 10 years,” according to Willey’s sister and vice president Gina Willey Hutchinson of Derry.
“Donna not only brings a huge heart,” Hutchinson said, “but she also has solid business acumen.”
“Brittany Hamel has the social media savvy needed and, with Ron Perra and the Board of Directors, it all works to the benefit of our hometown’s children.”
Members of The Willey-Perra Board of Directors also includes Sandy Cherry; Kathy Gestay; and newly-nominated Heidi Willey Patten, to join as a family member to help usher the program into the future. Regretfully, three amazing women are retiring after years of service to Willey-Perra. The love and enthusiasm of Ella Casey, Erna McCormack and Judy Wilson has been a staple for decades. “All would remind us, yearly, of Jimmy’s early days soliciting money and toys or “shaking us down,” as Casey told it.
The deadline to submit an application is Nov. 1. The application can be found on the Willey-Perra website or facebook page. It can also be picked up at the Petal Patch Florist at 2 Main St., Newport. Eligible recipients are those from the Newport area to include Goshen, Lempster, Croydon and Grantham.
Donations of money or unwrapped toys or new winter gear, can also be brought to The Petal Patch. For further information, or to be a volunteer elf to help wrap over 1,500 gifts from mid-November to mid-December, call 603- 863-3833.
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