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Hill House is leaving pandemic woes behind. At its annual meeting on Tuesday, staff and volunteers gathered at the 127 Mount Vernon Street firehouse for an encouraging financial report and a chance to recognize leaders both old and new.
“We focused on our core mission during COVID and now it’s time to look outside the firehouse and re-engage the community,” said Katy Keches, director of development and community outreach.
The Beacon Hill community center mission is to provide programs and services to Boston’s downtown families through a diverse enrichment and athletics activities of afterschool and summer camp programs. Engaging 1,300 youth as young as 3 months old, Hill House hosts such activities ranging from infant exposure to foreign language and music to improv theater and fencing classes.
At the meeting, Hill House leadership proudly reported that it had reached 94% of its 2024 fundraising goal, up from 81% in 2023. This year, the organization was able to pass along $4,500 in scholarships.
In her segment, Keches gave special acknowledgment to Beacon Hill mother of two Katie Norris, for her volunteer work planning youth events at the Myrtle Street Playground. Keches said Norris’ enthusiasm for volunteering was a sign that community engagement was rising following the COVID-19-induced lull.
For her efforts, Norris was awarded the Meredith Clapp Community Outreach Award. The award was significant this year, as its former Hill House president Meredith Clapp, passed away from cancer in January. Clapp was an advocate of affordable housing and served Hill House for many years.
In honor of the former president, the organization also announced plans to rename the firehouse assembly room after her.
Coming even sooner though, are renovations to the community center at 74 Joy Street, a shared home for the Beacon Hill Nursery School and Beacon Hill Civic Association. At the meeting, Hill House announced the success of its application to the Community Preservation Act, a $50,000 grant for the renovation of the center’s roof.
“Updates to the building will make the building more cost effective,” said Keches. Outgoing Co-president Sean Higgins agreed, saying, “We chose to invest in that building so that it remains a wonderful community space for the community programs that use it.”
Higgins was one of several organization leaders to receive applause and gratitude at the passing of the torch on Wednesday. His incumbent, Lisle Albro, stepped into her new role as co-president alongside returning Co-president Whitney Dayton Brunet.
Hill House is also looking for a new executive director to replace Executive Director Lauren Hoops-Schmieg after 11 years of service.
The community center will also be saying goodbye to Fencing Coach Fritz Chang. For the last 21 years, Chang has represented the U.S. three times at the Veterans Fencing World Championships and has taught the sport as part of the Hill House enrichment program.