News and Updates-August 2021

CHUM Remembers Beloved Volunteers

Delpha LeAnn House 1953-2021 LeAnn House led and coordinated the baking team at First United Methodist Church, making hundreds of pies for the CHUM Rhubarb Festival for many years. You can read the full obituary here. Sara Ojard 1975 -2021 We mourn with the family of Sara Ojard and remember her as a caring volunteer and beautiful artist. She contributed her many talents to CHUM as the long-time leader of the Design Team for the CHUM Rhubarb Festival, creating eye-catching signs and graphics and making sure everything looked great. You can read the full obituary here.

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Annual Backpack Distribution It is back-to-school time, so CHUM is working hard to help prepare families who struggle with the costs of getting ready for school. CHUM is once again very excited to be able to provide up to 1400 area children, grades K-12, with the tools they need to be successful at school. Thanks to everyone who makes this amazing event possible year after year, and to our generous partners; the City of Duluth, the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center, and Duluth ISD709. Please be prepared to show identification for each student requesting a backpack—IDs include: • School ID • Social Security card • Medical Card • Birth Certificate For the flyer please click here!

In Case You Missed It Our Executive Director, John Cole, was front and center at the First United Methodist Church's Summer Parking Lot Concert at Coppertop on Thursday, July 29. This was an outdoor concert featuring the Randy Lee Jazz Combo, with Paul Sapyta’s Room at the Table Food Truck providing a special menu all afternoon. There were activities for kids of all ages. It was a great event. The August 18 (rain-date August 25) brings us Acoustic Ingeborg, better known at FUMC and Hillside UMC as Emma Rustan, folk songwriter. Don’t miss these opportunities to hear fabulous music, enjoy tasty food provided by Room at the Table, appreciate the beautiful view of Lake Superior, and enjoy each other’s company.

CHUM is HIRING Do you have a passion for helping others? Do want to give back to our community? Do you want to be a part of the change that you see in the world? If so, join us at CHUM. We are currently hiring for the following positions: Early Childhood Program Coordinator  Steve O'Neil Apartments Family Coach CHUM Chaplain For more information or to apply, click here. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. Persons of Color or those who have experienced homelessness are encouraged to apply.

MCH Conference 2021 October 7th & 8th The Minnesota Coalition for the Homeless (MCH) Annual Conference brings together over 600 individuals from across the region working to ensure every Minnesotan has a stable, affordable place to call home. The two-day convening includes about 50 workshops, networking, advocacy, and continuing education opportunities. A broad range of community members attend the event, including individuals who are currently or formerly homeless, direct service providers, policy advocates, tribal members, funders, administrators, federal, state, and county officials, and MCH member organizations. MCH Conference

CHUM Summer Auction Starting August 22 and ending August 28, CHUM is hosting an online silent auction. The auction is open to all Northland residents.  The auction features gift cards and certificates from local restaurants and businesses, products from local artisans, and fun items for friends and family. We ask all auction winners to collect their prizes from the CHUM offices located at 102 W. 2nd Street, Duluth, MN 55802 to avoid shipping costs. All proceeds go to CHUM’s program of providing basic supplies to the isolated, homeless, and hungry. You can learn more about CHUM and our mission at www.chumduluth.org

FUMC Rummage Sale You are invited to join us for the Annual First United Methodist Church Rummage Sale. Mark your calendars for Friday, August 13th from 3–6 PM and Saturday, August 14 from 8 AM–2 PM. There are a lot of items to browse through and buy at great prices. If you have any questions about the sale, feel free to contact the church office by email (info@fumcduluth.com) or by phone (218-727-5021) Rummage Sale

Music for a Good Cause The inaugural Concert for Recovery, an event supporting substance abuse treatment and mental health services, will be held on September 25 on Harbor Drive outside the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center, on the east side of the building, facing the Duluth Harbor and Aerial Lift Bridge. Tickets cost $15 and are available at duluthbethel.org and eventbrite.com. All funds raised beyond expenses will support substance abuse treatment and mental health services. Gates open at 3 PM, and the bands will play from 4 to 9 PM. Concert for Recovery

The Great Twin Ports Get Together Join us on August 15th from 12 PM - 6 PM for great music, good food, and family fun at Wade Stadium. Admission is free, but we ask that you donate a non-perishable food item for the CHUM Foodshelf. The Great Twin Ports Get Together

If you have an upcoming event please contact Molly Lyons to have it placed in the CHUM Newsletter.

Community Supported Agriculture Update This past winter, the CHUM Food Shelf began exploring a partnership with our local Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Guild for summer 2021, to obtain 40 CSA summer shares from 8 area farmers for distribution through our Food Shelf and clients living at the Steve O’Neil Apartments. The average cost of a CSA share is $542; 40 shares will provide us with many more pounds of fresh organic produce grown sustainably by local farmers. Food shares are delivered to us and we make the fruits and vegetables available to clients right away.   The benefit for our clients is that they will have direct access to high-quality, fresh, nutritious food that has been harvested within days or hours of delivery. This produce retains more nutritional value and stays fresher, longer. Our clients have been introduced to new varieties of produce that they may never have tried because of lack of availability or it was too expensive to purchase. Another benefit is that we are supporting local farmers by creating a sustainable system for local food production and consumption and a healthy lifestyle. We are almost halfway through the season and seeing some amazing things, and clients are loving it!

