At Love Columbia, we connect the time, skills and resources of neighbors where they are most needed. This month you will see how neighbors are sharing essential items and expertise to promote the flourishing of others.

The Love Seat: Repurposing and Restoring Dignity

The Love Seat takes our unneeded items and matches them with the needs of our neighbors. Everything donated is either given to an individual or family in need or sold at an affordable price to fund The Love Seat services. Behind the scenes of our warm, friendly resale store where people love to shop, there is a thriving furniture bank, moving assistance service and a shopping voucher program.

So far in 2025, The Love Seat has provided:

• 62 households with furniture
• 50 households with housewares and other essentials
• 71 households with store shopping vouchers
• 22 households with moving assistance

Meet Two Volunteers Who Make It Happen

Lugine Hein is a retired cardiac rehab nurse who has been volunteering at The Love Seat since 2021. She was drawn to volunteer after many years of shopping at the resale store. Lugine said, “The Love Seat is unique among resale stores. Everyone who walks in is welcomed warmly and made to feel at home. Staff and volunteers ask your name and how you are doing. They try to get to know you and take an interest in you.” Lugine volunteers one afternoon per week in the housewares department where she sorts and displays items to be sold or given to families in need. She said, “I work with a great team and we enjoy the camaraderie and service opportunity. We have fun conversations about sorting and pricing and really enjoy ourselves.”

Lugine and her husband Ron also volunteer as VITA volunteers at Love Columbia and enjoy working one-on-one with people to prepare their taxes. Lugine has found the same type of team support and energy among the tax preparers and feels this is one of the most meaningful aspects of her volunteer experience.

Victor Duncan is retired from a career in business administration and has volunteered at The Love Seat since 2016. He has done everything from fixing clocks to arranging flowers, a skill he learned through an elective college class many years ago. Victor shared, “I never expected to use what I learned in that class, but it has come in handy as we often get donated silk flowers and various containers you can combine to create arrangements people love to buy.” Victor spends most of his volunteer time sorting, cleaning and displaying items in the housewares department where he, like Lugine, finds the teamwork and friendships meaningful. Victor also loves the recycling aspect of The Love Seat where cast offs are put to good use.

The Back Stories of Moving Assistance

As our post-pandemic housing crisis has worsened, moving assistance has become more critical and often an urgent, time sensitive matter. Without our help, many families who are already experiencing the trauma of being priced out of their homes will also lose everything they own. If an eviction is involved, we may have only a few days to save their essential items.

This is where Love Force One has stepped in to partner with The Love Seat to provide a highly time sensitive response. So far, Love Force One has mobilized volunteers to accomplish eight missions.

Love Force One volunteer, David said, “Love Force One is such a wonderful and important initiative for Columbia. It was really incredible to see it in action, up-close, and to be able to play a small part in it.”

Experts Share

Calling All Dentists

Nathalie Tungesvik, long-time Love Columbia supporter and our newest board member, says she is now mostly retired from her dental career, but we see no signs of her slowing down. This month she is helping Love Columbia launch an effort to coordinate local dentists to provide occasional, pro bono services to address urgent needs of our clients. Nathalie will triage and refer clients to the generous dentists who join our network.

“As a longtime supporter of Love Columbia, I’ve seen firsthand the power of neighbors helping neighbors," Nathalie said. "This new dental outreach effort is an exciting step toward meeting an often-overlooked need with compassion and dignity. I’m honored to help connect generous dental professionals with those in urgent need of care—it’s a beautiful reflection of our community’s heart.”

How Do You ADU? Workshop

Adrienne Stolwyk local architect and Nick Timberlake local builder, presented ADU history, design and process to a packed room of Columbia neighbors. Attendees ranged from families considering housing options for their college aged children or relatives in need of long term care, to affordable housing advocates exploring solutions in which they could participate.

For more information about future workshops or joining the Affordable Housing Coalition contact traciev@lovecolumbia.org.

New Fraud Prevention Class: August 29

Heather Clark, local fraud expert, is sharing her expertise! Learn how to identify, prevent, and investigate fraud. Topics: fraud types, red flags, internal controls, and common fraud schemes to minimize the risk of financial exploitation and identity theft.

Pre-Homeownership Class: August 21

Begin the process of becoming ready to buy a home: credit building, home loan qualification and more. Our next one hour class is Thursday, August 21, from 5:30-6:30 PM at Love Columbia (1209 E Walnut St). Follow up individual housing counseling is available to participants who attend the class. Call 573-256-7662 option 5 or email homebuyer@lovecolumbia.org to register today! 

Eyes on the Community

Three organizations: Rehabilitation Services for the Blind, KidSight, and Missouri Lions Eye Mission Foundation joined together for the first time to provide eye screenings and care at the Love Columbia Center.

The Joy of Matching Unneeded Items with Needs

Sharon, (above center), loves to give back through volunteering with KidSight and donating to The Love Seat. "I donate to The Love Seat because I like the cause. When I found out they help families who have had some kind of disaster, and they can fully outfit them to get on their feet with the basics they need to get going again. I just like the mission.”

Over 30 attendees were grateful to receive recycled eye glasses.

With You In The Weeds - Transforming Your Neighborhood with Love

Local counselor Lynn Roush interviewed Jane Williams and Caroline Roush about Love Columbia. Check out their podcast for counseling resources sure to enrich your personal and family lives.

Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Podcasts

Getting Great Deals & Doing A Great Deal

The Love Seat store hours are:

• Monday - Wednesday 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
• Thursday - Friday 10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
• Saturday - 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Follow The Love Seat Facebook page to find out about our upcoming, Crazy Mad Love Blowout sales!

Join the Love Columbia team by volunteering or making a financial contribution.