Team -

We all know 2020 has been a difficult year for so many, and this holiday season already looks so different from what we're used to.

Large family gatherings aren’t possible. Many of our favorite traditions have to be adapted. This year, we are going to have to work a little harder and be a bit more creative to make the holidays as joyful as usual.

So I have some ideas to create a bunch of smiles this season, and I want your help to make it happen. Yesterday was Giving Tuesday, but I don’t want this to be a one-day thing that we move on from. So over the next couple of weeks, I’m going to reach out about three opportunities for you to give back financially and help out others this month.

Here’s the first idea:

South Green in Hartford is a unique place. It sits at the intersection of six busy roads right in the middle of one of the most economically challenged neighborhoods in the city. Hartford Hospital abuts the green, and thousands of heroic health care workers drive by it every day on their way to and from work. And the green is home to one of the city’s neediest homeless shelters, South Park Inn, which is bursting at the seams as a difficult winter looms.

When I was visiting with the staff and residents of the South Park Inn last week, we came up with an idea. We want to light up the South Green with a million Christmas lights this season. We want to turn it into a marvel of sparkle and twinkle - a tribute to the health care workers, struggling families, and housing insecure individuals who live and work on the green.

Remember the major holiday light displays in your town that made you so wide-eyed as a kid? Remember how that made you feel? I know - holiday lights aren’t a job or a meal or a warm bed. But sometimes it’s worthwhile to invest in a project that just makes people smile or makes a neighborhood feel special for once.

So I want to make it happen, and I’m hoping you can help me raise the money to do it. My team has already worked out the logistics. The South Park Inn is going to be the sponsoring entity, and the lights are ready to go up as soon as we fund the project. And any extra money we raise will go to help pay for the shelter’s services this winter.

If you want to help us bring a little more light to 2020 and express our thanks to our frontline workers, please consider making a donation today to the South Park Inn. Every dollar we raise will go directly to lighting up Hartford’s South Green.

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It may seem like a small thing, but I think this could bring joy to a lot of people across our community.

The holidays look different this year, but this is something we can do to help things feel a bit more normal.

And we’re going to make sure the lights are noticed. I’m talking fully wrapped trees done by the professionals — my handiwork with lights doesn’t extend beyond my own tree.

If you can afford to, make a donation today to help us light the trees near Hartford Hospital. It would mean a lot to me and hopefully bring a bit more light into the lives of others this season.

I hope you and your loved ones are staying safe and making new memories and traditions during this holiday season. Stay tuned for more opportunities to give this season.

Every best wish,

Chris Murphy

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