MIDDLEBORO — Members of the Oak Point Homeowners Scholarship Association work year-round to provide scholarship opportunities for Middleboro students.

“It’s important to focus on young, intelligent people,” said Oak Point Homeowners Scholarship Association President John Burbage. 

 The organization’s biggest annual fundraiser is the Fabulous Fall Yard Sale which will be held on Saturday, Oct. 7 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 200 Oak Point Drive, Middleboro.

Items such as jewelry, furniture, decorations and home goods will be sold during the fundraiser to support the cause.

According to Burbage, the organization raised approximately $34,000 in funds from the yard sale last year and was able to provide 18 scholarships for Middleborough High School and Bristol Plymouth Regional Technical School students. This year, the Oak Point Homeowners Scholarship Association hopes to raise enough funds to provide over 18 scholarships. 

The organization is currently the largest provider of scholarship funds for Middleboro High School students according to Oak Point Homeowners Scholarship Association Secretary Cathy Shachoy.

In addition to the annual yard sale, the association holds raffles throughout the year to help raise funds for scholarships.

According to Burbage, the annual yard sale fundraiser began in 1999 when a group of Oak Point residents decided that they wanted to give back to the community. 

Burbage said that Oak Point resident Ed Beaulieu was the first to “kick five dollars into a coffee can”  in support of the cause in 1999. Chuck Huckins, the first president of the Oak Point Homeowners Scholarship Association, spread the word about the event and from then on the event grew according to Burbage. 

“We are taking it further from just a five dollar yard sale to a 501 charity,” said Shachoy. 

The organization is in need of volunteers on Sunday, Oct. 1 to help set up, and on Saturday, Oct 7 and Sunday Oct. 8 from 2 to 4 p.m. to help clean up. 

According to Burbage, the event’s success is due to the hard work of the association and volunteers as well as the support they have received from local businesses.

“The business community of Middleboro is very generous,” said Burbage.