Good morning, Hopkinton! Welcome to the daily update we call Hopkinton Today — a quick recap of yesterday’s news, highlights of what’s on tap, and a photo of the day.

HPTO’s largest fundraiser funds school programs, clubs

People dig through clothes for young children at last year’s HopSwap tag sale. PHOTO/JOHN CARDILLO

The Hopkinton Parent Teacher Organization’s annual HopSwap not only is a popular event, it’s a vital part of the organization’s fundraising.

“It’s our biggest fundraiser of the year,” said HPTO co-chair Dana Passante. “It brings in a quarter of our yearly budget.”

HopSwap is a community-wide tag sale of used children’s clothing and items. All items are donated from the community. “It’s anything you can imagine for a child 2-18,” said Passante.

“The [high school] cafeteria gets filled with clothes,” she added. “We are overflowing at every corner.”

According to Passante, last year’s event raised $28,000. Some of the funds benefited the Hopkinton Moms Group, which assists in running the one-day sale.

Funds raised from the event are split amongst all the schools in the Hopkinton school district. The money pays for everything from field trips and guest speakers to a letter-writing program at Elmwood School. Fellow HPTO co-chair Sarah Navin noted that a lot of funding gets appropriated to the high school.

“The high school tends to need more, and the things they need tend to be more expensive,” Navin explained. She added that the HPTO helps to fund Hopkinton High School’s robotics club, which is set to compete at the state tournament in March. “The robotics club is a huge deal,” she said.

This year’s HopSwap will take place at HHS on March 7. Donations will be accepted the day before the event. Because the sale takes place over the span of less than a day, Navin and Passante explained that the HPTO puts in significant effort to plan and execute it.

“It’s such an efficiently run event,” said Passante.

“It has to be [efficient] because you have so little time,” added Navin.

HopSwap’s Facebook page has 1,600 followers. Navin and Passante noted that people will line up hours before doors open and sometimes show up from several states away.

“Everyone is welcome,” said Navin.

— NICK SCHOFIELD

Latest News

The Hopkinton Teachers Association and the town’s public safety unions voiced frustration to the Select Board on Tuesday about delays in tax refunds and alleged mistakes in the town’s issuing of W-2s.

Select Board members became involved in a heated exchange Tuesday as the board was finalizing this year’s license renewals.

Town departments met with the Select Board on Tuesday to review their budget requests for fiscal year 2027.

This week’s Police Log features three arrests, along with reports of a vehicle on its side, an erratic employee and individuals checking car doors on Constitution Court.

The latest Move in Style Athlete Spotlight shines on Oneli Weeraratne, a sophomore on the girls swimming team who qualified for sectionals in the 100 butterfly this January and is described by coach MaryLauren Burke as a “ray of positivity.”

Town meetings tonight include the School Committee (7).

Photo of the Day

Lindsey Xie (left), Lumen Zhang (center) and Hareesh Krishnasamy pose for a photo during the Hopkinton High School Science and Engineering Fair on Wednesday. Click here for more photos.

PHOTO/JERRY SPAR