Testimonials

 

 

 

Simply…. Born Passion is a blessing to FMSC! 

“IMPACTFUL…..and our partnership with Born Passion continues to thrive. Hunter and Jeff’s desire to serve is infectious and inspires both the FMSC staff and volunteers! Their strong administrative and graceful relational skills makes working with them effortless and fun!”

Serving Together,

Lisa Feese Burns, Development Advisor

A number of months ago, I received a Facebook message from Born Passion.  I didn't know who or what their organization was, so I did a little research online. They were a new, young group in the Twin Cities looking to connect their peers - those elusive Millenials - with nonprofits whose missions one could get passionate about and apparently Avenues for Homeless Youth was high on their list. 

I met with Born Passion's founders, Hunter Stanek and Jeff Geier, at a coffee shop downtown. I was immediately struck by their focus, positivity and energy. They laid out their vision for Born Passion, the beginning of a movement gathering momentum and its future as a catalyst for change in our community. "How can Born Passion help Avenues?" they asked. And that was how the conversation between us began. Simple, direct and with a servant's heart. 

 Throughout the spring and early summer, I would receive updates from Hunter or Jeff every couple weeks. "We want to hold a fundraiser event for Avenues." "We've decided a date!" "We've booked the Freehouse!" "We've locked down live music!" "A dollar from every beer will go to Avenues." "Registration keeps rising!"

 At last, August 16 - the night of the outdoor event - rolled around. The sky was dark with rain clouds.  As supporters arrived, the bands - Jourdan Myers and [Other band names] - tuned up and sound-checked. I had never been to the Freehouse before and I was impressed at what a cool venue Hunter and Jeff were able to partner with for their first event ever.  As the clouds began to threatened rain, Hunter and Jeff made the call to move the show inside. But this did little to dampen the spirits of those Born Passion had gathered to support Avenues. Speeches were made, music was played and an admirable amount of money was raised to support the youth at Avenues.  

 I look forward to seeing what Born Passion does next. Its great meeting a crew of young individuals seeking to better the Twin Cities - and perhaps the entire US a little bit farther down the road. These folks have the verve and, yes, the passion to make great changes for good as they continue to match community members with organization such as Avenues and other necessary resources.    

-Ross Nervig, Marketing and Communication Manager

 

Dear Born Passion Volunteers,

The harvest dust has settled and we believe our event was quite a success! The environment was lovely, the food was five star and most importantly, we made many new friends and supporter’s— all while hitting our fundraising goal. Much of this success was due to the generous contribution of everyone's time and hard work at our our inaugural "Our Harvest Table". We couldn't have done it without you Born Passion!

With Gratitude,

Cathy Maes, Executive Director