Cal Calabro, a fun-loving member of the Goodfellas Motorcycle Club, had just finished rolling out a multi-colored mock check that JTG Designs created exclusively for a special presentation to Hasbro Children’ Hospital in Providence.
Suddenly, Michele P. Branigan, Senior Major Gifts Officer and Campaign Manager at Hasbro Children’s Hospital, looked at the colorful creation on a long table inside Brewed Awakenings on Atwood Avenue and noticed the amount of money was different from the record-setting amount of $8,500 the Goodfellas raised during their 2nd Annual Motorcycle run on Saturday, Sept. 15.
“We received $500 more in donations after-the-fact,” Calbro told Branigan. “Our friends at AGI Construction and Rosciti Construction came up with that figure.”
To which Branigan exclaimed: “You guys are absolutely amazing; we at Hasbro Children’s Hospital can’t thank you enough. This is just incredible … We thank you again and again!”
Calabro, who was joined by Goodfellas Justin Gontarek, who owns and operates JTG Designs, Lou Pierce, Ed O’Brien and Kurt Stumpf, then turned to David Levesque and issued another “Thank You” after adding: “You are a big player in our success; we really appreciate the coffee and … and for allowing us to use the parking lot to begin the (motorcycle) run.”
Levesque, who is known as a generous giver when it comes to supporting such charitable events as the Goodfellas event and RI Police Chiefs Scholarship Fund Golf Classic, replied: “Anything we can do … especially when it comes to helping children, please count on us. This is such a good cause; hopefully more people will participate in the coming years.”
Levesque, who was joined by Briana Duffy who manages “the old Brewed” at 1395 Atwood Avenue where many members of the Goodfellas group join their many Johnston friends for the morning’s coffee, etc., smiled and sternly stated: “We’ll beat that number next year … say $12,000?”
To date, the Goodfellas Motorcycle has donated $16,200 in two short years and Calabro announced last Friday morning “that we’ll be back again in 2019.”
After thanking Levesque for his ongoing support, Branigan told the group: “The generous gift from the Goodfellas will impact several areas of patient care, including our Child Life program which helps children cope with their illness, addresses their fears and even helps bring laughter and fun to an otherwise difficult time for the whole family.”
A sudden silence surfaced inside Brewed Awakenings, as even customers who watched the check presentation were touched by Branigan’s words.
“No one – absolutely nobody – likes hearing or seeing children who have been stricken with cancer,” Levesque offered. “It there’s anything we can … anything … please don’t hesitate to ask.”
Thus, it was yet another super success story written by a Johnston-based non-profit that has – like the JMCE (Johnston Memorial Cancer Events) joined because, as Calabro reiterated about Levesque’s remarks: “It’s really painful for all of us to see any little girl or boy have to battle cancer. That’s why we’ve joined the fight!”
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