12/18/2020 Foundry (Double Whammy!) Giving Friday: St. Stephen's and Better Futures Minnesota

• Posted on 18 December 2020
• Posted in Foundry Giving Friday
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Every Friday The Foundry Home Goods donates 5% of our total sales to a different community-nominated small-and-mighty cause. This Holiday Season we're going doubling down on our season of festive generosity, choosing TWO worthy recipients each week to multiply and share the giving spirit of joy. This Friday's Foundry Holiday DOUBLE WHAMMY recipients? St. Stephen's and Better Futures Minnesota!

In this season of generosity and joy, as we bustle in our festive labors during our working days and then gravitate towards the security of the homefire and the warmth of the abundant table in the beautiful early-dark evenings, it is also a time to consider the double blessings of having a working day and place to return home to afterwards. Everyone deserves a safe home and stable, dignified employment. And, not to put too fine a point on it, but giving safe shelter to those in need and offering succor to those who have experienced personal redemption is definitely in keeping with the whole reason for the season. Love thy neighbor as thyself. This week's two Minneapolis-based recipients:

St. Stephen's is working to end homelessness in Hennepin County. Our city is experiencing a crisis within a crisis: driven by systemic issues like an affordable housing shortage, the wealth gap, stagnant wages, and legacies of racist policies and practices, there are far too many people who simply have nowhere to go. From targeted, tailored early interventions for those at imminent risk of losing their housing to outreach, shelter, and support services for those already experiencing homelessness, St. Stephen's is working to close the gap, meeting people where they are, and working together toward self-sufficiency and housing stability. Also, a friendly reminder: winter is really cold here. We can do better. See more @ststephensmpls.

Better Futures Minnesota provides stable judgment-free employment opportunities to men who have been recently released from prison, building skills that can help them write their own success stories. Better Futures believes that men who have faced incarceration deserve the support they need to stay out of prison. That men who want to succeed shouldn't be locked out of opportunities, but that they should have access to the fundamentals everyone needs to build a healthy, happy life for themselves and their families. This includes everything from specialized valuable "green jobs" training to housing support (the same pressures that lead to housing instability in the greater population are often intensified for the recently released, who face additional hurdles due to enforced limitations on solvency and access to public housing services etc.). The systemic ills of our prison system don't stop upon release, and Better Futures Minnesota is also intent on changing the costly systems and practices that produce poor results and perpetuate the chaos and cycles of dependency experienced by men who have faced incarceration. You can hire their expert teams to do deconstruction, landscaping, maintenance, and architectural salvage, AND they have an amazing ReUse Warehouse with cabinets, fixtures, appliances, and reclaimed wood salvaged from their sustainable deconstruction work, proceeds from which go to support the mission! See more @betterfuturesmn.

If you don't need anything from us, please consider donating directly: here for Better Futures Minnesota and here for St. Stephen's.

If you do find yourself in need of some cozy woolens, flickering candles, or a few sustainably sourced and thoughtfully chosen Ruby-approved gifts, then know that your purchase goes to support good change happening on the community level.

If YOU have a worthy cause to nominate for our Foundry Giving Friday initiative, pop on over to our Nomination Page and drop us a line. We're all in this together.