Planting seeds of hope at annual breakfast
CCHT saw its largest turnout yet at its annual Beyond Bricks & Mortar fundraising breakfast on May 16. The event, held at the Hilton Minneapolis, gave 760 guests an opportunity to hear about the impact of CCHT’s work first-hand from residents.
David, a resident and CCHT board member, said he was not the face of homelessness most people expect, a white man with a doctorate degree and teaching experience, but he related how several life setbacks coincided to leave him homeless. With the help of CCHT, he found a home at the Alliance Apartments. “There are times in all our lives when we find ourselves at the mercy of the kindness of strangers, in need of special attention, in need of the simplest affirmations in order to recover our morale and purpose again.”
Artie, who lives at CCHT’s St. Barnabas Apartments for formerly homeless youth, described life as a high school student without a stable place to stay. “I was scared in the shelters. I didn’t trust anyone. So I kept to myself. After a while, it felt like the walls were caving in,” she said.
When she learned about St. Barnabas Apartments, she said she sat in the lobby every day hoping an apartment would open up. Finally, one did. “It’s become a second family for me,” she said. “It really is a sense of community. We support each other—we always have.”
Guests also heard from former St. Paul Mayor George Latimer and CCHT President Alan Arthur, who described CCHT’s new vision that everyone has a home and is interconnected within community. He also said that CCHT pledges to make an impact that extends 100 years or more into the future.
The breakfast has become CCHT’s most anticipated annual event. Vice President of Fund Development & Communications Joanne Kosciolek says the generosity of CCHT donors provides critical funding to sustain the organization’s operations throughout the year. “We are all working together to plant seeds of hope for the future. Each person who gives a gift to CCHT joins us in that effort.”
The event was underwritten so all donations directly support CCHT operations. Premiere sponsors were Cuningham Group and Frerichs Construction Company. Parking was sponsored by Real Estate Equities and the video presentation was sponsored by Watson-Forsberg Co.
So far, gifts received from the event total more than $385,000.
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