'Community Dinner for a Cause' Series

Back By Popular Demand
The Community Fund of Darien's 'Community Dinner for a Cause' series is back this fall! Community will come together on Saturday, October 3rd to enjoy a delicious menu that features the ever-so tasty Bodega Taco Bar, Carolyn's Absolute Fabulous Events and SipStirs. Diners will also have the ability to give the gift of warmth by donating 1-2 gently used coats/jackets and/or new socks, underwear and mittens for the residents of Pacific House and Inspirica; donated items left on the porch will be collected by our wonderful volunteers delivering meals. 

You Can't Quarantine Compassion!
The Community Fund of Darien launched its Community Dinner for a Cause event series with a simple goal of helping our neighbors by providing a source of income to some of our local favorite food establishments; not answering "What's for dinner???" questions was an added bonus for all of us, too!

• On May 9th, Community Dinner for a Cause: Hunger/Food Insecurity featured a scrumptious meal from Michael Joseph's Catering complimented by a fine bottle of wine from SipStirs and flowers from Nielsen's Florist.
• Next up, May 30th, Community Dinner for a Cause: Homelessness served a picnic-themed dinner from Palmer's Catering and SipStirs that had us all asking for more!
• To celebrate Father's Day weekend, and more importantly, to shine a light on the mental health crisis that many of our neighbors are facing, on June 20th, Community Dinner for a Cause: Mental Health featured The Darien Butcher Shop with wine and craft beer provided by SipStirs. 
• All in all, we're proud to say:
  • 500 dinners served.
  • $43,500 to help our neighbors.
  • Countless lives changed.

We would be remiss for not acknowledging the behind-the-scenes crew who made these events possible:

• SipStirs, Michael Joseph's Catering, Palmer's Catering, The Darien Butcher Shop and Nielsen's Florist. These wonderful vendors each offered a discount so that more proceeds went to those in need ... thank you! Remember to shop/dine local!
• Our Special Events Committee and our fabulous dinner delivery drivers: Barb Alter, Cindy Banks, Christine Barkley, Barbara Close, Haley Close, Charla Easterbrook, Christopher Fallon, Jen Fallon, John Fallon, John Michael Fallon, Teresa Jandziol, Robyn Jones, Donald King, Henry King, Janet King, Kyle King, Ellen McCue, Debi McGahren, Carley Miller, Grant Miller, Kristine Miller, Ruthie Miller, Jenn Moller, David Ott, Jane Ott, Brett Raker, Cam Raker, Chris Raker, Heather Raker, Todd Raker, Shelly Skoglund, Tammy Sload, Lori Slotkin, Carly Sufrin, Mike Sufrin, Remy Sufrin, Sandy Sufrin, and Colleen Thompson.
• ​Youth Asset Team members, pictured right, Sara McCarthy, Katie Chandler, Ethan Fox and Bennett Dumas.
• A big round of applause to Llew Smith of Office Suites of Darien for allowing us to take-over his parking lot as our command center for these events! 

Mission: Possible!

Seeking a safer event in light of COVID-19 guidelines, The Community Fund of Darien launched its first-ever “Community Chase” -- a virtual competition for teams of friends and families of all ages!  Mission: Possible! was a fun-filled, socially distanced event that took place the week of September 19th - 26th, 2020 and will benefit TCF’s nonprofit partners’ programs that strengthen youth, adults and families in Darien, Norwalk and Stamford.  

Using a mobile device, teams of 4-6 players were assigned points for each mission completed and players tracked progress and rankings on a live leaderboard.  People played it casually, and some were “in it to win it” for prizes and bragging rights!  
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“Mission: Possible! was a great way to safely unite our community while respecting social distancing,” said Janet King, The Community Fund of Darien’s Executive Director.  “We wanted to create a unique, fun and exciting activity that gives people the chance to explore and learn more about their hometown and our nonprofit partners, who provide so much support for our neighbors in Darien, Norwalk and Stamford.”

Darien Road Race

It is with a heavy-heart that we announce the 41st running of the Darien Road Race, originally scheduled for September 13th @ Pear Tree Point Beach, has officially been canceled due to the COVID-19  pandemic. Due to an overabundance of caution and care, The Community Fund of Darien feels this is the most appropriate action. We hope the pictures below from the 40th annual Darien Road Race will hold you over until 2021!

Community Dinner for a Cause