2023 is around the corner, so like you, we’re spending some time reflecting on the year that has passed. In our next two articles, we want to share some of the major milestones that we’ve reached in 2022. We begin today with a list of some of our accomplishments. We are proud of the things we’ve been able to achieve this year, and thankful for your support along the way!
For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:13)
1. 2nd Anniversary in Our Permanent Location
In the early days, our homeless shelter rotated across various local churches each night (a fun fact you can read about in this blog post). In August 2020, we moved into a permanent location at the Sacred Heart Church on 8th Street in Michigan City. This year we celebrated our second anniversary in our permanent location, which is a huge accomplishment that has greatly impacted our work. Check out our beautiful 2nd anniversary cake!
Our Director, Harrison Holtkamp, adds, “Wow, how time flies. I still am in awe of what we have accomplished. Seeing where we came from and how fast everything happened…this is the power of our community coming together for the good of its people.”
2. Director Harrison Holtkamp Graduates from Leadership LaPorte County
“I had heard so many good things about Leadership LaPorte County,” says Harrison Holtkamp. “But words cannot describe how powerful this program is. It changed my life.”
The program lasted 9 months, and you can learn more about it here. And check out Harrison all dressed up to receive his completion award!
3. Third Place in La Porte County Gives
In September, we took part in a quick 30-hour fundraiser organized by Unity Foundation, called La Porte County Gives. 52 organizations participated, and for 30 hours, the community could donate to the nonprofits of their choosing. When the event ended, we were surprised and honored to learn that we were among the top three fundraisers!
“This win came out of left field, but it shows how the community feels about us and what we do for those less fortunate,” says Harrison Holtkamp. “Besides third place (out of 52 organizations) we had the 4th most individual donations. Thank you!”
4. NARCAN Training
At Interfaith Community PADS, we want our staff and volunteers to be prepared for any situation they may face. That’s why we consider the NARCAN training we received in April to be an important accomplishment. Our Director adds, “If we never have to use this training, it is still worth it. I am so proud to see the turnout for this training, so proud that our staff/volunteers see the value in this.”
Thank you to Jena Maldonado from 320 Recovery for providing this training to us.
5. Givebacks at SwingBelly’s and Hacienda
We also consider the fundraiser ‘givebacks’ we held this year to be an accomplishment for our nonprofit. We are just getting our feet wet with events like these, and we are happy to report that both of our givebacks were well-attended.
At a giveback event, you purchase from the participating restaurant on a particular day, then a percentage of your check goes to our nonprofit. We look forward to having more givebacks in 2023!
Check out pictures from the SwingBelly’s event here, and the Hacienda event here.
6. Our Work
The work we do everyday at the shelter is our biggest accomplishment of 2022. Here are our numbers so far for 10 months of the year – January through October 2022.
- New Guests: 153
- Bed Nights: 6936
- Meals: 13872
- Housed: 68
- Volunteer Hours:1645.7
These numbers represent how needed our services are. Nearly 7,000 bednights and 14,000 meals in just 10 months of 2022! We do our best each and every day for the guests who come into our shelter. But it’s more than just temporary solutions that we provide. 68 guests who stayed at our shelter have moved into their own permanent housing and are on the road to self-sufficiency. We work with many partner organizations to make this possible.
Our Director, Harrison Holtkamp, adds, “In 2022 we started logging and tracking our volunteer hours. The numbers are eye opening considering that most volunteers donate their time in a two hour window.”
Thank You for Your Help!
We truly couldn’t have reached these accomplishments without the help of our entire community – businesses, organizations, volunteers, and kind donors like you. Thank you for your help in making 2022 an amazing year for our nonprofit foundation!
We actually accomplished so much this year that we will be writing a Part 2 of this article to tell you about the specific projects we worked on. Stay tuned!
