Dear Family, Friends and Colleagues,
As many of you know, in 2018 my father, Stanley DeMartinis Sr. passed away unexpectedly. Over the years, we have been discussing how we can honor my father’s legacy and give back to the East Boston community.
My father’s philanthropic mindset started at a young age. While opening multiple businesses in the Revere and East Boston communities, he was always there to lend a hand to those in need. From his early days of owning restaurants, through his first gym opening in 1993 in East Boston, my father always gave back to the East Boston community that held his roots. Whether it was working with East Boston High School to provide summer jobs, participating in fundraisers, or providing access to health and wellness to everyone in the community, he truly cared about the people he was surrounded by and felt gratitude towards them for supporting his business ventures throughout the years.
One such partnership was between World Gym in East Boston and Savio Preparatory High School. My father worked with the administration to have the students bussed from the school to the gym during school hours to be sure they were provided with a proper space for physical activity and supplement their regular “phys ed class”. My father was there to help guide students, right alongside the teachers and administrators of the school. Many of those students became members, as well as team members, for their first summer jobs at the gym. This original gym was later converted into my family’s first Planet Fitness in 2007, which began our journey with the Planet Fitness franchise.
Savio Preparatory High School has since closed, and the property has been repurposed as the Salesian Boys & Girls Club of East Boston. Over the years we have continued our relationship with the Salesian Boys & Girls Club, and our team just completed building a mini-Judgement Free Zone gym at their location to help cultivate the next judgement free generation. In connection with this build, my family has decided to start the Stanley DeMartinis Sr. Scholarship Fund through the Salesian Boys & Girls Club of East Boston. In the true essence of my father, this scholarship will be given out annually to Boys & Girls Club members that exemplify my father’s values of dedication to community, hard work, and generosity. We will be awarding scholarships to seniors that are moving on to further their education, in any form, to help defray the cost of education for them and their families.
Our family is so excited to start this new scholarship with the Salesian Boys & Girls Club, where, starting with my father, we have served the community for over 30 years! As a show of support and dedication to ensuring we can help as many students as possible, my family has funded an initial $100,000 donation. We would be truly honored for any contribution you are able to make towards this scholarship that we hope, like my father’s legacy, will live on in perpetuity. If you feel so inclined to donate to the Stanley DeMartinis Sr. Scholarship Fund, you may do so online at https://secure.donationpay.org/salesianclub/demartinis.php.
Thank you for your help and consideration,
SDM Jr. & The DeMartinis Family