2020 has been full of unexpected disruption—a global pandemic and social justice uprisings have rocked the world and impacted our daily lives in countless ways.
Our community rallied together despite their own struggles and responded with true resilience. When we asked for help you responded generously with gifts, donations, flexibility, and your time as volunteers.
You ensured that instead of shutting down and scaling back we would adapt and grow to meet the challenges.
Now, we want to share with you how that impacted the everyday lives of our community:
March:
Vital Living >
April:
Food Shelves >
May:
Menlo Park Academy Graduation >
July:
Camp Bovey Respite Weekends >
August:
NE Sculpture, Night at the Nic, and You!
100+
people tune in from across the country to watch our Vital Fitness videos!
One of our first programs to transition to virtual content was our Vital Living program.
Vital Living provides intergenerational caregiving support – and since older adults and people with dementia are particularly vulnerable to COVID, we knew as soon as the virus was confirmed in Minneapolis that we could no longer hold programs in person.
Carmel, our Vital Living Program Coordinator, moved her Vital Fitness exercise class online to Facebook Live. Her class helps build strength, flexibility, and muscle coordination in this gentle exercise class for all abilities. It’s perfect for anyone who sits for long hours!
Every week on Tuesday morning over 100 people tune in from across the country!
During the summer, Vital Living also published more videos and blog content to support mental health, like this guided meditation from Liz, our Group Respite Activities Lead.
And throughout September and October, Vital Living is holding a virtual speaker series on healthcare and mental health with the theme Caring for You, Caring for Others.
You can sign up now to learn about topics like how to cope with loss, mindfulness, health care directives, and hospice care.
Although we can’t support caregivers and health in the same ways we did in person, with this virtual programming we can reach a wider audience through social media and our email newsletter - continuing to support community resiliency!
3900+
people were served at our food shelves in April-June 2020!
When the pandemic hit Minnesota, we had to quickly change the way our food shelves worked.
The “grocery store” model that our Mobile Food Shelf, Senior Food Shelf, and Glendale Food Shelf employed wasn’t safe anymore because it required people to gather in large groups and to be in close contact.
But at the same time, the pandemic meant it was harder than ever for our participants to access grocery stores.
The need for food support was growing right as it became more difficult than ever to fulfill the need.
Between April and June, we served over 3900 people at our food shelves, 20+% more than in 2019.
We serve many older adults and people with health conditions who are particularly vulnerable to COVID.
Those same participants are the people who normally volunteer to run the Mobile Food Shelves. COVID meant that they could no longer safely run the food shelves in their buildings.
We transitioned to a model of pre-packed boxes, but that meant packing hundreds of boxes weekly, which our small team of staff couldn’t handle on their own.
On top of the safety issues created by the pandemic, after the racial justice uprisings in Minneapolis created new food deserts, we also added several new buildings to our Mobile Food Shelf.
We put out an open call for volunteers and despite the dangers of in-person volunteering posed by the pandemic, new members of the community stepped up in droves to help.
Over the past 7 months, over 75 of you offered up your time to join us for twice weekly packing events.
You’ve made it possible to continue to provide food support during the crises that have hit our city this year!
4
seniors graduated in May despite the challenges of 2020 - the same number graduated in January. COVID and civil unrest don’t keep the Phoenix down!
At Menlo Park Academy, we teach about 70 students per year, keeping classes small to help provide social and emotional education and personal counseling from staff.
Menlo is designed for students who haven’t found a fit at other public schools, and who find a home in our supportive educational environment.
Graduation ceremonies at Menlo normally pack our gymnasium—families and community members come out to share their pride in the achievement of our students.
So we knew that not holding a ceremony wasn’t an option. Our May graduates worked incredibly hard for their diplomas, and they deserved their moment in the spotlight.
Because of COVID restrictions, that kind of celebration became impossible in 2020.
Instead, our staff responded by putting together a ceremony that honored each of the graduates without putting them or their families in danger.
Each of the four graduates arrived separately to be celebrated and receive their diplomas with all the usual rituals. They were greeted by their teachers while families and staff watched from cars.
One of our graduates, Washington, said he’s determined to bring the positive energy of his last high school experience forward:
“I really appreciate all the staff that help me get my diploma‼️ Thank you guys! I’ll really miss you! Now it’s my time to give back to the community.”
Our May graduates proved their resiliency by finishing their high school experience strong despite all the challenges of schooling during a pandemic.
Congratulations!
95
people were able to join us for respite weekends at Camp Bovey this summer!
This summer we were not able to run our traditional summer Camp Bovey program due to the pandemic.
But the murder of George Floyd and the uprising that followed in May - pain layered with the stress of COVID quarantine - weighed on families.
This summer, more than ever, families needed an opportunity to rest, relax and experience joy together.
We realized that we had a unique asset to offer our community: Camp Bovey.
We decided to open camp up for respite to East Side families and community organizers.
This summer, we offered six weekends of free rentals. Each weekend was hosted by East Side Neighborhood Services staff or former staff who served as an ambassador for the space. With a COVID safety plan in place, we served about 95 people!
Our visitors were diverse – spanning six decades, three languages, and many cultures. Many were families of children who have attended camp in the past. They were excited to show their parents and siblings everything they love about being there.
“para mi llegar ahí es regresar a mi vida de niña, es poder darles a mis hijos la oportunidad de amar la naturaleza, es purificar nuestros pulmones y nuestro espíritu, es alimentar el alma.”
“For me, to go there is to return to my life as a child, it’s being able to give my children the opportunity to love nature, is to purify our lungs and our spirit, is to feed the soul.”
We are so grateful to those who gave funds, bought lifejackets, hosted guests, took time to volunteer to support keeping up our facilities, and gave their talent to our Camp Bovey task force to provide healing and restorative outdoor experiences this summer.
“Life has been filled with so much uncertainty and negativity lately. [Camp] really uplifted mine and my children’s spirits - it was such a beautiful, calm, relaxing and fun time. They kept very busy at camp and spend so much time out enjoying nature. This isn’t something that would have been possible for our family at this time if it wasn’t for your generosity. Thank you.”
300+
people donated to our programs for the first time!
Despite all the financial challenges our community has faced, over 600 of you have given so far this year. More than 300 of you were new donors, people who were inspired to support community healing in a pandemic.
So many people from our resilient community have come together to respond to a crisis. Thank you.
We knew that as an organization in NE Minneapolis, sustaining and creating partnerships with other local businesses and organizations has also been important.
Earlier this year, Northeast Sculpture had a vision of a NE Minneapolis sculpture garden.
Now, we have two new sculptures on our grounds – Uplift by Ben Jannsens and the iconic Lizard by Mary Johnson.
During Night at the Nic, we wanted to give back to the restaurants who have supported our event for almost 25 years.
We created an event where participants could order food and drink packages directly from local restaurants and businesses for a safe dinner at home – while still engaging with community via cocktail demos, a video program, and online trivia!
This fall, we’re also in the first stages of construction of a heated outdoor meeting space that will allow our programs to meet safely in person as we move in and out of the winter months.
We wanted to thank our community by highlighting the impact of your support. Your support means we can continue to support you.
Together as a community, we will help support each other.
