In December, the Village of Hope, a family-based homeless shelter in Bemidji launched its “12 Days of Hope” social media campaign. The campaign was started in hopes of raising $25,000 to meet the financial gap the shelter faced due to not receiving a key foundation grant. With the loss of the grant, the shelter faced a possibility having to close it’s doors to the community.

The shelter kicked off the campaign by hosting an open house that allowed the community to tour the shelter as well as donate to support the campaign.

Although the shelter is a partner agency of the United Way of Bemidji Area and receives annual funds and services, the shelter needed the communities help to keep the doors open and provide services to families in the area.

“I decided to reach out to the United Way to share what had happened and see if they could help,” said Sandy Hennum, Executive Director of Village of Hope. “I can’t tell you how much their partnership means to our small organization and the families that we serve. Denae [Alamano] and her team, of course, were excited to help.”

With the generosity of the Bemidji community, the campaign exceeded Village of Hope’s $25,000 goal by raising $31,000.

“This campaign helped put us on the right track,” said Hennum, “and though we need to continue to research and look for sustainable strategies, United Way’s assistance gave us some much needed breathing room. United Way is making a difference for everyone in our community and I’m grateful to all who donate to them on an annual basis.”

By — Destiny Wiggins