Josh Kraft | Democrat For Mayor Josh Kraft Launches First TV Spots of Campaign
Positive Spots Tell the Story of Josh’s Service to Boston Through Voices of Those He Helped
JULY 11, 2025 / Boston, MA – Today, Josh Kraft’s campaign for Mayor of Boston today released its first television ads that highlight Josh’s thirty-five years of service to the people and communities of Boston through the voices of those he has helped, and continues to help. The Kraft campaign will be running a series of ads simultaneously that target Boston voters on broadcast TV, streaming TV, connected TV, and digital platforms.
“Josh has committed his life to serving the people of Boston through community work, primarily with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston,” said Eileen O’Connor, Senior Advisor to the Kraft Campaign. “While there are literally hundreds and hundreds of stories we could tell, we are excited to have voters hear from this diverse group of Bostonians about how Josh impacted their lives and why they think he will be a great Mayor.”
The series of ads features a diverse group of Bostonians whom Josh has helped through his work at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston and the New England Patriots Foundation. Below are some but not all of the spots that will air beginning on Friday, July 11.
Ronia met Josh 25 years ago through her work for the Boys and Girls Clubs, when she was working in banking in Greater Boston. Ronia serves on the Advisory Board at the Yawkey Club of Roxbury, where she worked with Josh to expand youth and family engagement.
Jonte met Josh when he was 9 years old at the Charlestown Boys and Girls Club. They developed a friendship after Josh heard Jonte speak at the Charlestown club about his goals and aspirations. Josh has been a consistent presence in Jonte’s life, serving as a mentor and friend.
Isidra Quinones – Boys & Girls Club
Isidra met Josh in 1993 when he was Executive Director at the Boys and Girls Club in Chelsea, and then worked with him when he became CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston where she served as Director of Alumni Engagement and continues to serve in that role.
Leah Reich – Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston
Leah and Josh first met when she was in graduate school in 2000. Leah went on to work alongside Josh as the head of Teen Education at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Chelsea and then worked for Josh for 10 years in the operations department when he was the CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston.
Ahmad Barry – Community Organizer
Ahmad met Josh 15 years ago when the Muslim community was about to lose its community center in Hyde Park, and Josh let them use the Boys & Girls Club as a temporary place of worship while they built a new mosque. Ahmad also serves as a volunteer Chaplain in the prisons, places where Josh has spent a great deal of time working on re-entry programs and the two have bonded over that cause.
Bob hired Josh in 1991, to do school-based community work in the public housing projects in South Boston in collaboration with the South Boston Boys & Girls Club. Josh has been inspired by Bob’s five decades of service to the people of Boston, and the incredible work he has done on behalf of the Boys and Girls Clubs.
About Josh
Josh Kraft has spent his 35 year career working in disadvantaged communities in and around Boston. He was most recently President of the New England Patriots Foundation, and for three decades he worked with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston, including 12 years as its President and CEO.
Josh’s commitment to service began with his first job out of college as an outreach coordinator at a South Boston nonprofit. There he was responsible for making sure at-risk youth attended school in the morning, regularly visiting their families at home. It was in this role that Josh saw firsthand truancy, addiction and domestic violence, but also what is possible for communities when like minded individuals engaged in a common goal.
In 1993, he founded the Boys & Girls Club in Chelsea at a time when the city and its schools were in state receivership. Located in the basement of a public housing development, Josh went door-to-door raising money from local businesses to rehabilitate the facility and organize and fund a summer basketball league coached and refereed by local police officers he had personally recruited. Josh would serve as executive director of the Chelsea Boys & Girls Club for the next 15 years, building and managing an extremely loyal staff and deeply engaged local Board, leading major local fundraising campaigns and piloting innovative programming to create a safe haven for thousands of young people in one of Massachusetts’ most underserved communities.
Unanimously selected to serve as the Boys & Girls Club of Boston’s President and CEO in 2008, Josh fostered a community of more than 200 program partners throughout Boston and Chelsea, doubling the club’s budget to $26 million and leading a five-year campaign which raised nearly $132 million. During his tenure, Josh doubled the organization’s membership, deepened its impact and expanded its reach to Boston’s Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, and Mattapan neighborhoods.
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Media contact:
Eileen O’Connor
eileen@joshforboston.com
617-806-6999