Feeding Women and Children at The Gathering Place
Today, Lightshade team members and partners showed up for our monthly volunteer day at The Gathering Place to prepare and serve meals for some friends that identify as women and their children. Experiencing the incredible work being done by TGP first hand fills our hearts each month.
Aurora Warms the Night - Pizza in the Park
Lightshade team members gave away pizza in the park to help those experiencing homelessness and hunger in support of Aurora Warms the Night.
Aurora Warms the Night - National Count Day
Today is national count day where the country takes and official count of people experiencing homelessness. Lightshade had 75 pizzas delivered to feed 250 people experiencing homelessness in Aurora. Lightshade was recently introduced to an organization called Aurora Warms the Night. “Aurora Warms the Night (AWTN) shelters those experiencing homelessness in the winter when temperatures reach 20 degrees or colder. Year round services include meals, warm clothing, hygiene items, transportation to shelter, laundry vouchers, bus passes, partner agency referrals, and advocacy.” They are doing amazing work in Aurora. Lightshade was notified about count day today and was informed that they see a higher volume than normal of people who come to their daytime drop-in center. This places a significant strain on their resources and it is difficult for them to serve everyone. We were honored to be able to jump in where they needed us most to provide some meals.
Giving Back to Our Community at The Gathering Place
LIGHTSHADE BUDTENDERS DO MORE THAN JUST EDUCATE AND SERVE CANNABIS—THEY SERVE A MEAN LUNCH TOO!
At Lightshade we are committed to being an active and responsible community partner. Over the last few years, as Lightshade has grown, we’ve taken steps to work with organizations in each local community who share our values, goals, and vision for a better world.
One such organization is The Gathering Place.
From The Gathering Place:
“Founded in 1986, the Gathering Place is the only daytime drop-in center in metropolitan Denver that serves women, their children, and transgender individuals who are experiencing poverty, many of whom are also experiencing homelessness. While we refer to those we serve as ‘members’, no fees are ever charged for programs or services.”
Members of the Lightshade team recently spent a day volunteering at The Gathering Place, preparing and serving lunch for over 150 of their members. Like any good hosts, our team picked up the tab and did the dishes after food service!
Lightshade’s Marketing Assistant and Social Media Coordinator, Chelsi Munce, beautifully summarized the overwhelming sense of purpose and gratitude felt by the team, after spending time volunteering at TGP, saying…
“The Gathering Place opened my eyes to how much help women living in poverty need, and the lengths TGP goes to accommodate those needs. The entire Lightshade crew was so happy to help out and make lunch for everyone! After experiencing a full tour of The Gathering Place, the Lightshade team was overcome with emotion at the generosity provided by this center and how much our contribution matters to the improvement of multiple women and children’s lives.”
At Lightshade, it is our belief that doing good feels great. We take pride in our commitment to give back to the community and hope that our efforts, and the efforts of our team, inspire others to follow suit. We created our Corporate Cannabis Social Responsibility program for this purpose—as a method to organize and institutionalize the Lightshade commitment to giving back.
Jump below for a handful of photos and a video from our day of giving at The Gathering Place. If you are interested in learning more about The Gathering Place, or would like to get involved with this outstanding organization, please visit the site below.
2017 Adopt-a-Family Holiday Giving
Lightshade adopted 9 families from the Colorado Homeless Families organization. Each of the 8 stores and the Brooks family adopted a family who provided a wish list of items that they needed (like socks, coats, gloves, hats, work clothes, etc.) and also small items that would like to have for Christmas. The families range in size from 2-7 people and many of them are refugee families. Lightshade provided each store with wrapping supplies as well as a gift card for families with a budget of $125-150 per family member. The staff members from each store worked together to maximize their respective budgets and shop for the families to try to purchase as many items from their lists as possible. The staff then wrapped the gifts and delivered them to the CHF subsidized housing facility.
Senior Support Services Holiday Party
On Saturday, December 16th, at Senior Support Services’ annual holiday party, volunteers from Lightshade served food to senior citizens in need. We will also be providing 250 sets of hand and foot warmers, as well as under-garments, to each of their clients. Our goal was to help keep Denver’s less fortunate seniors warm and fed throughout this holiday season.
Lightshade Volunteers at The Gathering Place
Continuing our corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative, Lightshade recently volunteered for the meal sponsorship program at The Gathering Place in Denver. The Gathering Place offers support to women, their children and transgender individuals who are experiencing poverty or homelessness.
Lightshade staff members, including the owners, prepped and served lunch to The Gathering Place members on Monday, November 6. It was a great experience to help such an inspiring organization. A big thank you to The Gathering Place for having us!
Learn more about Lightshade’s ongoing CSR initiative.
