Bowdoin and Brunswick students help staff People Plus fundraiser in Brunswick

The payoff from People Plus’s Music in April gala was practical and immediate: the money helps keep rides, grocery deliveries and youth services moving for older adults and teens in Brunswick, Harpswell and Topsham. At the same time, more than 250 diners at St. John’s Community Center on April 11 saw Bowdoin College, Brunswick High School and Brunswick Area Teen Center Program students keep the evening running from setup to dessert.

People Plus said the students helped the night before and during the 5 to 9 p.m. gala, learning how to lay out a formal table, wear a bow tie, serve passed appetizers, work a buffet line, keep water carafes full and clear tables. The organization said the students also practiced good waitstaff etiquette and happy manners. In return, they earned community service hours and were treated to pizza and dessert, but the larger value was in the work itself: student volunteers filled real staffing needs for a fundraiser that supports a community safety net.

The 24th annual Music in April Gala and Auction included an online auction April 1-30 and the live gala at St. John’s Community Center in Brunswick. People Plus said it is trying to raise $100,000 by the end of April, and that 100 percent of funds raised stay in the Brunswick area community and are tax deductible.

That funding matters because the agency said it served more than 4,000 area residents last year, logged more than 33,000 miles of transportation and completed more than 1,700 grocery and prescription deliveries. Its Volunteer Transportation Network provides up to four free rides a month for residents of Brunswick, Harpswell or Topsham, and can also deliver groceries and prescriptions for housebound clients. For older residents who cannot drive or who need help reaching appointments, those rides can determine whether a medical visit, shopping trip or social outing happens at all.

People Plus is marking its 50th anniversary this year, while the Brunswick Area Teen Center program traces back to 2005. The Teen Center serves grades 6-12, offers a full meal five days a week and provides homework mentoring, games, field trips, art programs and crafts. People Plus said the teen center celebrated its 20th anniversary in June 2025 at its new location in the Coffin School Building, with about 75 people attending. The organization also said its 2024 Teen Center Scoop-a-thon raised $12,455 and has brought in more than $100,000 over the last decade and a half, underscoring how recurring local fundraising keeps the programs alive.