photo by: Richard Gwin

Onlookers line Massachusetts Street Thursday to catch a view of the St. Patrick's Day Parade, March 17, 2016.

The Lawrence St. Patrick’s Day Parade committee has donated $40,000 to The Shelter Inc., parade commissioners announced this week. The gift was presented during a ceremony Tuesday at The Shelter’s Williams Facility in Lawrence.

As the sole beneficiary of this year’s parade season, The Shelter Inc. will use the majority of the funds to build a fenced-in playground and basketball court at its Williams Facility, one of its two residential Lawrence locations. The remainder will be allocated to The Shelter’s kids’ activity fund, which allows residents to attend outings across the community.

Donations were raised over the course of more than 10 charity events organized by The Shelter Inc. and the Lawrence St. Patrick’s Day Parade committee during the 2016 parade season, which ran from mid-September to St. Patrick’s Day. With its latest donation, the committee has raised nearly $900,000 for local charities since its founding in 1988.