Thank you community for your overwhelming support! More than 300 donors raised over $64,000 last month, blowing past our $55,000 donation match goal.
Thank you to each and every donor who made an impact during this critical time. Your support ensures that we're able to continue our work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thank you to the young ladies of Girl Scout Troop 25682 for donating your cookies to Avenues! Cookie boxes will be divided between all of the youth in our programs.
Thank you to our fabulous supporters, Cindy Shevlin-Woodcock and Jane Windmeier, for purchasing bras for youth at Brooklyn Avenues. Your quick jump to action is appreciated!
Thank you to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints for your generous in-kind support. The church donated $900 worth of food, diapers and supplies for our programs.
Thank you to the Dunwoody Architecture Program for donating 100 masks to Avenues. Your gifts helps protect our youth and staff.
Dear Friends,
At Avenues, we partner with youth experiencing homelessness, the majority of whom are youth of color, to achieve their dreams. We do this by putting social justice is at the center of our work.
Social justice must be our focus as we mourn the loss of George Floyd, our fellow community member who lost his life to police violence. We are extremely saddened and our thoughts go out to the Floyd family and their friends, neighbors, and co-workers.
It was over three years ago, in response to the white nationalist violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, that Avenues shared a
social justice statement, on behalf of the staff and board. We stated our belief in a whole and inclusive community where all people can thrive. Sadly, this week's events have shown that we still have a long way to go to achieve this vision. Little has changed. Our community still grapples with oppression, racism, and violence.
Fortunately, Avenues remains a consistent source of support for youth in our community. We will stay true to our beliefs as we fulfill our mission. As in 2017, we ask that you continue to join us.
In solidarity,
Katherine Meerse
Executive Director
Congratulations, Class of 2020!
We're excited to share with you that two youth at Brooklyn Avenues are graduating high school in June. Both have already been accepted to college. One youth will be attending Howard University in Washington D.C. and the other youth will attend Augsburg University in Minneapolis.
Like all 2020 graduates, graduation will look differently due to COVID-19. We are planning a celebration with our partner, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, to celebrate our grads. Congratulation, class of 2020!
We'll See You at Building on Dreams, A Breakfast In Bed Event
There's still time to register for
Building on Dreams, our annual breakfast! Now a virtual event, you'll enjoy breakfast in bed as we explore and deep dive each of Avenues' programs. During the event, you'll get a behind the doors glimpse in to our critical work and the lives of the youth we support. Building on Dreams is being held on Zoom (
create your free account now) on June 8th from 8-9 a.m. All are welcome to attend!
Home is where the heart is, and this year, it’s also where Pride resides. We might not able to gather for Pride events around the Twin Cities, so Lavender Magazine has done the next best thing and created a series of Pride parties to celebrate Pride at 100 homes across the Twin Cities. They've event put together Pride@Home Party kits, complete with swag, Pride decorations and alcohol. Pride@Home parties benefit Avenues for Youth.
Right now you can get your kit for free thanks to an anonymous donor!
The first 50 folks to sign up for a kit using the promo codepride@home50 will have a free kit delivered to your home. You must live within the Twin Cities to receive a kit.
Local artist and business owner T Lee has handcrafted a special "Shelter Each Other" pendant to support folks experiencing homelessness during the pandemic. Her goal is to raise $50,000 for local service providers, including Avenues for Youth. You can purchase the limited edition pendant for $90 and $20 will be donated. The first six people to select Avenues as their referral during checkout will have 100% of their purchase donated to Avenues.
Learn more here.
