Welcome to our first CARES Newsletter. We’ll use this spot to bring you important news, events, and features about our Campus of Hope. This month we are especially excited to update you on the progress of our newly renovated Food Pantry and the donors who made it possible. Stop by CARES to see for yourself.
And please, share our newsletter with friends. If you do not wish to receive future newsletters, please use the link at the bottom of this newsletter to unsubscribe.
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CARES Serving over 500 Families Each Month Through Community Collaboration and Your Generous Donations! |
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We couldn’t do this without the generous donation of time, service, equipment and money,” says Todd Lipa, CARES Executive Director. This month’s newsletter is a grateful thank you to some of the businesses that make our beautiful facility, the CARES Food Pantry possible. We’ll be sharing the story of CARES and our developing Campus of Hope in future newsletters. Watch and come grow with us. |
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Lowe’s $100,000 Hometown Improvement Grant and a $50,000 Remodeling Grant from Gannett Foundation paid for the remodel of our Pantry facility, providing for new flooring, lights, shelving, offices and allowed us to hire Roof Management of Farmington Hills who provided discounted services to repair our aging roof.
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This beautiful, modern CARES Food Pantry makes shopping easy, convenient and a pleasure for our guests. Thanks to Howard Rush of NexTech Interiors, and his talented designer Julie Osler, we were able to maximize our space and install high-quality fixtures at the lowest cost. In fact NexTech obtained deep discounts from every supplier and Howard and Julie donated all of their time to make the CARES environment a welcoming space. Howard is enthusiastic about CARES: “I just fell in love with what this organization does, what it stands for. And I wanted to be a part of that!”
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How CARES Feeds Over 500 Families Per Month? |
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That’s where YOU come in. CARES monthly food costs are rising just like every family’s. Our average monthly food cost is $7500. We budget just like you do. That means, we sometimes have to lower the food distribution for each guest. And so we are cutting corners too.
Unfortunately, requests for help are growing every month and that means some sleepless nights as we try to stretch our dollars further. We are purchasing food at the best rates, but more and more people are in need.
PLEASE, Can you make a generous donation today? HELP FEED the growing number of families in our communities who need a little extra help.
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Nissan Donation Helps Expand Food Pantry Services |
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Thanks to a generous donation from Nissan North America Inc, this brand new NV200 will make it possible to reach homebound residents with food deliveries. Volunteers from Nissan proudly delivered the vehicle in April. |
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Big Changes Planned at CARES Campus |
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Neighbors are wondering what’s going on at the CARES Campus. Those huge boulders, heavy equipment digging pathways and gorgeous new landscaping has people asking “What’s going on?” “Where is the money coming from for these upgrades?” The answer is pretty amazing!
All of the beautiful changes are the result of our long-range plan to evolve the old St. Alexander grounds into CARES Campus of Hope, with offices for services like WIC, Alcoholics Anonymous, Veterans Affairs, and a Navigator to help community residents find the services they need. One of the most unique ideas is the development of a Reflection Garden with multiple spaces for contemplation in beautiful surroundings. The idea for the Garden started in 2018 with young people from Youth United, an interfaith service leadership experience that is held every summer at CARES for middle and high schoolers.
According to participants Amatullah Poonawalla and Zahabiyah Rasheed, YU participants were asked by Landscape Architect Annette Cimaroli of Your Landscape Design, what changes they thought would make CARES more welcoming. They had two primary suggestions:
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“Make the Food Pantry more like a grocery store where people could choose what they need for themselves and make the grounds nicer. Have a reflection garden where people can come to walk and sit in a parklike setting –a spiritual place, but one that doesn’t have any religious symbols so everyone feels welcome.”
And that is just what began to happen. The Food Pantry is operating successfully and the outside improvements have begun.
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Laura Hedgecock, Co-Leader of Youth United and Amatullah Poonawalla, a student leader, in the gazebo. They are excited to see some of the YU ideas coming to fruition. |
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One of the most exciting parts about the changes is that everything is the result of generous donations from business leaders like J.R. Parsons of Pamar Enterprises, who donated all of the land preparation and concrete/asphalt work for the Reflection Garden as well as the refurbishment of the campus baseball fields.
