May 2024

Honoring and Serving Those Who Have Served

May is Military Appreciation Month, allowing us to thank those who have served our country and reflect on the sacrifices they, along with their families, have made. It is a time designated to honor and recognize the contributions, sacrifices, and service of the members of the armed forces, past and present. We celebrate in May as many holidays that honor these brave men and women fall during this month, like Memorial Day, Military Spouse Appreciation Day, and Armed Forces Day.

The Baltimore Station works to serve those veterans who have fallen on hard times and are struggling with adversities like homelessness, addiction, and PTSD. We work with individuals to not only offer a safe place to live but to also provide the resources to turn their lives around. Life skills classes like health literacy, writing, and meditation are just a few of the courses clients can regularly attend to help build better life habits.

We were honored to attend Allegis’ Military Appreciation Breakfast this month. Allegis has supported our organization through both donations and volunteer service days. Volunteer Coordinator Lilly Frazier and Outreach Coordinator and Army Veteran James Hardy were invited to attend the breakfast and speak with Allegis employees about The Baltimore Station and how they can get involved. We are always grateful to speak with those looking to give back to our veteran population and we were honored to do so at a celebration for those who have served.

Superstar Supporters

The Baltimore Station relies on the generosity of our community, which cares deeply about our mission and believes in the work we do to turn lives around. Fundraisers held by our network of supporters ensure we are able to meet our programming needs for the year. Hosting a fundraiser requires a significant amount of time, hard work, and of course care. We appreciate all the fundraisers hosted for The Baltimore Station and wanted to shout out some superstar supporters!

Mary Beth’s Kitchen Fund: Beloved volunteer and supporter of The Baltimore Station, Mary Beth Green, spent much of her time giving back to others. 

Whether that was through a meal service here at The Station, running with clients through Back on My Feet, or just talking to someone who needed to feel heard, Mary Beth was there. When she tragically passed away, her friends and family came together to support each other through the mourning process and chose to do so in a way that offered service to others. Mary Beth’s Kitchen Fund was a Go Fund Me started to honor her memory, leading to over $20,000 in donations for The Baltimore Station and the renaming of our kitchen in her honor. A huge thank you to all those involved in helping to remember her kind spirit and open heart through giving back. 

Iron Order Poker Run: This month, we were thrilled to enjoy a fun day of stopping at various wineries as a part of The Iron Order Poker Run! The Iron Order is an international brotherhood of bikers that works within their local chapter and region, often hosting service projects that support the greater community. We were first introduced to members, Ann-Marie and John, at one of our other fundraisers, and as they learned more about what we do, they set out to help!

This year, the group coordinated with local wineries to not only host their bike riders but also allow them to share information about what they were doing and who it supported with other customers at each of the venues. These types of fundraisers are impactful in two ways: (1) funds raised and (2) introduction to our mission. We often see an increase of interest in our organization and requests to volunteer shortly after because people who have never heard of us now know about the work we are doing to support homeless veterans. A huge thank you to all of those who supported and organized the Iron Order Poker Run! 

These are just a couple of the amazing fundraisers recently hosted for The Baltimore Station. We cannot thank those enough for all their work supporting our mission to turn lives around. If you are interested in hosting a fundraiser for The Baltimore Station, please visit our third party fundraising page to learn more and submit an interest form.

Programming at The Baltimore Station

As an organization with a diverse and always-changing client base, it is important for us to offer different opportunities for the men in our program to learn new skills and develop positive habits. Let’s take a look at some of the programs we have going on right now:

Financial Literacy with M&T Bank

Clients find their way to our program with varying levels of financial knowledge. That is why we are so excited to host longtime supporters, M&T Bank, for monthly financial literacy classes! Each month M&T brings experts on varying financial topics to lead the men through a discussion of different money-based decisions. From setting up a savings account to fixing credit scores, M&T Bank has shared a wealth of knowledge with the men of The Baltimore Station. A special thank you to board member, Natalie Arteen, for setting up these classes for the year.

Art with Case Management

Our case managers, Stephanie Hebb and Tierra Henry, love to incorporate art projects into their scheduled group sessions with clients as therapeutic activities. This spring, we explored the process of intuitive collage-making. Clients looked through magazines, selected images and words that spoke to them and placed them to the side for use in the collage.

They were instructed to be selective with the images and words they chose to glue on the cardstock, taking time to be mindful in the selection process. When each collage was complete, the clients shared their interpretation with the group. Groups like these not only promote mindfulness and relaxation but also encourage openness and vulnerability through sharing with others.

Independent Projects

Sometimes you just need a space to work on your own passion project. Clients come to The Baltimore Station with all sorts of skills and talents that we can’t teach but certainly want to encourage continued practice and growth. We have an area in our building designated for personal projects during group time like mastering chess, creating beautiful works of art, and even website design. These are not necessarily skills we can lead weekly classes on, but we can certainly provide clients with the space and resources to do so themselves. 

Monthly Giving Program