PLEASE VISIT OUR NEW WEBSITE AT MUTUALAIDBROOKLINE.COM

Hotline: 617-651-1468     Email: MutualAidBrookline@gmail.com

Community members who would like to speak with a volunteer in a language other than English can call our main hotline and state the language, in English if possible. We will do our best to call back within 24 hours (though please note that this may occasionally take longer based on volunteer availability). Community members are also welcome to email our main address in their language of choice. For a list of languages we currently speak and links to translated materials, please see “Language Access” below.

PLEASE SHARE THIS DOCUMENT AND THE INFO WITH FRIENDS, FAMILY, and NEIGHBORS! SPREAD THE WORD!

Welcome to Mutual Aid Brookline!

Mutual aid networks are a powerful way to build strong community-held safety nets for all.

“We all have something to offer and we all have something we need.”

You can read our full mission statement here.

If you’d like to contribute funds to Mutual Aid Brookline, here’s how:

  • Venmo @mutualaidbrookline
  • CashApp $mutualaidbrookline
  • **NEW** Write a check payable to Bonnie Bastien and mail to:  

Mutual Aid Brookline

P.O. Box 470463

Brookline, MA 02447

If you are IN NEED of resources, services, or general aid:

FINANCIAL SUPPORT :  **NOT CURRENTLY ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS**

MAB has launched the Direct Financial Aid Initiative (DFAI) that allows community members to directly send money to those of us in need. Based on the efforts of similar mutual aid organizations, we believe that the DFAI will be an efficient and effective way to redistribute funds in our community.

  • If you need financial aid, please fill out this form
  • If you would like to contribute to someone in need of funds directly, please see this sheet. There are instructions on how to proceed at the top of the page.

Other Resources: The Brookline Community Foundation has a Safety Net Fund that can help you as well. Submit an online request at this link, or call (857) 707-3525. More information about this program is available on the Brookline Center's website.

SUPPLIES DELIVERED: 

If you are a high risk individual and need food, medication, library materials, or other necessities delivered to you, please reach out to us directly at (617)-651-1037 or MutualAidBrookline.Delivery@gmail.com and we will coordinate a delivery for you and cover the cost if need be. Please read through our Recipient FAQs here. For more information about our new partnership with the Public Library of Brookline, click here!

CHILDCARE:

If you are a parent in need of childcare while schools are closed, please fill out this survey here. If you cannot afford to pay for childcare, we can provide you with a child care subsidy.

EMPLOYMENT:

If you have lost your income as a result of COVID-19, and are willing to provide childcare to community members, please fill out this survey here. We will match you with a family in need.

FOOD: 

If you are concerned about paying for food, please contact us at (617)-651-1468 or MutualAidBrookline@gmail.com and we will provide you with resources and food donated by community members.
Other resources:

  • The Brookline Food Pantry is still operating, for more information about how to receive food from them, please see their website.
  • The Brookline Safety Net Fund can provide you with gift cards to grocery stores. Submit an online request at this link, or call (857) 707-3525. More information about this program is available on the Brookline Center's website.
  • Meals for students: Brookline is now offering “Grab ‘n Go” prepared meals for students who receive free and reduced lunch. More information about this can be found here.
  • The Greater Boston Food Bank offers assistance with applications for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). More information can be found on their website here or by calling (617) 598-5022.

VIRTUAL COMPANIONSHIP:

Quarantine and isolation can be lonely! If you would like someone to talk to, please contact us at 617-651-1889 or email MutualAidBrookline.Companions@gmail.com and we will connect you with a volunteer to talk to.

ADDITIONAL HELP:

If there is anything you need that is not found on the above offerings spreadsheet, please contact us at (617)-651-1468 or MutualAidBrookline@gmail.com

If you would like to PROVIDE resources, services, or general aid:

GENERAL:

A survey for those who can provide help is available here. Please complete this survey and share it with other community members! The info you provide will be directly uploaded into a public non-editable “offerings” spreadsheet. Your personal information will not be posted.

DONATE:

We very much need financial support to cover the cost associated with this program. For info on how to donate, please go to the top of this document. In order to keep our finances transparent, we are logging all our donations and withdrawals here.

CHILDCARE: 

A survey for those who can provide childcare, help feed children who receive free lunch through BPS, and donate to a fund to pay for childcare for low-income community members is available here.

VIRTUAL COMPANIONSHIP:

Quarantine and isolation can be lonely! If you would like to provide virtual companionship to a community member in need, please contact us at mutualaidbrookline.companions@gmail.com 

DONATE YOUR T PASS:

If you have an MBTA pass that you are not using, consider offering it up to essential workers who commute on the T on this spreadsheet.

NEIGHBORHOOD PODS:

Pods are hyperlocal groups that utilize text message groups or phone trees to communicate with your neighbors. Since not everyone has access to online communication or will ever see these google docs, neighborhood pods are how we reach more people. We are asking for folks to sign up as Neighborhood Point People, where you’d take on the responsibility of reaching out to your neighbors, moderating a neighborhood group chat or phone tree (on whatsapp or another communication tool), and staying in touch with the other point people for resource sharing. If you have the capacity to take on this role, please let us know ASAP by filling out the survey and we’ll set you up with a toolkit of how to get started.

