Jewelry for Good
New Pond Village Resident, Joe Bickford, turned a hobby of repairing and selling jewelry into a charitable endeavor.
Crafting a Legacy at New Pond Village
When Joe Bickford moved to Independent Living community New Pond Village in Walpole, MA., he brought with him a lucrative and charitable hobby. Joe repairs and sells jewelry.
“My wife passed away almost four years ago and I decided to do something with her jewelry. I collected all I could find and invited our family up to see what they wanted to look over. In the end, I was still left with a lot. A whole lot,” Joe said. With plenty of jewelry at his disposal, Joe approached a friend whose wife was in the Jewelry business. “He showed me what was good and what was not good and I thought that I could do this as a hobby.”
Joe’s Philanthropic Pursuits
Joe took his wife’s pieces and donated pieces that he would fix up and started selling them wholesale and at a table at the Farmers Market. “All the money I made I would donate to a charity called Smile Train (https://www.smiletrain.org/), which repairs children’s cleft palates. I raised around four thousand dollars.”
Since coming to New Pond Village, Joe has scaled down his operation a bit. “I had a big workbench, but I have a small workbench now.” He also started donating to an organization called Prevent Blindness (https://preventblindness.org/), an homage to his career as an optometrist. While he enjoys raising money for charity, Joe also donates his time and does repairs for his fellow residents for free. He even hands out business cards to make sure the community knows about his service. “I have already had a couple of women come up and talk to me about making their clasps bigger.”
Independent Living at New Pond Village
Joe’s journey from grief to giving showcases the warmth and camaraderie found within our residents. If you’re seeking not just a home but a vibrant community, explore the possibilities of independent living at New Pond Village.