Huge thanks to ALL the folks who sent BWB Detroit items from our WishList.
We appreciate the patience of folks who had issues with it esp when items were supposed to have been added but were put on a different list.. thanks so much.
Items are still showing up and we wanted to say anytime items show up we will add them to the backpacks and get them on the streets!!
We have 8 people in the costume contest and another 25 or so in costume and about 60 others not in costume walk the parade with us following St Nick (aka Francis Grunow)
Huge thanks to all the folks who made it happen .. esp to Kristoff Krampenstein for trusting we could pull this off…
To you amazing DAMNED patrons and online fans who purchased raffle tickets for the Atelier Gothique fundraiser, THANK YOU!
With your generosity, we raised $1,162 for Burners without Borders Detroit! This will greatly help to purchase much needed basic-need supplies (canned goods, water, toiletries, underclothing, gloves, blankets, etc) to create hundreds of survival backpacks for those on our cold streets and not in the crowded homeless shelters. This is real-life grassroots community “giving” by volunteers in the true spirit of the word with no corporate management profiteering and your generosity makes this happen!
And 2019 marks the 11th year of this wonderful fundraiser, which has generated $10,947 since 2009 to help our friends in dire need in the winter. You are all truly making a difference in Detroit! (doxie bolded this!!)
Still want to help while having fun and making new friends? Attend the upcoming BWBD backpacking party on Sunday December 1st:
Thank you again and remember: Be the change you wish to see in Detroit!
P.S. Much heartfelt DAMNED gratitudes goes to Dekilah and the DAMNED Devil Girls (Kiya, Lynn, Rachel & Stacey) for their hard work in selling 247 raffle tickets during the event to make this a reality. Without you all, this can never happen each DAMNED year.
P.P.S. And tremendous gratitude goes to Atelier Gothique for their generous donation of their fine alternative jewelry to the raffle each year! Please check out their work at: ateliergothique.com/
Some time ago Jess Rowland reached out to me to see if BWB Detroit would be interested in going to MooseJaw to do an employee community event. They would provide supplies to put in backpacks that we give out to the homeless.. UHM YEAH!..
So I met with MAX.. an amazing guy at MooseJaw and we worked out the details. We picked a date, I got the backpacks, they got the supplies and we when Mike Zak and I showed up they had like 15 employees already sorting out all the supplies and striping them of excess trash and lining it all out on tables so we could fill them assembly style..so Detroit.
The staff was really friendly and so helpful and they stuffed like 250 backpacks and even helped us load them all into Mike’s truck and did it with no issue and in a tight time frame.
We are so thankful to EVERYONE at MOOSEJAW for this amazing gift and opportunity to meet new folks and make new friends!!
Please join us on Sunday October 6th, with clean, gently used clothes, shoes/boots, belts – ONLY menswear! Most of the homeless we serve are men. If you can come help us hang clothing..that is where we build community with the locals and our organization ! We start @9:45am. Clothes are ready by 10:45am.
Additional donations of bottled water and toiletries are appreciated! We need toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, razors, band aids, and wipes. Please and Thank you. We will of course offering haircuts due to the gentle souls who donate their time and skills.
Please note that STREET DOGS will be hosting a free clinic for homeless people with pets. This is a first time partnership with Street Dogs, the Michigan Humane Society, and the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association.
And we are happy to announce that we have finally connected and are collaborating with Street Medicine Detroit and they will be on site as well for a day of service. (https://www.facebook.com/StreetMedicineDetroit/)
To make a tax deductible donation to BWB Detroit please visit the page of our Fiscal Sponsor, BURN. http://boldurban.org/donate/ ..please indicated BWB DETROIT!
Sunday August 4th was the 5th BWB Detroit Free Store of the year and Ms Shannon who has been doing an amazing job of cutting hair and doing about 17 per event had a helper this day.
Here is what she wrote about it. ..and the images to follow will melt your heart.
💚💙💙💙💚💙💙💙💚💙💙💙💚 Bobby Jo our newest member to join our can… she is a FREAKING ROCKSTAR HAIR CUTTER!!
She is so absolutely thrilled she was finally able to make one of our events. Sunday she received a thank you card from one of the members of Mariners Inn( the gentleman with the mohawk she cut) it was a homemade card. You could tell he drew the picture and card with colored pencils. The tears she had opening and reading it, said it all.
I meet Gail through facebook when she hit me up to get some backpacks…She showed up at our storage unit on Sunday Dec 23 and took 52 supply filled backpacks and got them on the streets with the dedicated group of volunteers she has through Motor City Mitten Mission
Here is her post about that day:
She has a video on her post that is really powerful ..you have to go to her post to see it.
Gail Marlow tagged you and 94 others in a post: feeling blessed.Gail wrote: “I wanted to wait until after Christmas to post about how incredibly difficult this past week was with the loss of two souls entirely too young to be taken from us. 13 year old Torrin Breneman who passed away from cancer and 26 year old Kody Addison who passed away from addiction. I spent most of this week on the streets of metro Detroit passing out much needed “stuff” to some of our homeless living in the elements with not much to their name. we generally go out twice a week but this past week we were out every day…I guess this was my way of coping and making myself feel better…and honestly, it was bittersweet…we were able to help a lot of people. While seeing many of our regulars, I also made some new friends and shared many hugs with these strangers that were so appreciative of our efforts. With that said, I reflected on what our world has become, what our society values, how there is such a monumental difference in living only a matter of a few minutes away from neighbors…and how an illness can change and devastate so many people so unexpectedly. And as I was driving around downtown today I thought about how easy so many of the homeless are hidden or simply disregarded and walked by as if they don’t matter…we have to do a better job of watching out for one another…a better job of taking care of our environment and world…maybe not always put ourselves first…maybe allow ourselves to be inconvenienced once in a while or leave our comfort zone. Maybe think about the greater good for humanity??? I believe in hard work and putting your dues in…but sometimes people just need a hand up…as I’ve said many times, any of us are only a step away from being homeless regardless how stable you think you currently are. “Things” do happen. So I made this short video of a song by one of my favorite bands, Queen called “Is This The World We Created”! It’s not a happy or uplifting video…but rather reality on the current state of our communities. I hope this video will inspire you to want to make the world a better place…to pay it forward and spread a little love. I personally dedicated my efforts and outreach this week to Torrin and Kody…they both were always trying to do for others even when they couldn’t do for themselves! ️ The Motor City Mitten Mission distributed our plarn mats and pillows (we’re super low on them folks), meals prepared by Vicki Klobuchar-Boudro who does them In Loving Memory of Rachel Frevik-her daughter (Thanks, Panera Bread, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Cindy Trotta, Penny Webster, Shirley G. Marlow, Carrie Breneman Chmura, Jason Breneman, Robert A Nahra (Chef Bobby) and Encore Catering & Banquet Center for providing the food that went out this week), and fully stocked survival backpacks put together by so many of our wonderful volunteers with donations provided by so many of you as well as a ton provided by my new friend Danielle Doxie Kaltz and her crew. ️ Thanks for helping us help others! Be inspired! ️️ #motorcitymittenmission #mcmm #rosecitymission #plarnfarm #torrinstrong #gonebutnotforgottenkody #hugsfromthehomeless #helpushelpothers #beinspired”