LANGUAGE ACCESS:

We are always looking for more community members who would like to join our team of volunteers working to improve MAB’s language access! For more information on this initiative, please see “Language Access” below.

PRESS:

We are happy to chat about Mutual Aid Brookline! Please take a look at our press kit here and reach out to mutualaidbrookline@gmail.com with any questions.

Community Events and Activities:

  • COMMUNITY NOTES: We’re trying out a new initiative, where we send a weekly digest of Brookline happenings that are relevant to our mission, including community events, announcements, services, and/or petitions. If you’d like to submit something for the next weekly email (sent out on Fridays), please fill out this form by the prior Wednesday: https://forms.gle/9DRiZ3phmdAsy8em6.
  • COMMUNITY MEDITATION: Community member Edye Caine will be hosting daily community meditation sessions on Zoom, Monday through Friday, more information can be found here. Thanks Edye!
  • SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESSES: Many small businesses and restaurants are suffering right now, and we would love to support them! A spreadsheet of local businesses and how you can support them is available here.
  • VIRTUAL BOOK CLUB: If you would like to find new books to read and discuss them with other folks, a community member shared this awesome resource to join virtual book clubs, available here.
  • KIDS ACTIVITIES:
  • A document listing a variety activities to do with kids while practicing social distancing is available here. This will continue to be updated with new ideas. 
  • The House of Colors has a beautiful printable coloring page, fun for kids and adults!
  • MG Rhythmic Academy and Boston Rhythmic are providing free online gymnastics classes.
  • Community member Vanessa Trien is providing online music classes on youtube.
  • Legends of Learning is providing free educational online resources for kids at home!
  • Boston University’s NITEO program is hosting weekly activities for young adults, more information can be found here.

Additional Informative Resources:

  • SANITARY PRACTICES FOR DELIVERIES: A document outlining best sanitary practices for delivering and receiving goods is available here. This information is subject to change as the situation evolves, so please check back regularly.
  • SANITARY PRACTICES FOR CHILDCARE PROVIDERS: A document outlining best sanitary practices when providing childcare is available here. This information is subject to change as the situation evolves, so please check back regularly.
  • TOWN OF BROOKLINE UPDATES: The Town of Brookline has launched a website to keep us updated about the situation, available here.
  • EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES ON COVID-19: A group of medical students at Harvard have put together an excellent comprehensive online curriculum of COVID-19!
  • BROOKLINE CLOSINGS: The Brookline Patch is publishing a running list of businesses and public resources that are closed at this time, available here.
  • UTILITIES SHUT-OFFS: Keep track of utilities services that have and have not suspended shut-offs here.

Questions?  Call or Text our hotline 617-651-1468 or email mutualaidbrookline@gmail.com

Language Access:

Community members who would like to speak with a volunteer in a language other than English can call our main hotline and state the language, in English if possible. We will do our best to call back within 24 hours (though please note that this may occasionally take longer based on volunteer availability). Community members are also welcome to email our main address in their language of choice. Below is a list of languages we currently speak, as well as links to translated materials. Many of these materials are currently under development and revision; updated materials will be linked here as they become available.

Albanian / Shqip

Arabic / العربية

Bulgarian / български

Chinese - Cantonese / 中文 - 廣東話  (tiny.cc/mab-chinese)

Chinese - Hokkien / 中文 - 福建話  (tiny.cc/mab-chinese)

Chinese - Mandarin / 中文 - 國語  (tiny.cc/mab-chinese)

Croatian / Hrvatski

East Timorese (Tetum) / Tetun Prasa

French / Français  (tiny.cc/mab-french)

Haitian Creole / Kreyòl Ayisyen

Hebrew / עִבְרִית  (tiny.cc/mab-hebrew)

Hindi / हिन्दी

Indonesian / Bahasa Indonesia

Italian / Italiano  (tiny.cc/mab-italian)

Japanese / 日本語  (tiny.cc/mab-japanese)

Korean / 한국어  (tiny.cc/mab-korean)

Malay / Bahasa Melayu

Nepali / नेपाली

Polish / Polski

Portuguese / Português  (tiny.cc/mab-portuguese)

Romanian / Limba Română

Russian / русский язык  (tiny.cc/mab-russian)

Spanish / Español  (tiny.cc/mab-spanish)

Urdu / اُردُو

Like all of MAB, this language access initiative is made up entirely of community members volunteering their time and skills. If you would like to join in as a volunteer, we welcome all languages and time commitments! Please fill out this survey to let us know you’re interested: https://forms.gle/enewPW1yL8fkoc8B9.

Please feel free to contact MutualAidBrookline.Language@gmail.com with any questions!

Help us build:

We are looking for support: these documents were put together in a few hours by some friends and we definitely need help from more people to get this thing going on the scale that we need. Here are some roles that need to be filled:

  • Spreading the word - We need to spread the word about what we’re doing in concise and clear ways to ALL parts of Brookline - help us make and distribute flyers, spread the word online, and reach out to other friends.
  • Org Org - Why reinvent the wheel? Brookline is filled with awesome organizations that already have tons of resources and skills. We want to form networks with them to maximize mutual aid! Help us reach out to existing networks and figure out how to power up together.
  • Budgeting - Determining financial needs and distribution based on principles of harm reduction and effectivity.
  • Something else! Do you have a brilliant idea? Get in touch: mutualaidbrookline@gmail.com 

We got this