Dartmouth — On Friday, August 4, the Christian ministry My Brother’s Keeper marked 10 years serving families in need in Christ’s name from their Dartmouth location. To celebrate this anniversary, 50 My Brother’s Keeper volunteers served together in the morning and shared a meal prepared by volunteers for their weekly “community lunch.”
For the past 35 years, My Brother’s Keeper has primarily served families in need in the Brockton area. In the summer of 2013, they expanded services to the South Coast, and in 2017, constructed a 23,000 square foot facility on Reed Road in Dartmouth to put down permanent roots in the community. Today, My Brother’s Keeper’s Easton and Dartmouth facilities deliver furniture, food, and Christmas gifts free of charge.
Since opening, staff and volunteers at the charity’s Dartmouth facility have completed more than 6,500 furniture deliveries, 16,000 food deliveries, and 5,000 Christmas deliveries. These 27,000 deliveries represent $8.5 million of services to tens of thousands of South Coast residents in need.
“The number of lives this volunteer community has been able to touch the past 10 years has exceeded all our expectations,” said Josh Smith, Director of the Dartmouth Division. “As a result, children now have a positive memory of receiving their first bed. Families are healthier thanks to well-balanced, emergency food deliveries. And parents haven’t experienced the pain of having to watch their children go without on Christmas morning.”
My Brother’s Keeper was founded in 1988 by a husband and wife, Jim and Terry Orcutt, in the basement of their Taunton home. The ministry’s staff of 16 full-time employees now has more than 5,000 volunteers to complete 18,000 deliveries each year. Over the past 35 years, My Brother’s Keeper has made over 215,000 deliveries to help provide hope and support to those in eastern Mass.
As a Christian ministry, My Brother’s Keeper’s mission is “to bring the love and hope of Jesus Christ to those we serve.” Anyone living in My Brother’s Keeper’s service area is eligible to receive help, regardless of religion. Recipients receiving furniture or a first-time food delivery are presented with the gift of a crucifix and the message: “We are just the delivery people. The furniture is from Him.”
“My wife and I feel so privileged to have been able to serve with My Brother’s Keeper on a weekly basis since they opened,” said volunteer Dan Boucher, of Westport. “It is a wonderful feeling to be a part of this group of people that genuinely care about helping others in their time in need.”
My Brother’s Keeper is always looking for new volunteers to help with tasks such as making deliveries, packaging food, and assembling furniture.
My Brother’s Keeper picks up donations of basic, gently used furniture, in good condition. To schedule an appointment for My Brother’s Keeper to inspect your furniture for donation, please call 774-305-4577.
If anyone would like to get involved at My Brother’s Keeper, they are hosting two upcoming events this fall: the South Coast Soiree on Friday, September 29 and a Christmas Toy Drive on Saturday, November 4th. For details, please visit www.MyBrothersKeeper.org.
If someone lives in a South Coast community and needs assistance with furniture, food, or Christmas gifts, the person can call the Dartmouth Helpline at 774-305-4590 for details and hours of operation.
To learn more about volunteer opportunities at My Brother’s Keeper, visit www.MyBrothersKeeper.org or call 774-305-4577.
