CELEBRATING 30 YEARS OF SOARING HEROES!
HONORING A LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT RECIPIENT AND EBBY AWARD WINNERS
A Lifetime Achievement Award is being presented to founder Susybelle Gosslee during the
Our Friends Place 30th anniversary Gala-Auction & Casino Night
on April 21, 2018. Over thirty years ago, during her many volunteer efforts with the Junior League of Dallas, Susybelle Gosslee recognized the lack of community services for girls and young women. To fill this void, she founded Our Friends Place (OFP) in 1985 and the organization served its first client in 1987. The Dallas Peace Center honored Susybelle with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015. She remains a very active volunteer with OFP and other organizations, such as the League of Women Voters of Dallas and Texas where she continues to work for a sustainable world for all children, adults, and the environment.
Our Friends Place is proud to announce the 14th Annual 2018 Ebby Award Winners: Kaleta Doolin, acclaimed artist and author, and the Junior League of Dallas (JLD).
Kaleta Doolin is an acclaimed artis
t and author, whose work includes sculpture, book arts, video and installation, as well as social practice in her efforts as a philanthropist and arts advocate. She has dedicated outstanding levels of support to a range of missions, empowering women and girls through exhibitions, education, public programs and cultural engagement. Kaleta also serves the community through many groups such as Zonta Club of Dallas, Dallas Women's Foundation, Women's Donor Network, Women Moving Millions, UT College of Fine Arts Advisory Council, Meadows Art Museum, Dallas Museum of Art, and Nasher Sculpture Center.
Founded in 1922, the Junior League of Dallas, Inc., trains members for effective participation in the community and is dedicated to the belief that volunteer service is an essential part of responsible citizenship. Their impact expands across the community with over $1M granted to support nonprofits, including 43 agencies, and projects following their mission to promote voluntarism, developing the potential of women and improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers.
Congratulations to Susybelle Gosslee, Kaleta Doolin and the Junior League of Dallas! OFP is thrilled to share these honors at our 30th Anniversary Gala-Auction & Casino Night on April 21st. Thanks for all you do to support girls and women in the community!
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30th ANNIVERSARY
2018 GALA -
AUCTION & CASINO NIGHT
JOIN CO-CHAIRS
SUZANNE JACO,
ANGELA MAVERICK, AND
LESLIE SIMMONS
WHEN:
Saturday, April 21, 2018
TIME:
6:30 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Auction l Casino l Dancing
Cocktails l Dinner l Open Bar
Cocktail Attire
Due to the generosity of sponsor support this event sold out! To learn more about supporting Our Friends Place 2018 30th Anniversary Gala Auction & Casino night through underwriting and auction donations email Caitlin Doepfner, call 214.520.6268 or visit the online event page.
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SOAR TO SUCCESS
Over the past year, Our Friends Place has furthered its mission by developing a new non-residential outreach program in the community at high schools, local colleges and universities plus after-school programs. The
SOAR to Success
program focuses on building knowledge of personal
S
trengths,
O
pportunities available to the young women, building
A
llies and resources, and developing
R
esiliency. This program is designed specifically for young women 15-24 years old. Over the last five months, the SOAR to Success program has been implemented with the Boys and Girls Club of Dallas, three Dallas ISD high schools, and one Dallas County Community College. Three more Dallas ISD high schools, one private high school, and one more DCCCD college expressed interest in bringing SOAR groups to their campuses in the fall. Beyond that, OFP staff continues to reach out to other agencies and shelters to work with their clients over the summer.
This skill-building program covers topics such as managing finances and budgeting, keeping and maintaining a job, obtaining affordable housing, learning about physical and mental health, seeking educational opportunities and study skills plus understanding their personal inherent strengths and abilities.
Any interest in learning more or know of a campus that could use this type of life skills group, please reach out to Libby Woolverton.
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WE WELCOME VOLUNTEERS
Visit Voly.org and search Our Friends Place under agencies to sign up online for the following activities!
- Join us at the office the week of April 9th anytime from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. daily to assemble and decorate beautiful silent auction baskets. Evening volunteers are welcome to come on Tuesday, April 10th until 9 p.m. This is a wonderful chance to share your many talents and design skills to create beautiful baskets benefiting Our Friends Place!
- All hands on deck April 21st at the Omni Dallas Hotel! Volunteer shifts available during the day for set-up from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. plus silent auction area sitters needed from 3 p.m. - 5 p.m. We can use evening volunteers from 5 p.m. - 11 p.m. for many areas including greeters, check-in/check-out, silent auction area support, casino chip sales, table runners, and handing out gift bags. Clean-up volunteers (the more we have, the faster this goes) help out from 11 p.m. - midnight.
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Toilet bowl cleaner
Dishwasher soap (pods)
Paper towels
Pots and pans
Kitchen & Bath size trash bags
Umbrellas
Notebooks
Adult scissors
Manual pencil sharpeners
Bed pillows
Twin sheets
Vibrant colored towel sets (2 each - bath, hand and washcloth)
Blow dryers
Motions Hair Care, Shea Moisture, and Dr. Miracle hair products
Hair straighteners
No show socks
Underwear (Med.-XXXL) sizes
Walmart gift cards
DART bus passes
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Ways to Get Involved
- Share your talents and knowledge on a committee
- Redecorate a bedroom or living space for young women
- Offer crucial support to our office staff
- Engage the community to gather school supplies, personal items and more
- Put your party planning skills to good use for our annual fundraiser
Our Friends Place helps young women, between the ages of 18 and 24, break the generational cycles of abuse, neglect, poverty and homelessness through empowering self-reliance and independence. OFP provides a supportive home and teaches the skills young women need to become self-reliant adults. OFP young women enroll in an educational or vocational program, hold a job and pay a portion of their earnings as rent and savings. The nonresidential SOAR to Success outreach curriculum teaches young women weekly life skills through high school, community college and local resource programs.
Our Friends Place Staff
Sue Thiers Hesseltine,
Executive Director
Melanie Jones Meijering,
Program Director
Caitlin Doepfner,
Development Manager
Libby Woolverton,
Outreach Manager
Janaye Easter,
Beazley House Site Manager
Nicole Price,
Pauline's Place Site Manager
Cindy Washlesky,
Program Specialist
Our Friends Place
Administrative Office
6500 Greenville Ave
Suite 620
Dallas TX 75206
214.520.6268
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