One night every month, Brady’s American Grill in Peterborough will host a fundraiser for the Monadnock Valley Patriots, the Peterborough/Jaffrey-area adult Special Olympics team.

January’s event is from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 23, and the featured meal will be macaroni and cheese. 

“I am a big supporter of the Special Olympics, and I am just so happy to help,” said Eliza Allen, who owns Brady’s with her husband, Peter Cummings.

According to Amanda DiNino, an organizer of the Patriots and the mother of an athlete, Allen and Cummings are longtime advocates and supporters of the local special needs community. 

“I met Eliza when she was my son’s paraprofessional in elementary school,” DiNino said. “She has always been an incredible supporter of  children and adults with special needs.” 

DiNino’s son Frank, 23, is a member of MVP. 

“When I was looking for a job for my son, I reached out to Eliza, and she immediately said, ‘Yes, of course,’ ” DiNino said. “It’s not easy to find jobs for these young people, but Eliza hired Frank right away. He goes every day with a helper and does cleaning, vacuuming, things like that.” 

Brady’s also offers internships to students in the Intensive Learning Supports program at ConVal. 

DiNino said she originally approached Allen about hosting one fundraising night in December.

“She immediately took it a step farther and said, ‘Let’s do this every month,’ ” DiNino said. “They’re putting it on the specials board, and money from each even will help fund our athletes.”

After the December event at Brady’s, the Hancock-based Steven W. Crowe Foundation reached out to team organizer Deborah Coyne and offered to match the funds at the next event. 

“It’s amazing that the Steven Crowe Foundation is matching the funds, and we are so grateful at how this will help our athletes,” DiNino said.

While any athlete with special needs can participate in the Special Olympics free of charge, there is a cost of $464 per year athlete for travel  to regional, state and national events. The MVP raises funds to offset the cost for families. 

The Monadnock Valley Patriots includes 24 adult athletes with special needs ranging in age from 21 to 70 years.

The Steven W. Crowe Foundation is a Hancock-based nonprofit organization honoring the memory of Steven Crowe, a ConVal graduate who died in a car accident in 1988. The foundation supports education, health and welfare in the ConVal community, particularly for children and underprivileged families. 

Funds raised at the event will support the MVP’s participation in the regional, state and national Special Olympics events. The team’s next event is the New Hampshire Special Olympics  Winter Games March 3 to 5 at Waterville Valley. 

For information about the Monadnock Valley Patriots, go to facebook.com/groups/742841032410235.