Walpole Italian American club
Donation protected
The Italian American club of Walpole has promoted the celebration of Italian American culture since its founding in 1921. The club is located at 109 Stone St. in Walpole, Massachusetts, and operates a banquet hall with a capacity for 98 people. The club also has four professional bocce courts, a member’s lounge, kitchen and outdoor sitting area for watching bocce matches.
Like many older cultural and community clubs, we are struggling to stay alive. 4 years ago, a construction accident on the street in front of the club ruptured a sewer line. The sewage backed up into the basement of the club causing over $250,000 in damages. While the insurance company and the town eventually made restitution for the damages, nearly 30% of the settlement went to lawyer’s fees. A few years passed between the accident and the settlement, during that time, the club was forced to dip into savings to pay the bills.
The reconstruction plans for the club require that the facility be upgraded to conform to the standards of the American Disabilities Act (ADA). To meet these standards, the club will need to install a wheelchair ramp and wheelchair accessible restrooms at an estimated cost of $50,000.
Between legal fees, reduced banquet hall income and the added costs of bringing the club up to code, we don’t have sufficient cash to make ends meet. At our current spend rate, we will be hard pressed to make it to October. We are fighting hard to survive...and are having some success at it ...but we need some help from the community to make sure that our club doesn’t become just another footnote in the history of our town.
We have a new board of directors, have started to attract new members across both age and cultural lines, and have even elected our first female president in the club's 97 year history. The new board is determined to turn this club around. There’s a palpable optimism that we can get the club back on its feet. We just need to break out of a vicious cycle. We need income to help fund construction, and we need the construction finished to generate more income.
Our board of directors are busy coming up with fundraising strategies to meet our goals. Our first goal is to bring our banquet hall up to code by installing handicap ramps and restrooms. This will allow us to operate the hall within building code requirements for handicap accessibility. Our second goal is to complete the reconstruction of the club. To accomplish this, we need to secure a bank mortgage.
Our Go-Fund-Me goal is to raise $50,000 to pay for ramp and bathroom construction to meet ADA requirements. With construction underway, we have a better chance of securing a bank loan to complete the project.
We need your help to keep this unique community icon alive...because once the Italian American Club of Walpole is gone… it’s gone!
Please consider supporting this important piece of the cultural fabric of our town.
Thanks so much!
Like many older cultural and community clubs, we are struggling to stay alive. 4 years ago, a construction accident on the street in front of the club ruptured a sewer line. The sewage backed up into the basement of the club causing over $250,000 in damages. While the insurance company and the town eventually made restitution for the damages, nearly 30% of the settlement went to lawyer’s fees. A few years passed between the accident and the settlement, during that time, the club was forced to dip into savings to pay the bills.
The reconstruction plans for the club require that the facility be upgraded to conform to the standards of the American Disabilities Act (ADA). To meet these standards, the club will need to install a wheelchair ramp and wheelchair accessible restrooms at an estimated cost of $50,000.
Between legal fees, reduced banquet hall income and the added costs of bringing the club up to code, we don’t have sufficient cash to make ends meet. At our current spend rate, we will be hard pressed to make it to October. We are fighting hard to survive...and are having some success at it ...but we need some help from the community to make sure that our club doesn’t become just another footnote in the history of our town.
We have a new board of directors, have started to attract new members across both age and cultural lines, and have even elected our first female president in the club's 97 year history. The new board is determined to turn this club around. There’s a palpable optimism that we can get the club back on its feet. We just need to break out of a vicious cycle. We need income to help fund construction, and we need the construction finished to generate more income.
Our board of directors are busy coming up with fundraising strategies to meet our goals. Our first goal is to bring our banquet hall up to code by installing handicap ramps and restrooms. This will allow us to operate the hall within building code requirements for handicap accessibility. Our second goal is to complete the reconstruction of the club. To accomplish this, we need to secure a bank mortgage.
Our Go-Fund-Me goal is to raise $50,000 to pay for ramp and bathroom construction to meet ADA requirements. With construction underway, we have a better chance of securing a bank loan to complete the project.
We need your help to keep this unique community icon alive...because once the Italian American Club of Walpole is gone… it’s gone!
Please consider supporting this important piece of the cultural fabric of our town.
Thanks so much!
Fundraising team: IA club construction fund (7)
Dan Cence
Organizer
Walpole, MA
Stefanie Capparella Nineve
Beneficiary
Cheryl Iagatta
Team member
Doreen Federico
Team member
Brian Knell
Team member
Clint LaCivita
Team member
