HAND Raffle Ends

House and Neighborhood Development (HAND) program leaders announced yesterday that they collected more than $400 in a fundraising contest for Rosie's Place, a Cambridge shelter for poor and homeless women.

The contest, called "Guess Who's Helping HAND," asked students to contribute to the shelter and guess the identity of two drawings of celebrity hands. Volunteers tabled in participating houses for six days beginning last Wednesday.

HAND Co-Chair Catherine A. Kreindler '99 said she was pleased with the success of the contest and praised all who were involved.

"We would like to give special thanks to everyone who helped with the success of the fundraising, both to those who offered their time to organize the contest and to those who made contributions to Rosie's Place," she said.

The celebrity hands turned out to belong to none other than Gov. William F. Weld '66 and talk show host Rosie O'Donnell.

Robyn E. Piasecki '97, a HAND volunteer, said the two celebrities were chosen for their different approaches to community service.

"Bill Weld has chosen a vocation through which he serves the community day in and day out, while Rosie O'Donnell, both on and off stage, has shown that no matter what you do in life, there is always a way to reach out to help others," she said.

HAND volunteers chose 10 winners from the contributors who correctly guessed the identity of the celebrity hands. Prizes ranged from free CDs at Tower Records to gift certificates at Legal Seafood.