LYDIA PLACE | OFFICIAL MONTHLY NEWSLETTER | JUNE 2020

Celebrating Pride Awareness and Advocacy Opportunities ACLU Washington The Washington ACLU works for equal rights and legal protections against discrimination and harassment for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in our state. Visit ACLU Washington's website here>>> Human Rights Campaign (HRC) he largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer Americans, the Human Rights Campaign represents a force of more than 3 million members and supporters nationwide — all committed to making HRC's vision a reality. Visit HRC's website here>>>

Black Lives Matter A letter from Lydia Place's Executive Director Like many of you, I’ve spent the days since the May 25th killing of George Floyd, watching, reading, and listening as protests against racism, white supremacy, police violence, and widespread injustice gain momentum throughout our country (and around the world). The days have been filled with beautiful and overwhelmingly peaceful acts of protest by thousands upon thousands of people in the streets, in unity and love, calling for action, for commitments to dismantling our deeply racist systems of policing, criminal justice, housing, employment, education and health – and replacing them with a just democracy... Read entire letter here>>>

Support Lydia Place while you shop! AmazonSmile in the Shopping App You can now support your favorite charity through the Amazon app on your iPhone and Android Phones. By turning on the AmazonSmile feature, Amazon will donate 0.5% of all eligible purchases to Lydia Place every time you shop- no additional cost to you. As of May 2020 AmazonSmile shoppers have generated $970.96 to Lydia Place families! Learn how to set up AmazonSmile here>>>

Join our Team We are looking for the next amazing humans to join our dynamic team and be a part of our vision of a compassionate community where everyone has a home and the opportunity to thrive. In order to continue this process and for everyone, we've established new hiring procedures to ensure prospective applicants and our staff can stay safe and healthy during the application process. To view current career opportunities with us, please visit our career and engagement opportunities page by clicking the button below. View Current Career Opportunities

Happy Independence Day! All our Lydia Place business and program offices will be closed this Friday, July 3rd in observance of Independence Day. We will resume normal business hours on Monday, July 6th at 9 am. We hope you have a happy and safe Fourth of July weekend and we look forward to seeing you on Monday!

UPCOMING EVENTS

Event: Handbags for Housing We're going Virtual! Thursday, September 17th While COVID-19 may keep us physically apart, our love of fashion and philanthropy will unite us on September 17th with a FREE live streaming fashion show featuring local businesses, online handbag auction, gift boxes to purchase, and raffle prizes to win!    For those that want to enjoy a VIP experience, for $150 a themed and curated gift box (value $300+) will be delivered to your door. VIPs also receive early access to the auction and entry into a VIP exclusive watch party.  All event proceeds benefit Lydia Place programs and services- which are needed now more than ever. Event registration opens July 15th, so get yourself registered and ready for an evening of fun, fashion, and philanthropy... because you are too SWEET!

Tickets go live July 15th!

COMMUNITY CARES

Community Cares celebrates individuals and businesses who coordinated a drive and/or donated 100% of proceeds in order to fulfill an immediate Lydia Place need.

Community Cares: The Table Gathers Craft Supplies for PSP Families Thank you to The Table for donating craft supplies to our Parent Support Program (PSP) so we can give colorful art kits to our families with children. These kits will provide countless hours of learning, creativity, and exploration to children and their families enrolled in our PSP program. To learn more about our Parent Support Program click  here.

Community Cares: Haggen and Safeway A HUGE thank you to Haggen and Safeway for each awarding $10K to Lydia Place as part of Albertsons Companies Foundation's Nourishing Neighbor Community Relief Fund! The Nourishing Neighbor Community Relief Fund was created to help families impacted by COVID-19 – School closures, job disruptions, and the health threat’s disproportionate impact on the elderly and low-income families in our community. Click here to learn more.

