Members devoted to their community
Make a difference
Our member volunteers manage a variety of programs to benefit underserved populations in the St. Louis metropolitan region. Each program has a unique delivery model and focus, from new school uniforms to shoes and socks, and from personal care items for crisis shelter clients to teddy bears for comfort.
A highly resourceful group of 27 Assistance League members annually helps more than 1,100 St. Louisans deal with everything from food insecurity to homelessness. And with COVID 19 case numbers spiking in the St. Louis area, the need for Assistance League’s Outreach Program has grown—with the case load tripling in recent weeks.
“Our program aims to address the total spectrum---to respond to the needs of the entire family or of individuals when they need help most,” said Outreach Program Chair Terri Spink. The members of Assistance League’s Outreach Program Committee regularly reach out to social workers in St. Louis city and county to offer help when their clients must flee their homes because of abuse or when their families experience food insecurity, eviction or are burned out.
Multiple agencies also turn to the Outreach Program for a range of needs. The program supplies everything from kits full of personal care items and nutritional treats to motivate students at Lift for Life gym’s after-school programs to sleep sacks, formula, bottles and diapers for the babies of young mothers.
In 2020, Outreach also gave clothing to Mission STL, which helps families work through the cycle of poverty by offering education, skills and basic assistance. Outreach sent food to the St. Louis Public Schools’ Students in Transition Program (pictured above) helping more than 3,000 students who live in cars and temporary housing. The program also provided hygiene kits to the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis for their Early Childhood (Head Start) Center. In addition, Outreach supplied bags of essential hygiene products to more than 50 homeless people in Ferguson, MO, working with A Red Circle—a North County-based non-profit focused on economic development.
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The only thing virtual about Imagine!, Assistance League of St. Louis' largest annual fundraiser on November 7, was that for the first time, it was live-streamed and held virtually. The reality is that an entire year of preparation and hundreds of member volunteer hours made it happen. The anticipation, excitement and enthusiasm were real. An incredibly talented, tireless team made this virtual fundraising event a reality. Every detail was selflessly executed by Assistance League members, always goal-oriented, intent on success.
Co-Chairs Mary Price and Maureen Swingle (pictured above) hosted and presented the lively, fast-paced one-hour event with wit and charm, creating their own reality show.
GiveSmart handled cell phone bidding for all fundraising activities, which included the Live and Silent Auctions, Ring the Bell, Wine Pull and Buy It Now. Bidding was made available five days before Imagine! The Live Auction was preview only. "Cell phone but no evening wear required" was a new, relaxed and welcome change this year.
Professionally filmed by TSV Sound and Vision, video guest speakers Dr. Art McCoy, Superintendent of Jennings School District and Jeffrey Rhone, Director of the Office of Family & Community Engagement for the St. Louis Public Schools, provided personal testimonials. KSDK Ch. 5's Rene Knott returned to MC "Ring The Bell."
Imagine! exceeding all expectations, "A Gift of Love" raised $208,800. This incredible gift received by Assistance League of St. Louis will become "A Gift of Love" given back through our programs to the St. Louis community.
Meet the People Who Help Us
