Volunteers from Holy Family School assisting with the Helping Hands giveaway night in April. The next giveaway night will be held at 6 p.m. on Thursday, July 17 in front of the Norwich Family YMCA, rain or shine. (Photo from the Holy Family School Facebook page)

NORWICH - Helping Hands, a Norwich-based nonprofit, will be hosting their monthly giveaway night on Thursday, July 17 at 6 p.m. in front of the Norwich Family YMCA, located at 68-70 North Broad Street in Norwich.

Each month, volunteers shop for giveaway items and sort community donations, pre-bag items, and set up stations in front of the YMCA to hand out for free to anyone who stops by, no questions asked.

The organization provides food, hygiene items, cleaning supplies, and pet food. Individuals can walk or drive through and pick up bags of what they need.

Helping Hands Founder Lorri Race said she and volunteers work hard to create a welcoming and non-judgmental atmosphere for those who come through.

"We’re your friend, we’re happy to see you. We always say 'thanks for coming, good to see you,'" said Race. "I always tell all my volunteers, it’s our one day we don’t judge. It’s not for us. We’re not the ones who are going to decide who gets what or any of that. We don’t judge by your car, whether you walk, what you look like."

She said fulfilling their mission of helping the community would not be possible without all the people who volunteer and support the organization through donations.