CHUM YUMS! The CHUM Food Shelf recently introduced a recipe series called CHUM Yums. The recipe cards and videos help people receiving CHUM food boxes discover ways to utilize the items inside.   CHUM Yums was started in collaboration with a group from the Leadership Duluth Program. This initiative is part of The Duluth Chamber and helps potential leaders understand Duluth’s culture and history and current issues facing the region. Each participant is asked to do a service project based on a need they learn about during the program. The Leadership Duluth volunteers included Mary Tennis from The Depot, Jeff Ruprecht of Creative Arcade, Jonathon Reznick of Mid Coast Catering, Eric Rhame of DSGW Architecture, and Kristy Pollard of Optum Health. Each member was passionate about food insecurity in the region and settled on this project after talking to members of the Food Shelf. Local chefs volunteered time and recipes to the cause including Tina and Jason Wussow of Wussow’s Concert Cafe, and Kevin Ilenda from Restaurant 301, and are featured in accompanying recipe videos.   “We discovered that many times people don’t want to waste food so they will return items to CHUM that they don’t know how to use. We created CHUM Yums as a way to provide people with a library of recipes that helped them use every item in their box and learn practical cooking knowledge,” explains 2020-21 Leadership Duluth alum, and CHUM Yums group member Kristy Pollard.   “I love them, and want this to continue,” says Scott Van Daele, CHUM’s Director of Distributive Services about CHUM Yums. “The entire project turned out great and we’re excited to see the positive impact they bring.”   Anyone interested in cooking can access the videos at the CHUM Duluth Official page here.

MONEY for FOOD!  Due to an almost 30% increase in costs for durable goods, the increased cost of fuel, and the intense climate changes we are currently experiencing, the cost for us to provide all of the food and supplies for our drive-thru service at two locations, and delivery service across Duluth, has put a sizable burden on our ability to handle the load. We have all noticed these small increases in our own lives, but imagine covering the cost of a simple can of soup for every visitor to the CHUM Food Shelf… almost $900 a month, and that is with our Second Harvest discounts! We need your help to keep the supplies coming through our doors and out to our friends and neighbors in need throughout the community.    No one in the Twin Ports should have to worry about whether they can put healthy food on the table for themselves or their children. Your support helps us carry that worry many families face and gives them strength to better their lives and our community. Donate now at www.chumduluth.org

Lit Night was a Success In July we had a great community gathering for our monthly Literature Night. The school-age kids under Caitlin and Emma’s guidance enjoyed a month of “Readers Theater” and performed the book “Where the Wild Things Are” by Maurice Sendak. This was a hit for the children involved and many people joined to watch the presentation.  Officer Michael Jambor stopped by to watch and he spent time getting better acquainted with the families at the Steve O’Neil Apartments. CHUM board members from the Steve O’Neil advisory committee provided a delicious meal for all who came to our July Lit Night. It was a fun-filled evening!

Pizza, Pizza, Pizza Every week since the beginning of the summer, Paige and her team at Pizza Luce have donated pizzas for our parenting group participating in the Circle of Security training. THANK YOU PIZZA LUCE for helping make this parenting group such a meaningful experience!

Thank you for the Generous Donation We would like to say a huge thank you to Erik McCort who purchased cleats for the kids at Steve O’Neil who attended the C.J Ham Football Camp. This was a generous donation that was made with such a kind heart. We would also like to thank Steve Holappa at Play It Again Sports for helping to get the cleats to the kids. The kids who attended had a great time learning how to play on the gridiron from local Duluthian turned Viking, C.J. Ham. Erik and Steve pictured here with Amy Switzer, Services Site Director at Steve O'Neil Apartments.

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Bring It Home, MN! Why support rent subsidies for 500,000 Minnesotans? There is a $4:1 social return on investment in eviction prevention. (April 2018, Common Bond)   It costs a lot to be poor. The process of eviction is legally and personally costly, including when income is lost because the renter is spending time out of work dealing with eviction. This puts a household that is already financially fragile deeper in the hole and may result in job loss altogether. When individuals and families don’t have stable housing, it’s even more challenging to manage everything else – like maintaining a healthy diet and managing medications, keeping up with classes or homework, managing anxiety, and maintaining good performance at work or school. Complications associated with eviction lead to a decrease in overall health and a healthy lifestyle, increased hospital visits, increased use of shelters, and increased use of other taxpayer-funded resources. If this perfect storm is halted by investment in preventing eviction, a return of $4:1 is the estimated value in social benefits. Evictions have long-term effects on families. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, individuals age 25 and older make $9,620 less per year without a high school diploma than those who graduate. A study by the Minnesota Office of Higher Education revealed that kids who experience homelessness have a more difficult time in high school, leading to increased dropout rates and decreased enrollment in higher education. Kids who deal with homelessness and housing instability are more likely to experience the same as adults. Only one in four Minnesota households who qualify for subsidies now actually get help because insufficient funds are budgeted for these services. Bring it Home MN seeks to change this so that half-million Minnesotans can reduce the burden of their rent from 50-70% of their monthly budget down to no more than 30% of their income. This investment can break the cycle of homelessness and decrease dependency on social services over a lifetime. It’s an investment in our people and our future.

Join the Advocacy Team CHUM's work is grounded in the injunction to respond to those in need while loosening the bonds of injustice and oppression. Consider joining our Advocacy Team to learn more about issues, propose policy solutions, and how we can influence change as we work together for a more just and compassionate community. Contact Rev. Patricia Benson pbenson@chumduluth.org to explore opportunities for individuals, congregational justice ministry teams, or organizations.

CHUM Planned Giving Do You Have a Beneficiary Backup Plan? Have you taken advantage of your right to execute a valid will that describes your choices for the disposition of your probate assets? If so, congratulations for being one of the minority of Americans who have done so. If you have not, your first order of business should be to do so as soon as possible. A second important task is to make sure you have a beneficiary backup plan. READ MORE

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Contact Information:  Administration  -  218-720-6521 CHUM Center -  218-726-0153   Food Shelf  -  218-727-2391

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