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THE INFORMER
Sister Linda Bessom with a basket of bedding.
By Christina Bagni
Globe Correspondent

The Young Women’s League of Readingraised more than $20,000 at its annual Winter Dinner DanceJan. 30. Thanks in part to a silent auction and 12 new sponsors, the league will be able to give donations to the Reading Police Department for a program that teaches young girls basic self-defense, the Parker Middle School to purchase a new speaker system for the auditorium, Reading Public Schools, the Burbank YMCA, Understanding Disabilities, and the Reading Food Pantry.

Students at the Lynn Campus of North Shore Christian School presented Sister Linda Bessom with a $500 check for the charity A Bed For Every Child. The money, raised through selling Choose To Be Nice shirts, will provide two children with new beds, including the mattress and pillows. The third-grade class also helped to create a blanket to go along with the beds.

The Boys & Girls Club of Lawrence honored Colleen Harrington of Andover with the Paul Cronin Award for her eight years of volunteer service involving education. Harrington works as a tutor in the education center, helping youngsters with homework. For information on how to volunteer, call volunteer coordinator Stephanie Bryant at 978-683-2747.

After reading Adam Braun’s “The Promise of a Pencil: How an Ordinary Person Can Create Extraordinary Change,’’ students of Lynn Classical High School were inspired to raise money for Braun’s Pencils of Promise charity to help build a school in Guatemala. In three months, the school has raised $4,000 of the $24,000 needed. Braun visited the school Jan. 28 to speak.

Christina Bagni

Send items to christina.bagni@globe.com.