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Benesch's Concentrated Giving Program with St.
Stephens Community House.
THE
PROGRAM:
The
THE PARTNER:
St. Stephens
Community House is a settlement house that provides vital community
services to the
Serving all members of
the community regardless of religious affiliation, St. Stephens nurtures
its children with day care and education; strengthens the family with
social services and parenting classes; cares for community senior citizens
with critical services and respect; and provides its neighbors with the
basic needs of food, housing assistance, clothing and health care.
Priority is given to clients from the immediate service area, yet no one
in need is ever turned away.
St. Stephens multigenerational
programming and wide range of services strive to address the physical,
social and emotional needs of its neighbors. This holistic approach
reinforces opportunities for relationships to develop, within and across
different programs, among people from different parts of the community,
and over time. St. Stephens has helped keep the fabric of Greater Linden
strong by establishing a norm that values reciprocity: people are expected
to give as well as to receive, to give back to their community by creating
the same opportunities for others that they themselves have benefited
from.
THE
PROPOSAL:
PHASE I: CREATE 2
LIBRARIES
We met with St. Stephens to assess their needs and presented them with a proposal on how best we may be able to serve them based on the resources we have available. With a great deal of educational needs, we proposed a library in two phases: Children's Library for 0-Third Grade and an elderly library with a section for their teenage population.
Benesch will decorate the space for the library, purchase the shelving and contribute the books. This requires us to come together as a firm, reach out to our clients, our families, our community to share in our charitable effort. A book drive will be an on-going effort to establish the library and continue to expand the books.
We also plan on volunteering our time at the library, Benesch employees will visit the library to read stories to the children, spend time visiting with the elderly, cataloging books, decorating the library. We will also train St. Stephens volunteers and teachers on how to catalog the books and maintain the library. We hope other organizations will help build on our efforts in the future.
PHASE II: DESIGN AND
PLANT A GARDEN
In addition to the libraries, Benesch will also dedicate a Garden to the residents of St. Stephens. The garden will benefit St. Stephens in several ways: to grow their own herbs and vegetables, to teach the residents how to care for a garden, to provide an activity for the elderly and the children to share together and for its aesthetic beauty.
Benesch employees will collect seeds to plant in the garden and will volunteer their time to plant the garden and on-going maintenance of the garden.
THE
BENEFITS:
We hope to enrich the experience of those who visit St. Stephens by providing them with a library that will last inspire them to read. Children can be encouraged to read at an early age, providing them with a solid foundation to learn. The elderly will have a special area to sit and read about topics that are of special interest to them, providing them an opportunity to keep their minds active. The libraries will be an inviting place for the residents to visit and spend time when they are at St. Stephens.
Benesch will benefit by connecting with the people at St. Stephens and knowing their efforts will make a difference for many years to residents of St. Stephens. It also provides an opportunity to reach out and invite our family and friends to participate with us and come together as a team to serve others.
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