LYNN — The Boys & Girls Club of Lynn will honor three community members for their commitment to the organization and youth initiatives over the years on Wednesday night.
Joel Abramson, Shawn Burgo, and Mark Irvine will be honored with separate awards during the Boys & Girls Club’s third Annual Celebration, which also serves as the major fundraising event for the organization.
The drive-in ceremony will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Kowloon Restaurant in Saugus, which has pivoted to offer a drive-in movie theater experience during the pandemic, and will be streamed live on YouTube.
Abramson, of Swampscott, will receive the Commitment to Youth Award, Burgo, a New Bedford native who now lives in Lynn, will be honored with the Robert Kennedy Helping Hands Award; and Irvine, of Nahant, will receive the Hall of Fame Award.
“These three have been very supportive of the Boys & Girls Club efforts, especially over the past few years,” said Brian Theirrien, executive director of the Boys & Girls Club.
Abramson, owner of Flagship Travel in Marblehead, is being recognized for the time and effort he has dedicated to improving the mental, emotional and physical stability of youth in the community by helping them grow in their interests, talents and skills.
“I just found out about it a couple of weeks ago,” said Abramson. “I had no clue. I do what I can with the Education District. Tommy Demakes and I go from one club to another to see who needs help.”
Abramson is referring to his leadership efforts with the Lynn Education District — a collaborative effort among the Lynn schools, St. Mary’s, KIPP Academy, youth organizations, and the Greater Lynn Chamber of Commerce — that aims to partner with Lynn students and the adults in their lives to help them realize their greatest potential in the community.
Abramson co-founded the Education District and serves as spokesperson for the schools and organizations involved in the collaborative effort. Part of his work involves networking to ensure everyone involved is successful, according to Theirrien.
“I was very humbled by (the award),” said Abramson. “I do the same thing every day for as many of the members of the Education District as I can. I try to bring people together. Any award from my perspective that helps kids improve in any way is very, very rewarding for me.”
Abramson has been “instrumental” in ensuring the success of the Boys & Girls Club of Lynn over the past two decades, Theirrien said. When the building changed from a gym to a learning center as schools shifted to remote learning, Abramson was “instrumental in making sure we have everything for the kids,” he said.
“He currently works with the central campaign team (at the club) and has gathered much satisfaction from helping them integrate their strengths with other members in the Education District,” reads a Boys & Girls Club award memo for Abramson.
Burgo has helped support the Boys & Girls Club through his involvement with the Heritage Helps Foundation, where he serves as a board member, according to Theirrien.
The foundation was created by leadership of Heritage Home Service, a plumbing, heating, and cooling company that has a long-standing relationship with the Boys & Girls clubs of Manchester and Greater New Hampshire.
Since Burgo moved to Lynn in 2012, he has been invested in the fortunes of the city’s Boys & Girls Club, according to his award memo.
“Last year our camp was vandalized and we were in need of immediate funding and the Heritage Helps Foundation made a significant donation (about $25,000) to ensure we were able to recover and (reopen) the camp,” said Theirrien.
Irvine gives back through Robert W. Irvine & Sons, Inc, the company that he started with his father, Bob Irvine, in the Brickyard neighborhood of Lynn. Mark Irvine and his wife, Kathy, are generous and humble donors to countless organizations and charities in and around the North Shore, especially to the local ones in Lynn, including the Boys & Girls Club.
“(Mark is) someone who (happened) to grow up at the Boys & Girls Club and always gave back to the club,” said Theirrien. “He’s done a wonderful job of continuing to support the Boys & Girls Club.”
There’s a lot of excitement heading into the third annual celebration, Therrien said, which both showcases the work of the club and serves as its largest fundraiser of the year. He expects the event to raise about $150,000, which will help to fund the operating costs of the organization that are not covered by membership fees.
“There’s only so much we can charge for tuition,” said Theirrien. “This $150,000 bridges the gap of what we can charge our members for tuition and what it actually costs to run the organization.”
Wednesday’s event comes less than two months after the Boys & Girls Club of Lynn celebrated the completion of the first phase of its $15 million renovation project.
Phase 1 of the project, which costs about $6.5 million, included the expansion of the center’s licensed childcare facility, which increased capacity from 75 to 130 members, a full teen center that has a fitness and dance center, two learning centers, a keystone conference room, and a steam center on the first floor.
The second and final phase, which is expected to begin in 2022, will include a new cafeteria, kitchen, remodeled gymnasium, learning center, game rooms, and a dance space, said Theirrien, noting that the project should be completed by 2025.
“It’s a tough time for many families, but we’re here to showcase the great work of the Boys & Girls Club and the community,” said Theirrien.
Item reporter Steve Krause contributed to this report.
