House Rules: Random Rings of Kindness
by Sonja Farster
Our friends and supporters in the community often ask us about our and the survivors’ needs. At times, answers to these questions can be complicated and somewhat out of the ordinary. A new disability ramp for the Monika’s House Shelter. A security system upgrade. Hauling away old furniture. You can imagine it makes everyone’s day when help comes unexpectedly and out of nowhere.
Recently, I received a call from Sandi Allaway at First Tech Community Credit Union. She explained that First Tech had committed to supporting domestic violence survivors. She told me her team was very enthusiastic about helping Domestic Violence Resource Center and the survivors we serve in any way they can. I emailed her a list of major projects that we had on our wish list. Within days, a 1-800-Got-Junk crew showed up at our business office to clear our offices of old furniture. We’ve now added a counseling room, cleared hallways of clutter, and began transforming the kitchen and break room into a staff lounge with the domestic violence resource library. They committed to hauling away all of the old furniture at Monika’s House and encouraged us to look to them for future needs and resources.
Amazingly, just a few days later, we received a call from American Security, who offered to upgrade our entire security system at the shelter. By the end of the week, our old outdated model will be current and state of the art, offering the residents and staff the safest environment possible. In addition, First Tech decided to pay for the monitoring service for an entire year to help us get established.
Everything started with a simple phone call. First Tech Community Credit Union reached out to us and connected us to other businesses in the community. We are now able to develop additional new lasting relationships that help us better support our mission. Thank you, Sandi and First Tech, for your support. We look forward to continuing to work with you and your amazing team!
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