Community Cares: Nancy Leavitt with American Family Insurance We'd like to thank dedicated Lydia Place supporter and friend, Nancy Leavitt for hosting a donation drive on behalf of Lydia Place. Together, Nancy and the American Family Insurance team raised $500 dollars for Lydia Place programs and services. On behalf of Lydia Place thank you for our continued support and advocacy for families and individuals experiencing homelessness in our community!

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT

In celebration and thanks to the amazing acts of service of our volunteers, we would like to spend the next few months shining a light on some of the amazing humans supporting our programs, services, and fundraisers. These kind, caring, and selfless individuals commit their time, talents, and hearts to making our community a better place. Did you know the value of volunteer time in Washington state is $25.43 per hour? With almost 13,000 hours selflessly contributed by our volunteers in 2019, that equates to a value over $300k worth of support provided by Lydia Place and Wise Buys volunteers! Join us in celebrating this month's featured volunteer...

Lydia Place Volunteer: Elizabeth P.

Elizabeth has lived in Whatcom County for 11 years and began volunteering as a Lydia Place Children's Group volunteer in June of last year.

Q: How did you first get involved with Lydia Place?

I was interested in a volunteering opportunity and the kid's group had an opening. I love working with kids (I'm a preschool teacher) and it sounded really fun!

What are some of the opportunities you've volunteered for with LP?

I typically volunteer once a week to play games, do art projects and run around outside with the kids who live in Lydia Place housing while their moms have house meetings. We've especially enjoyed making play dough and slime!

Why do you choose to volunteer with LP?

I choose to volunteer with Lydia Place because I believe in the work that they do for the people in our community.

Is there anything you’d like to tell someone considering volunteering for the first time with Lydia Place?

Do it! Everyone is so inviting and there are so many different kinds of opportunities.

A note from Rita Thames, Lydia Place Community Engagement Coordinator

Even during this challenging time as we shelter at home, we can still feel the strength of our community around us as we continue to receive emails and phones calls asking, “How can we help?” While this year will undoubtedly look different and volunteerism will look different, we are adapting, and we are taking our cues from each other, and we are listening to the needs of those around us.  We encourage our community to help in the ways their physical and mental health allows by reaching out to neighbors, running errands for someone at risk, donating, volunteering online, supporting local businesses, and by offering and attending virtual meetings, classes, and fundraisers. Volunteering for Lydia Place is volunteering for our community as a whole and we only hope to continue to work with you to ensure that our community is one where every family has a home and an opportunity to thrive . A big thank you to the volunteers who participated in our Volunteer Appreciation Month survey. We look forward to sharing more stories with you in the following months. Warm regards, Rita Thames    Interested in volunteering or staying informed on how you can help? Join our volunteer e-newsletter list by sending a message to Rita at ritat@lydiaplace.org.

FEATURED PARTNERSHIPS

Featured Partnership: PSE a Powerful Partnership Want more predictable bills? Even out your PSE bill by enrolling in our Budget Payment Plan, which spreads your estimated winter heating costs over a 12-month period and helps you plan your energy costs into your household budget. Learn more at pse.com/payoptions

Immediate Need: New and Gently Used Handbags To support our Virtual Handbags for Housing event, we are seeking new mid to high-end handbags to feature in our live virtual handbag auction. If you have questions about donating an auction item to Lydia Place please contact Community Engagement Director, Tally Rabatin at tallyr@lydiaplace.org or by calling 360.671.7663 ext. 2001

Welcome Back Lydia Place Donation Partners! The following businesses are currently accepting donations, however, we strongly encourage you to contact each business for their current COVID-19 donation policies and procedures as they vary from business to business. Friendly Reminder : You must mention Lydia Place during your donation process at the following locations for us to receive credit for our families. Thank you!

Donate Furniture, Building Supplies, Appliances, and Household Items

Habitat for Humanity 1825 Cornwall Ave Bellingham, WA 98225 (360) 778-2036 www.hfhwhatcom.org

Donate Children's and Maternity Items

Flip Kids and Maternity Consignment 1512 Ellis Street Bellingham, WA 98225 (360) 671-0954 www.flipbellingham.com

Donate Vehicles (Working or not!)

