Our team lending a hand with landscaping at New Beginnings – Without Violence & Abuse. At Wescott Law, we’re proud to support our community through service.

In May, our team proudly marked our 11th year participating in United Way’s annual Day of Caring, a meaningful tradition that reflects Wescott Law’s ongoing commitment to giving back to the community we serve. This year, four members of our team spent the morning volunteering at New Beginnings – Without Violence & Abuse in Laconia.

Founded in 1991, New Beginnings is dedicated to ending domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking, and serves individuals primarily in Belknap County. Rooted in a non-hierarchical, consensus-based model, they focus on empowering survivors and addressing systemic inequalities related to gender-based oppression. Their services are free, confidential, and survivor-centered, including a 24/7 crisis line and live chat, emergency shelter, court and hospital advocacy, support groups for all ages, safety planning, and material aid. They also offer education and prevention programs in schools and the community, along with financial support through their Independence Fund to help survivors with urgent needs like rent, transportation, or legal fees.

While our tasks were simple (pulling weeds, trimming bushes, refreshing garden beds), the impact, as always, was much greater. The experience served as a powerful reminder that small acts of service can contribute to lasting change, especially when paired with the collective energy of others giving their time on the same day.

Rooted in Purpose

For our team, Day of Caring is more than just a volunteer event. It’s a reflection of our core values. “I love volunteering in our community. There are so many worthy causes and when people join together to support a cause, it really does make a difference,” noted Allison Ambrose, director and managing partner. “I also enjoyed learning about the nonprofit organization we were paired with. The leaders there were so very kind and appreciative.”

That spirit of connection between volunteers, organizations, and those served is what makes the experience so rewarding. The team spent part of their time working in a memorial garden honoring victims of violence, a space of healing and reflection that left a lasting impression.

Jaylin Tully, paralegal, reflected on how meaningful the experience was: “Taking time out of your day to improve, strengthen, or maintain your community is moving in and of itself, but to dedicate that same time to the people who need it most takes volunteer work to a whole different level. The experience of working at the women’s shelter, in the garden honoring victims who have passed, really resonated with me and separated this experience from my previous Day of Caring experiences.”

Jaylin added, “It was Rabindranath Tagore who said, ‘The one who plants trees, knowing that he will never sit in their shade, has at least started to understand the meaning of life.’ Community is only as strong as the people who make it, and the Day of Caring is a perfect reminder of that. I will likely never benefit from the work that I and the others who were with me put into the Serenity Garden, but someone will, and that is the most rewarding and necessary part of building a community.”

Community in Action

One of the most rewarding aspects of Day of Caring is seeing the broad support it garners from local businesses and nonprofits to the volunteers themselves. Allison noted, “I love that so many local organizations support their employees in taking the morning or day off to volunteer for the community. Together, it really does feel like we make a difference by the time we look back on the work accomplished.”

That sense of shared responsibility and effort is what makes Day of Caring such a special tradition for our team year after year. It reminds us that the work we do in the office and the work we do outside of it are both vital to a thriving community.

We are honored to be part of United Way’s mission and grateful for the opportunity to lend our hands and hearts to organizations making a difference every day. Here’s to another year of caring, and many more to come.