By Graydon Webb

If you asked members of the senior community what brightens their day, some may bring up memories like a particular song from their youth, or even just a stranger saying hello. But for Belmont student Nathalie Canetta, delivering smiles comes in the form of bracelets, a movement she has started through community volunteers and positive creativity. She’s looking to expand the effort through students in other communities. So far, she’s brought on student volunteers from Cambridge, Brighton, Burlington, Watertown and Arlington, and she’s looking to expand to other Massachusetts communities.

Inspired by her youth spent at summer camps - learning how to make friendship bracelets out of string - Nathalie sought out a unique way to give back to her community and figured this commonly-shared skill could help attract others to the cause. “I think people don’t think a lot about artistic ways to give back,” Nathalie explained, “I think bracelets are a great way to connect with the senior community.”

In mid-2024, Nathalie reached out to a number of senior facilities. Although many didn’t accept handmade donations, Nathalie found three, The Veronica B. Smith Senior Center, The Brookline Senior Center, and The Cambridge Homes – receptive to regular bracelet donations from Nathalie’s public service organization, Bracelets for Benefits. Expanding through the use of a TikTok account and a Google Classroom for her volunteers, Nathalie has successfully grown her operation to a whopping 530 bracelets (and counting) donated through 350 hours of community service.

For students looking to get involved, all it takes is a spark of inspiration. Bracelets for Benefits has welcomed donations of string bracelets, pony beads, and now even rainbow looms, so the possibilities are endless! As Nathalie says, “it’s not the medium that counts, but the message behind it.” When the donations are dropped off and the seniors are delivered the bracelets - whether that’s at mealtime or during various events - knowing that their work brightened someone’s day makes it all worth it for the volunteers.”

Bracelets for Benefits exhibits how any person can start a movement as long as they have passion behind it. Nathalie told me, “I never would’ve thought to do it if I hadn’t sat down and wondered what I could possibly be doing, with my skills, to actually improve my community.” She uses that drive to gather volunteers from all around the state - including local high schoolers from Franklin - who have added their own personal flair to these donated bracelets. “I think it’s a great unique way. I think that makes it especially heartwarming to receive.”

When asked what her plans look like going forward, Nathalie explained that while the idea of expanding - nationwide, perhaps - sounds nice, she enjoys keeping things local. “I like that it’s within Massachusetts because it feels very close to home… there’s that sense of tight-knitted community that comes with being students from Massachusetts.” She’s dabbled with the prospect of starting chapters in other states, but feels she’d rather pass her operation on to “some sort of vice president role that would take over after me, so it would be a bit more long-term.” No matter how big or small the scale, Nathalie aims to keep the goodwill flowing!

If you’d like to get in touch with Bracelets for Benefits, you can follow their TikTok: @bracelets.for.benefits for information on how to get involved.