July 2010
Dakota Woodlands is the only facility specifically for homeless families in our county.
Dakota Woodlands is awarded the 2009 Minnesota Nonprofit Excellence Award
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From Our Executive Director
Reyne Branchaud-Linsk
I'm happy to share some summer news with you.
We've been very busy and have met some wonderful families, those who live here and those who help us.
Thanks to some great partnerships, we're attending many summer fun events. Two of our kids are active in cheerleading and football practice at their schools. We have weekly park and recreation activities.
We were involved in the Eagan Funfest. Thanks to Lennar Homes, we raffled a beautiful playhouse, that they built and received funds towards our supportive services. We're busy planning our 5th annual Flying Home Event, which we'll tell you more about next month. We are also including a link to our Facebook page. Lastly, be sure to check out our "current needs" section below.
Thank you so much for supporting our work. Thank you for reading our Digest.
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Find us on Facebook
We have been busy modifying our Facebook page. We invite you to sign in and receive updates about what is going on at Dakota Woodlands. On our page, we will post upcoming activities, events, pictures, news about homelessness, poverty and ways to help us in our work. We welcome your feedback.
So, search for us by name or click the link below, sign in and say you "like" us to receive updates.
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Volunteer of the Month
Kat Southard
This month we have chosen Kat Southard, for our Volunteer of the Month. Kat is a student at St. Olaf in Northfield, MN majoring in Women’s Studies, Anthropology and Sociology. She has studied abroad in Turkey, Morocco and Egypt and has work experience at a farm, a winery, a museum and Habitat for Humanity. Her experiences were not those of a typical college student. So, when she came to us in May saying that she wanted to spend the summer learning and helping others, we knew she would be special!
So far this summer Kat has volunteered over 100 hours at Dakota Woodlands. We feel so lucky to have her here!
Four days a week, she leads our Summer Stretch Program working with young teens, who too are here to help us. She enjoys teaching these young volunteers, to help them understand about poverty and homelessness in their community and to motivate them to work early in the mornings.
She has assisted with many other aspects of our work including a special event and learning a bit about fundraising. But, she feels great about being a small part to assist the residents. She's moved by the families who turn their lives around and find a stable home.
Kat hopes to work for a non profit organization and complete her masters in Social Work or a related field. But first, she returns to St Olaf to finish her undergraduate work.
We know this impressive woman will be very successful and fulfill her dreams. Thank you Kat for all the time you've shared with us this summer.
To learn about volunteer opportunities, please contact Patty at (651) 456-9110 or volunteer@dakotawoodlands.org
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Thank you
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July 4th Playhouse Raffle at the Eagan Funfest
Lennar built the beautiful Playhouse. Eagan Fun Fest Royalty draw for the winner.
Dakota Woodlands is so grateful to Lennar Homes for building us the beautiful playhouse that was raffled at the Eagan's July 4th Funfest. Though the weather was very hot and the crowds were low, we appreciated the opportunity to tell people about our work and raise $3,400. The funds will go towards our supportive and educational services.
Lennar, a builder of new homes and our new neighbor, generously built and donated the playhouse for us to raffle. It was carpeted, had a loft, electricity... not just an ordinary playhouse (a sign of the homes they build).
The lucky winner was Meg Tilley. She immediately donated the playhouse to Easter Lutheran Church's day care center.
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Change of plans.....
The golf tournament scheduled for July 28th has been postponed to September 20th
Call us to register your foursome to golf at Valleywood in the fall. This event features a silent auction to benefit Dakota Woodlands.
Contact Abby to learn more.
(651) 456-9110 or email her at resource@dakotawoodlands.org
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Current Needs*Toddler Car Seats (regular car seats not boosters) to 40 pounds
* Comfortable overstuffed living room chair (in great shape) that matches tan leather sectional.
* Gift cards for gas stations, movie theatres, ice cream, fast food and other fun places for summer events for kids.
* If you are visiting or hosting a garage sale this summer, be on the look-out for cereal bowls, silverware, dinnerware and sets of pots and pans, kitchen towels or bathroom hand towels (in great shape).
* Funding for back to school shoes and clothing for our kids
* Do you have experience with special events. We are seeking 1-2 committee members to attend our meetings, every other Wednesday 6-8 p.m. We are well underway with planning, but need help with marketing, ticket sales and gathering a few more auction items. This is a fun opportunity to help with our Flying Home event.
* If you are attending a National Night Out Event next week, please consider collecting non-perishable food for Dakota Woodlands or change for our Back-to-School Fund.
Contact Abby to learn more about these needs.
(651) 456-9110 or email her at resource@dakotawoodlands.org
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3430 Wescott Woodlands, Eagan, MN 55123
Phone: 651-456-9110 www.dakotawoodlands.org.