On the All School Day of Service, each grade in the middle and upper school was assigned to different service projects. The 8th grade was given the task of packing some essential toiletries for Rosie’s Place, a women-only homeless shelter in Boston. But before that, however, we attended an informative lesson from Mr. Barrett, the father of Elizabeth Barrett ‘23, about his experience working in another homeless shelter.

As the CFO of Pine Street Inn, Mr. Barrett said that he had met many people struggling with homelessness. He also mentioned how Pine Street Inn helps and offers services to people in multiple different ways. These include Emergency Services, Permanent Housing, and Workplace Development. Mr. Barrett explained that all of these are equally necessary, as each person’s situation and needs can be different, and Pine Street Inn aims to be able to assist them.

Afterward, the 8th grade went down to the cafeteria to pack toiletries for Rosie’s Place, such as soaps, shampoos, toothpaste, toothbrushes, sanitizers, conditioners, wipes, and more. When we were done with all of that, we wrote some uplifting cards for the women there. 

Here are some facts about Rosie’s Place:

• The first women-only shelter in the U.S.
• Was founded in 1974
• Serves about 12,000 women a year
• Founded by Kip Tiernan
• One of their most prominent aims is to “hold in our hearts the image of a strong and dignified woman who can make decisions that help her get where she wants to go”

Overall, I enjoyed the day, and am happy that we got to pack all of those essentials for less fortunate people. I’m hopeful that we will get to do this again next year, too. I also encourage you to volunteer or donate to any shelter near you. I’m sure that any sort of help is very much appreciated!

Lilly Rose Madani ‘27, staff writer

27lmadini@montroseschool.org