Hundreds of people from Boston’s homeless community were treated to a warm, restaurant-style holiday meal Christmas Day at St. Francis House, and it was all made possible by a $25,000 donation from a family in Medfield.

The day shelter, the largest of its type in all of New England, hosted the annual celebration for what they estimated to be between 400 and 500 guests.

President and CEO of St. Francis House, Karen LaFrazia, says the large donation from the Medfield family not only funded the Christmas meal, but also another event and hundreds of gifts the night before.

“Today, we actually had a donor family that completely underwrote all of the costs of our entire Christmas dinner,” LaFrazia told the Herald. “Yesterday, we had a special event on Christmas Eve where we passed out Christmas presents for everybody, so everybody came through and they got their choice of a backpack and a choice of a sweatshirt and a gift card so they can spend on what they want and what they need. And it was completely underwritten by a generous family.

“They are our Christmas angel,” she added. “The mother in this family used to come here when she was in high school and she would volunteer. She’s in a fortunate place right now, her and her family, so they’re able to give back in a very meaningful way.”

But it appears that a notable amount of regular St. Francis House donors have been diving deeper into their pockets than ever before, according to VP of Philanthropy and External Relations Andrew Russell.

“Increasingly, this year, we have seen an enormous amount of our donors leaping in their giving. So, for example, this family from Medfield had been giving us $1,000 per year until this year, when they gave us a $25,000 donation. Donors who had been giving $5,000 per year have been giving $50,000 per year. So, it’s heartwarming to see,” Russell said.

The warm, festive environment offered guests what staff say is a “moment of dignity,” paired with a chance to escape from the daily burdens many have been experiencing in their day-to-day lives.

Jason Tench, who tells the Herald he’s been homeless for “a long time,” says he seeks services at St. Francis House because staff “really, truly care.”

“These people care a lot more [than most shelter services]. They come in every day and they appreciate us, which makes us appreciate them. It’s not just a job to them. They understand and they really, truly care. And it shows in the incredible work they do for us,” said Tench.

“It means a lot,” said Stephen Gonzalo, another homeless guest of St. Francis House. “I think this is where Jesus would want to be. It’s my first time here and luckily for me its on Christmas Day with this amazing meal and good people.”

Russell, the VP at St. Francis House, said the increase in donations — which allows St. Francis House to offer events like the Christmas meal — come as a blessing.

He says aside from special events, the extra cash is needed now more than ever, especially as the housing crisis paired with soaring utility costs in Massachusetts continues to make life unaffordable for residents.

“There’s more and more people that are coming in, whether it be seniors or young people that are on restricted incomes and if their rent goes up they can’t afford food or electricity, and people are forced to make difficult choices. So, the housing crisis definitely is playing a big part in the number of people we’re seeing on a daily basis,” Russell told the Herald. “We’re now up over 500 guests per day, every day. When you go back to 2023, we were seeing 7,000 people per year. The last two years we’ve been seeing 10,000 people per year.”

Homeless guest Arsenio Borges tells the Herald that he’s seen firsthand the help and support offered on a daily basis by St. Francis House, crediting the organization with helping him find housing for the first time in years.

“I think this is great. I live at the 112 Southampton Street shelter and this place has been incredible with how much they’ve helped me out. They actually just helped me get my Massachusetts ID so I can get housing finally. They’ve gotten clothing for me, shoes, socks, everything. So, they do help a lot,” said Borges.

As she enters her 19th year at St. Francis House, LaFrazia says the goal of the annual Christmas meal remains the same: to offer guests dignity, a warm meal and hope as they work to get through the challenges they face.

“I’ve been talking to our guests this morning and some of them have been reminiscing about Christmases past, when days were better for them and its bringing for them, a sadness,” said LaFrazia. “But, there’s also a little bit of joy for them to be here with friends and with staff that know they care about them and love them and us to give them a message of hope for the new year that things can and will get better.”

Boston Celtics (18-11, third in the Eastern Conference) vs. Indiana Pacers (6-24, 14th in the Eastern Conference)

Indianapolis; Friday, 7 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Indiana aims to end its three-game home slide with a win against Boston.

The Pacers have gone 4-14 against Eastern Conference teams. Indiana is 5-12 when it turns the ball over less than its opponents and averages 13.1 turnovers per game.

