This #GivingTuesday Springhouse is giving!

We value and are grateful for other organizations, both local and global, that support life and vitality. That’s why, in our 2021-2022 budget, we set aside $1,000 to give away. For #GivingTuesday, the board, learner leaders and each staff person chose an organization to donate to. Below you will find the person or group name along with a short description of the organization and why it was selected.

The Springhouse Board

We would like to donate $100 to Floyd PFLAG. Kim O’Donnell shared a personal reflection on why the Board chose to donate to Floyd PFLAG: “I grew up in Floyd County as a lesbian in the early to mid ’70’s. My experience as an adolescent growing up in a conservative place was challenging, to say the least.  I had no support at all.   When I returned home in 2007 after living in a very supportive community for many years, I was surprised to find so many passionate LGBTQ allies here in Floyd,  some of whom were parents to LGBTQ young people.  At their suggestion and initiation, we formed a local PFLAG chapter.  Over the years since, the local PFLAG leadership has created more support and visibility for LGBTQ people in Floyd than I ever thought was possible, including marching through Floyd during gay pride month.  I know the organization has supported a number of parents and teens through difficult transitions and has made it clear to many that there is a place of welcome for them if they need it.  It’s hard to overestimate the impact this has had in a small, mostly conservative town in the south.” Learn more about Floyd PFLAG at https://www.facebook.com/groups/floydpflag/

Learner Leaders

We would like to donate $100 to Blue Mountain School (BMS). “Blue Mountain School, practices a Contemplative Progressive model. They help students develop their awareness, concentration, and insight. BMS strives to use processes that illuminate the innate wisdom of human beings and cultivate a growing sense of peace and wonderment in everyday life.”  We love and appreciate the way BMS serves the young people in the Floyd community. Learn more about Blue Mountain School at https://www.bluemountainschool.net/.

H

I’d like to donate $100 to Floyd PFLAG. PFLAG is the first and largest organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) people, their parents and families, and allies. Our local chapter here in Floyd continues to educate, support, and advocate for the LGBTQ+ community of Floyd and surrounding counties in Virginia despite harmful narratives, misinformation, and harassment. Learn more about Floyd PFLAG at https://www.facebook.com/groups/floydpflag/

Jenny 

I would like to give $100 to The Christiansburg Institute- Beginning in 2018, Christiansburg Institute and the Montgomery Museum of Art & History staff, board members, and local community members began to organize and take meaningful action in order to preserve and increase awareness about Montgomery County’s deeply rich African American history and culture. The group set out to do this work by determining a set of shared values that would guide the project; truth-telling, honesty, and reconciliation, specifically around challenging and contested histories where generational harm and racial trauma is ongoing and narratives are competing. To learn more about this organization visit https://www.christiansburginstitute.com/thethewholestory

Sarah 

I am choosing Spikenard Farm Honeybee Sanctuary to donate the $100. Located in Floyd, VA, Spikenard’s mission is to promote sustainable and biodynamic beekeeping through education, experience-based research, and a honeybee sanctuary, and to help restore the health and vitality of the honeybee worldwide. I’m inspired by the dedication and reverence the Spikenard staff show the honeybees and the land they steward. Not only are they creating a beautiful sanctuary in Floyd, they are educating people around the world about the importance of pollinators. The world needs more vital, committed, and innovative organizations like Spikenard! Learn more about Spikenard Farm at https://spikenardfarm.org/

Piper 

I’m choosing to donate $100 to Golden Girls Global. The Golden Girl Leaders work directly with thousands of girls on the ground worldwide creating safer spaces to access, explore and connect with their creativity and community. I’m inspired by their focus on the arts as a sustainable and regenerative way to heal our relationships to each other and the planet. You can learn more about their projects and leaders at https://www.goldengirlsglobal.org/.  

Chris

I would like to donate to The Paperhand Puppet Intervention! Paperhand Puppet Intervention is based in Saxapahaw NC. Their mission is to use diverse styles of puppetry and artistic expression to create works that inspire, promote social change and are deeply rewarding for all involved.  Inspired by love for the earth and its creatures (including humans), Paperhand Puppet Intervention is using puppetry, performance and creativity to undermine and eradicate greed, hate and fear and promote justice, equality and peace. Learn more about the Paperhand Puppet Intervention at http://paperhand.org/who/ 

Ian 

I would like to donate $100 to Plenty! Plenty! is a local Food Bank and Farm in Floyd County, VA. Plenty! provides free meals and food to take home for our community that are collected from stores, donations, and food grown on site. One thing I love about Plenty! is that they do more than just provide food. Their farm is a place for people to see where their food comes from and interact with it on a deeper level. It is also a community hub, and a place that encourages healthy eating and food sovereignty. Learn more about Plenty! at https://plentylocal.org/

Carolyn

I am choosing to donate $100 to the Sovereign Bodies Institute (SBI). “SBI is a home for generating new knowledge and understandings of how Indigenous nations and communities are impacted by gender and sexual violence, and how they may continue to work towards healing and freedom from such violence. In the spirit of building such freedom, SBI is strongly committed to upholding the sovereignty of all bodies Indigenous peoples hold sacred–our physical bodies, nations, land, and water–and does not accept grants from colonial governments or extractive industries.” I am inspired by SBI’s commitment to freedom and protecting what is sacred, honoring the sovereignty of all bodies, including the land, water, and humans. Learn more about the Sovereign Bodies Institute at https://www.sovereign-bodies.org/about

Roxanne 

I’m choosing to donate $100 to an anonymous organization. 

Leave a Reply