Student Senate Creates Dream Bedroom for Young Boy in Residential Care

November 20, 2015

What: The Hudson Valley Community College Student Senate Community Services Committee has undertaken a very special project — a room makeover — in the hope of positively impacting the life of a very deserving six-year-old boy at St. Catherine's Copson House in Albany. St. Catherine's has a residential treatment facility for children that offers a 24-hour supervised therapeutic environment. Many have a history of abuse and trauma. They also have a variety of emotional and behavioral difficulties.

Committee members will be putting together a "Minion"-themed bedroom for the boy, Aiden, on Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 21 and 22. Aiden and his friends will all see the room for the first time on Monday, Nov. 23 at 5 p.m.

The Student Senate has financed the project with money from its treasury, as well as funds raised through a bake sale and coin-drop on campus. Students purchased paint, bedding and decorative items for the room and also solicited donations of supplies from friends, fellow students, college staff and families. A local teacher is donating her time and talent to paint a mural on the bedroom wall, and other volunteers will help students with painting and decorating.

Who: Members of the college's Student Senate, Hudson Valley President Drew Matonak and St. Catherine's Executive Director William Gettman will attend the reveal on Monday. Aiden and his friends at St. Catherine's will be there.

Where: St. Catherine's Center for Children, Copson House, 401 New Scotland Avenue, Albany, New York 12208.

When: Monday, Nov. 23 at 5 p.m.

Details: The idea for the project came from Senior Senator and Chairperson of the Community Service Committee Erica Pelletier. An Early Childhood Education major, Pelletier was inspired by a similar project that her brother did a few years ago as an Eagle Scout.

St. Catherine's Center for Children has been serving the Capital Region since 1886, offering programs and services that address the challenges that children and families in surrounding communities face.