The Celtics are 14-8 in conference games. Boston ranks sixth in the NBA with 12.6 offensive rebounds per game led by Neemias Queta averaging 3.1.

The Pacers are shooting 42.9% from the field this season, 1.6 percentage points lower than the 44.5% the Celtics allow to opponents. The Celtics average 15.6 made 3-pointers per game this season, 4.1 more made shots on average than the 11.5 per game the Pacers allow.

The teams play for the second time this season. The Celtics won the last meeting 103-95 on Dec. 23. Jaylen Brown scored 31 points to help lead the Celtics to the win.

TOP PERFORMERS: Pascal Siakam is averaging 23.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.9 assists for the Pacers. T.J. McConnell is averaging 16.0 points over the last 10 games.

Payton Pritchard is shooting 43.9% and averaging 16.8 points for the Celtics. Derrick White is averaging 3.0 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Pacers: 2-8, averaging 108.0 points, 40.7 rebounds, 22.7 assists, 7.2 steals and 5.4 blocks per game while shooting 44.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 115.9 points per game.

Celtics: 8-2, averaging 118.3 points, 43.5 rebounds, 22.7 assists, 8.1 steals and 5.3 blocks per game while shooting 49.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 108.6 points.

INJURIES: Pacers: Obi Toppin: out (foot), Ben Sheppard: day to day (calf), Isaiah Jackson: day to day (head), Aaron Nesmith: out (knee), Tyrese Haliburton: out for season (achilles).

Celtics: Jayson Tatum: out (achilles), Jordan Walsh: day to day (illness).

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

City officials said Wednesday they had suspended the entertainment license for Icon, a Boston nightclub, after a woman suffered a medical emergency there over the weekend and later died.

The city’s licensing board is expected to hold a hearing on the future of Icon’s liquor license “in the coming weeks,” according to a statement from the mayor’s office.

Police arrived at the Warrenton Street venue, in the Theater District, just before 12:30 a.m. on Sunday and found a person lying on the dance floor, unresponsive and without a pulse, according to an incident report. Family members on social media identified the woman as Anastaiya Colon and said she had been celebrating her sister’s birthday when she collapsed.

Emergency medical personnel performed chest compressions and took Colon to Tufts Medical Center, according to the report. Family members said Tuesday that she had died.

“Any loss of life in our community is a horrible tragedy and our condolences go out to the family and loved ones,” Mayor Michelle Wu said in a statement Wednesday.

Family members have accused the nightclub of negligence, alleging that, once alerted to the medical emergency, Icon staff failed immediately to call 911, only stopped the dance music for a few minutes, and did not clear the way for emergency personnel once they arrived.

“Their negligence and incompetence to control and clear a crowd for professionals ensured it was too late to save her,” Bonnell Stackhouse, Colon’s former partner, alleged in a social media post.

Boston police detectives are investigating the incident, according to Officer Mark Marron, a department spokesperson. A spokesperson for the Suffolk district attorney’s office said Wednesday morning that there are “no indications of criminality.”

In a statement to the Globe on Wednesday, the club said its staff had acted appropriately.

Club management said it conducted interviews with employees and reviewed security footage that showed CPR was administered “within a minute” of staff being notified of the medical emergency.

EMS was contacted within two minutes, and Boston police arrived within six minutes, the club said.

“We hope the family finds some comfort knowing that Boston Police, Boston EMS, and the Club Staff worked diligently and efficiently in responding to this unfortunate situation,” club management said.

According to the police report, however, the first officers to arrive on the scene were on a routine patrol outside the nightclub when they were flagged down by one of Colon’s friends.

Police also said in the report that the large crowd inside the club did not comply with orders to give space to emergency medical personnel, forcing them to shut down the club and order the patrons to leave.

Icon had planned to hold a New Year’s Eve event, headlined by DJs JayRoc and Roniflee, according to its social media accounts. It was unclear Wednesday whether that event would take place.

Colon, known as “Nena,” leaves behind two children, one aged 9 and the other 6 months old, according to a fund-raiser in her name.

Camilo Fonseca can be reached at camilo.fonseca@globe.com. Follow him on X @fonseca_esq and on Instagram @camilo_fonseca.reports.