Supporting St. Stephen’s Human Services

Here is a description of how Cheyenna and Summer organized their activity in their own words:

For this project, we decided to raise money and donations for St. Stephen’s Human Services. We raised $50 through GoFundMe, and that money was used to purchase various items from the list of donations that St. Stephen’s had provided. We went to the GoodWill in Coon Rapids. We spent a good amount of time finding items and stretching the money that was raised in order to get a nice variety as well as getting as much as we could. The items we bought can be found on slide 9. Other donations were gathered from 1 West at Unity Hospital throughout the week of November 15th, 2021. At the end of that week, items that were collected ranged from single size serving/microwavable food, heavy coats, towels, wash clothes, long sleeve shirts, pants, facemasks, thick gloves, and backpacks. In total we raised 150 items. After all the donations were purchased and gathered, we had driven to St. Stephen’s and had the help of Noah Chan, the Community Engagement Coordinator, in unloading everything and bringing it into the building.

What did they accomplish? Here is the difference they made in OTHERS lives:

We had gathered many donations which included jackets, long-sleeves, belts, gloves, flashlights, batteries, face masks, and food that can really help people going through homelesness.
From the donations, St. Stephen’s will be able to help a good number of people. On their site they noted how many people and families they are able to help with their various programs.
We hope that the 150 donations are able to impact people’s lives and help change it for the better.
We also hope that by doing this we inspire people to help those around who are experiencing hard times and challenge individuals on how society should view those suffering from homelessness.

A screenshot of a gofundme page

A screenshot of an email abut the donation drive.

A screenshot of items for the donation drive

Cheyenna reflects on the changes to HER life:

This experience had gotten me to think about how important it is to give what you can even if it isn’t that much. Even though it is nice to feel the warm, fuzzy glow, I know that I can now strive to go beyond what a warm-glow giver does. This project included multiple different skills like planning, coordination, and communicating between everyone that was involved. I also learned that I really can make a difference. When we dropped everything off, Noah Chan was telling us how much they appreciated what we were able to donate. This was an overall really beneficial experience because not only was I able to apply what I’ve learned but I also grew more as a person.

Summer reflects on the changes to HER life:

After we finished dropping off our donations to St. Stephen’s a sudden weight was lifted from my shoulders. With that I realized I was stressing out so much during the organizing about how much a difference we would make that I didn’t take the time to see what we are able to accomplish. We were able to organize a whole donation drive, showing me just how capable I am of making change or difference. In addition, while driving to and from St. Stephen’s about a block from the organization there were about 6 homeless individuals some with cardboard signs asking for spare anything on the sides of the road. On our way back I rolled down the window and told them to check out St. Stephen’s Human Services as we just dropped off a bunch of donations. You could also say it gave me a warm glow, but after this I am going to try to be more than a warm glow giver. I hope that now I can continue to practice class concepts in order to eventually reach justice within ethical issues.

A picture of a car full of donations

A picture of the car seats full of donations

A receipt showing what items were purchased

What are their tips for YOU if you want to organize something similar? Check it out:

Picking an organization can be hard, but we recommend looking into the organization and
exactly where donations go and what they’re used for.
When raising item donations make sure you check with the organization about what items they
actually need.
Set a date for drop-off that is reasonable in the context of when and how long your fundraiser
or donation drive is happening.
If you start a GoFundMe for money donations, start it as soon as possible and make sure you
add details such as the who, what, where, when, and how of your event. Keep in mind that it
takes 2-5 days of processing from when you withdraw the donations.
Also when promoting your GoFundMe share to friends and family directly as some may not see
your Social posts. In addition, advertise it multiple times for the best outcome. Some useful
apps include Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Email, and Messages.
Brainstorm at least 5 places to hold a drive or fundraiser, not all of them are going to be able to
do an event but having backup options is a must if the original place does not work out. These
could be places of worship, work, home, etc.
When contacting places to run a donation drive contact the director, management, or floor
advisors.
Communicate in a variety of ways in-person, on the phone, over social media, find one or two
that your whole group has.
If working in a group, plan accordingly with each other’s schedules, so that everyone is able to
participate.