August 2022
by Susan Dowd, Outreach Committee Member
St. Stephen’s Outreach Committee doesn’t take the summer off! The committee recently awarded the following grants to organizations with whom the church has an existing relationship:
- The Greater Minneapolis Crisis Nursery – $12,000
- Bluebirds and Blooms – $5,000
- Volunteers Enlisted to Assist People (VEAP) – $20,000
These follow a $20,000 grant made in the spring to Beacon Interface Housing Collaborative to support Beacon’s “Seeds of Home” initiative to help build more affordable homes and for Beacon’s long-running “Families Moving Forward” program. Read about Beacon grant.
Each of these Outreach grants responds to one or more of the four Outreach Committee Priority Areas: Youth, Seniors, Hunger, and Housing.
The Greater Minneapolis Crisis Nursery provides free volunteer services 24/7/365 to families in crisis with young children. It staffs a 24-hr crisis line, offers residential respite and medical care for children, and home visiting services. Most of the families served at its south Minneapolis location are low-income. Nearly 90% of parents are single women. St. Stephen’s grant will provide general operating funds.
A truly unique idea is spreading joy to seniors in memory care and to individuals living witha life-threatening illness with beautiful (recycled!) flowers. Bluebirds and Blooms delivers blooming cheer to 48 special communities in the metro area. Since the idea was born in 2018, they have delivered over 37,000 bouquets using leftover flowers donated by grocery stores, churches, and other locations. The blooms are arranged in small containers for delivery. St. Stephen’s funds will support staffing, materials, and volunteer training.
A long-running St. Stephen’s outreach partner is Volunteers Enlisted to Assist People (VEAP). VEAP serves Bloomington, Edina, Richfield, and South Minneapolis, providing food and basic needs, housing advocacy, financial assistance, transportation assistance, case management, and resource navigation to individuals and families in these four communities. In 2021, VEAP distributed over 4 million pounds of food and worked with nearly 1,300 families to keep them housed, healthy, and employed.
FUNDING FOR OUTREACH GRANTS
Much of our community’s ability to give to these and other organizations is a direct result of how successful our annual fundraising event, the Bash After Dark, is each year. ALL funds raised by The Bash are used only for community outreach. The Bash is being held on Saturday, October 8th from 6:30-8:30 PM. Visit the Bash page to learn how YOU can help!
