Lawrence, thank you. The results are in from our summer concert fundraiser!
It was hot. Sit-in-the-shade-and-reconsider-your-choices hot. And you came anyway. You brought lawn chairs and kids and cash, and you stayed.
When we counted it up, you helped us raise $20,000 toward our $25,000 Match Challenge. Twenty thousand dollars, on one of the hottest evenings of the summer, at a free event in a park.
Now let’s talk about the people who made it happen.
Claudia. Our summer intern led the planning and organizing of this whole event. Bands, vendors, auction items, all of it. Interns are supposed to be learning the ropes. Claudia grabbed them and ran. Thank you, Claudia!
Our bands. Five acts gave us their Sunday and their talent for free: Vintage Basow, Ryan Manuel, Small Uncle, Mudskipper, and Mosaic closing us out. You kept people in the park, and people in the park is how this works. Go follow them. Go see their shows.
Our auction and raffle donors. These Lawrence businesses and neighbors filled our tables with over $2,700 in donated goods. Please support the businesses that support HRC: The Hive Salon, Chick-fil-A, LFK Press, Glassmith.KS, Ruff House Print Shop, Heretic Coffee Co., Fields & Ivy Brewery, Wonder Fair, The Wavering Line, Eileen’s Colossal Cookies, Morning Fog, Wild Man Vintage, Goldmakers Fine Jewelry, Red Hare Leather, The Merc Co-op, Rosalia Avila at BB Salon, Nick Wolf at Westlake ACE Hardware, Bo Killough, Mass St. Plant Co., Cellar Door, The Roost, Moonflower Artistry & Crafts, Sheila Wolf, and Pat and Lisa Miller. And to our anonymous donors, the ones who gave and asked for no name on the sheet: we see you. Thank you.
Our vendors and makers. Artist Brent Franzen, East Lawrence Neighborhood Association, Magnolia & Honey, Andante Home, and Planet Comicon. You turned a fundraiser into a block party.
Food and fun. Trina from The Jax Project led our grill team and stood over hot coals in that heat for hours so people could eat. That is a special kind of commitment. Hy-Vee heavily discounted the hot dogs that went on that grill, the kind of quiet behind-the-scenes help that makes the margins work. Brad Lanpher made Detroit-style pizza on site, plus cookies. Dana’s Giant Bubbles were the single most photographed thing in the park. And the yard games crew.
Our volunteers. The National Charity League crew showed up nine strong and worked. Dana. And every person who hauled a table, ran a game, watched a booth, or stayed late to break it all down. Nothing happens without you.
Our team. Renee on the auction and raffle tables all night. Jenny Lee running food. Victoria, our Director of Operations, everywhere at once and holding the whole day together. Our HRC staff and board, who do this work all year, not just on the fun days. And my daughters, Selah and Talita, who spent the entire day doing whatever anybody needed. They never once complained. I’m proud of them.
Here’s what it’s all for. The Homeless Resource Center is free and open to anyone in Douglas County experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity. Hot showers. Laundry. A meal. A safe mailing address. A phone, a computer, a haircut. Connections to 20+ partner organizations for housing, healthcare, and jobs. Between all our programs, we’re now open 7 days a week, and we’ve served over 700 unique people so far this year.
Last Sunday night, this town showed up for every one of them.
Come for the music, stay for the mission. See you next year!