“The first step in convening people meaningfully: committing to a bold, sharp purpose,” ~ Priya Parker in Gathering with Purpose
Dear friends,
Last week, I talked about all the logistical ways your donations support our mission. Our generous approach to labor and coffee and goods is fueled by your generosity. And those pieces of our business then in turn enable us to do MORE THAN GOOD COFFEE!
During this season of Ramadan, Lent, and Passover, I’m thinking of one way your giving powers our mission of welcome. Hosting.
We host people at Refuge in several ways, as customers, as guests, and as community.
We create every iteration of welcome at Refuge with the “bold, sharp purpose” referenced by Priya Parker. And that purpose, as Steph Solvig often says, “…is for people to be known and seen.” Or as Hung Truong says, our events are one way we help people who are often “invisible to become visible.”
This is our goal in the events that we “own,” like our race, our markets, etc. But it can also refer to events we partner with others to host. Hosting is our favorite!
In 2017, we partnered with other organizations and individuals to host an Iftar meal at Refuge. As you know, Refuge is not a faith-based organization, but we are all about welcome, and our events reflect that. Our Muslim neighbors come from countries that are “travel banned” and are often maligned in the press or on social media. In 2017, we felt the need to put a party behind our words of welcome.
Your Cortado Club and one-time gifts give us the flexibility to plan for welcome when we need to pivot, as in our Shop Welcome event, planned to address the loss of services our refugee neighbors faced last fall. You help us do the work of welcome in ways that we couldn’t otherwise. We don’t spend money we don’t have on these things (hence the volunteer asks and Amazon Wish Lists!), but we do love it when we can add some “oomph” to an event that is engineered to make our most unwelcomed neighbors feel welcomed!
We’re hosting Iftar this year, again partnering with others and again hoping the message of WELCOME rings out loud and clear. I think you’ll see from one of our past Iftar photos below, that together we make the mission happen!
Much thanks,
Kitti
P.S. – ICYMI – If you join the Cortado Club at $25/month or more, you get a free Refuge sweatshirt!! (Same deal if you increase your regular donation by $25!)
