NEW HAMPSHIRE STOLEN COMPUTERS AT BOYS & GIRLS CLUB LEADS TO DONATION FROM SIMILARCLUBEagleTribune.com, North Andover, MA - Salem, N.H., club raises $1,000 for their Lawrence counterparts

LAWRENCE - Rose Helen Halloran still gets teary eyed thinking about the vandalism last June at Beacon Clubhouse, the satellite office of the Boys & Girls Club of Lawrence.

In the span of eight days, thieves broke into the club at the Beacon Courts public housing project and stole computers, a new telephone system, musical instruments and photography equipment. The losses were valued at more than $10,000.

Halloran, fine arts director at the Salem, N.H., Boys & Girls Club, knew she could do more than cry.

That desire to help was realized. Youngsters from Salem drove to Lawrence last night to deliver a check for $1,000.

Halloran told Salem club members what had happened in Lawrence, and with their help devised a plan to raise money for the Lawrence club.

"I was so upset," said Halloran, whose husband is a Lawrence native. "I felt a tug in my heart because I know what we (Boys & Girls Club) do. We struggle to get money, to stay on top of things. When I thought of them, I knew it was already hard for them."

Jessica Lucier, athletic director at the Salem club, said many Salem children were upset about the vandalism.

"They thought, 'What if that would have happened to us?' They wanted to help because it was a club just like ours and the kids are basically our neighbors," Lucier said.

"That was kind of them to give us $1,000," said Luz Figueroa, 13. "I was really shocked and disappointed that someone would steal from us. The stuff we lost was really important to us."

The Salem youngsters raised money through book sales, a baked goods sale and a Halloween dance. They also made beaded jewelry, which they sold at their club on Geremonty Drive in Salem.

"It's a great thing that they reached out to us," said Markus Fischer, executive director of the Boys & Girls Club of Lawrence. "It gives you a good feeling knowing that other kids care about the kids in Lawrence."

Jill Rodriguez, manager of the Beacon Clubhouse, also was pleased by the generosity of the Salem children, and most importantly, the opportunity for the children to meet.

"It's important for the Boys & Girls Club movement to bring them together. We can learn from each other," Rodriguez said.

After the presentation of the check, the children wasted little time getting acquainted.

In one corner of the room, Lawrence and Salem children crowded around a television screen to play video games.

Ashley Rawson, 10, a fifth-grader at North Salem Elementary School, played the game Sorry with Alex Nolasco, 7, a second-grader at the Wetherbee School in Lawrence.

At another table, Jennifer Bueno, 7, of Lawrence played a word game with Helen Corliss, 12, of Salem.

Members of the Beacon Clubhouse dance troupe performed two routines for their Salem visitors and they had a dinner of beef stew, mashed potatoes and pineapple chunks.

"I felt sad and angry about what happened," said Josh Gosselin, 11, of Salem. "I didn't understand how someone can destroy a place like this."

To help raise money for the Lawrence club, Josh, a student at Woodbury Middle School, helped in the bake sale and worked in the kitchen twice a week to make snacks sold at the Salem club.

"I feel really happy," said Briana Lumb, 11, of Salem. "It feels really nice to make people happy."

The Beacon Clubhouse opened at 71 Duckett Ave. in 1993 to provide recreational opportunities to children who live in the public housing project and could not travel to the main building on Water Street due to lack of transportation.