Donate for Charity (866) 392-4483 Get a minimum $500 deduction (or higher, depending on what your car sells for) and Lydia Place receives the net proceeds.

GOOD NEWS

Whatcom Non-Profits Continue to Help Those in Need... COVID-19 has touched nearly every area of our lives, and the operations of local non-profits are no exception. Despite having to work around canceled fundraisers and new social distancing guidelines, many organizations-including ones supported by ... Read more www.whatcomtalk.com Stories About Equality that Gave Us Hope in 2019 At a time when hate crimes, inequality and white supremacy appear to be on the rise, these stories offered a little hope. A basketball star took a sabbatical to help free a man she believed was wrongly convicted. Read more www.nytimes.com 9-Year-Old and Friends Have Raised $100,000 for African... Some unlikely heroes in Minneapolis have raised $100,000 to support black-owned businesses and neighborhoods-and they're only 9-years-old. It all started one day when Kamryn Johnson and five of her friends were bored. So, in order to have a... Read more www.goodnewsnetwork.org

CONTRIBUTOR CIRCLE

Thank You Housing HEROES!

Matthew Barrow, David Beaumier, Drew Betz, Brianna Brumbaugh, Michael & Mary Brunt, Gabriel H. Byram, Karen & Richard Clark, Jennifer Cool, Susan Costanzo, Sue Ann Croft, Shannon Day, Michelle Dohm, Pamela E. Englett, Graham Essex, Steve Forbes, Rachel Garcia, Kaitlyn Gerard, Audrey E. Gravley, Alycia Hawkins, Roxanna Hayes, Lisa Heezen, Amy Johnson, Ann Lackland, Tom Laughlin, Sonja Lee, Erin Lynch, Megan McGinty, Dustin McKissen, Kathleen McQuaide, Heather Michel, Patti Morgan, Marilyn Moullen, Shenandoah Myrick, Nina Nancarrow, Tammie O'Dell, Deborah Parker, Kristen Parsons, Melanie Pysden, Misty Kaye Rainwater, Kari Severns, Karla Slusher, Jillene Snell, Delores Starcher, Pete Stelling, Sterling Rentals 1 LLC, Ryan Thramer, Jeffery Y. Tom, Peter Turner, Shawna Unger, Trent Vigor, Elizabeth Walukas

Become a Housing Hero with a monthly gift to Lydia Place

Attention Lydia Place Housing Heroes Monthly Contributors  You may update or change your credit card details via our Financial Manager, Judy Wayt at 360.671.7663 ext 2003 or by filling out a new online donation form with your new credit card information here.

Thank you the following collectives who gave a one-time gift this month!

Jacqueline Allison, American Family Insurance Dreams Fdtn, Judy M. Bell, Anne Calico, David & Mary Lynne Courtney, The Driver Foundation, Seth Garrido, Al Gill, Judith G. Johnson, Bill Mirand, Network for Good, Dawn Oehlerich, Susan Palmer, Satterberg Foundation, Kathy & Jerry Thramer, Peter R. Tryon, Elizabeth Wonnacott 

Join our circle by making a one-time gift today!

How the CARES Act Impacts Charitable Giving for 2020 New Deduction Available: Non-itemizer taxpayers can write off up to $300 ($600 for a married couple) in charitable cash contributions for 2020. This is available only to people who take the standard deduction, not for people who can itemize their deductions on Schedule A. It is an “above the line” deduction from income that will reduce a donor’s adjusted gross income (AGI), and thereby reduce taxable income. This information is not intended as legal or tax advice. For such advice, please consult an attorney or tax advisor. References to tax rates include federal taxes only and are subject to change. State law may further impact your individual results. 

Lydia Place is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and your donations are tax deductible to the extent allowable by the law.