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Ms. Cimaroli took the youths’ suggestions for the Reflection Garden and followed up with Todd Lipa and Karen Linnell, Youth United Founder, to further develop the idea. Although Cimaroli was initially paid from a grant, like everyone involved with the Reflection Garden, she too became a volunteer committed to the idea of creating this special space. She says the young people wanted the garden to reflect the qualities of “peace, love, compassion, grace, dignity and hope.” “That is what the design tries to embody. This project has to happen. The site deserves to be.”
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Laura Hedgecock and students view finished peace poles which they designed
and painted in 2019. Featuring the qualities they wanted to showcase, the peace poles
will have a prominent place in the Reflection Garden.
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Wasmer Bros Landscaping has already donated $45,000 worth of materials and labor because of their belief in the work CARES is doing in the community.
“We are a community business,” says Tim Wasmer, “We believe it’s important to give back to the community that has been good to us. What CARES does aligns with our values. It’s been fun to be a part of the vision for the Reflection Garden and then to see it becoming a reality. I can’t wait to see the finished garden. We’ll be there to support it all the way.”
Todd Lipa says “What these businesses have done, what they’ve given us, is an example of how much investment this community has made in CARES. In return, we are a part of making this community a better place to live. It’s especially important to know that the entire cost for the Reflection Garden and landscaping will come from donations dedicated to this purpose. We can’t use any money from food donations for this project.”
CARES serves Farmington, Farmington Hills, Redford, Redford Twp., Northville, Novi, Livonia, Southfield and West Bloomfield.
Opportunities to Support the Campus of Hope Reflection Garden are numerous. When it’s finished it will be a beautiful community park open to all. Please visit our website and make your donation today.
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Volunteer Spotlight: Bill Heaton |
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We can’t say it enough…Volunteers like Bill Heaton, a 5 year veteran with CARES, have been a stalwart. Every week he organizes and fills all the snack packs for the Food Pantry guests. Those goodies are a treat for families whose budgets are already stretched to the max. |
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When you ask Bill why he is such a dedicated volunteer, his humble response is “It’s just my personality. I believe if you have money or time you have to help take care of those who need it more than you.”
A retiree from Ford Motor Company, Bill has been married to his lovely wife Helene for 53 years. They share 3 adult children, 5 grandchildren, and 3 great grandchildren!
Bill says he “…loves working at CARES because the other volunteers are so friendly and so much good comes from CARES.”
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CARES Selected to Be Parade Grand Marshall |
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CARES in Farmington Hills has been chosen to be the "Grand Marshall" in the 2022 Founders Festival Parade!
Please join us to walk in the parade. Families are welcome!
DATE: July 16th @ 9:00 am. We will meet near Grand River and Mooney Streets.
DUTIES: Wear a CARES shirt, hand out candy and discount coupons for the CARES Market
Click here to sign up to walk in the parade with us.
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Brats, Burgers, and Buns are always on offer for summer picnic fare in the CARES Market!
Visit the Market Monday-thru Friday between 10 and 4 pm and mention this article to receive 10% off your purchase! The CARES Market is open to anyone and 100% of the profits go to support the food pantry. A win for everyone!
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Stop by and visit with store manager Sharon Brandal to find out about all the goodies available and how your purchases can help the food pantry even more. |
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Dining for Dollars at Sidecar Slider Bar |
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Enjoy a delicious meal at Sidecar Slider Bar at 32720 Grand River in downtown Farmington between 11:00 am and 10:00 pm on Tuesday, August 9 and 20% of your purchase will be donated to CARES in Farmington Hills.
Download and bring this flyer with you to Sidecar.
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Feeding Over 500 Families A Month and Growing
- Your Help is Urgently Needed -
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As always, we are in need of donations to support our work in the Food Pantry. New calls come in every day from families who are becoming less food secure. Please help in whatever way you can, through our fundraising activities, through your church, community group, social groups, and individually. |
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Save the Dates!
Important upcoming events to benefit CARES
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Visit our Facebook page for information on all of our upcoming events
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