We were contacted by a wonderful woman named Leslie, the director of a small nonprofit called Bridges to Independence located at 7958 SE Foster Rd. They assist persons with developmental disabilities to stay independent in the community and out of institutions. At this time they are in the process of remodeling their space which was a wreck when we they leased it. It used to be a pawn shop and was dirty, dated, and worn out. For the past two months they have been working continuously on remodeling the space including painting, floors, construction, and more. Almost all of the labor thus far has been volunteer via their friends and family, but the people are wearing out and they still have a ways to go to realize their dream of a clean, beautiful, functional community space.
They are converting the front of their space into a coffee shop/gallery called Turtle Town Cafe where they will train their clients to get food service jobs. They also plan to use their space as a community center/ gathering spot for the whole community including donating the use of their space every Sunday to a group that will offer food to the hungry. They plan to host 12 step meetings and allow local bands, open mics, etc to use their space. Right now they really need to make our bathroom more accessible and to clean out and organize their storage space. This includes installing a new toilet and sink and grab bars. They have the materials, they just need it installed and the old ones removed. They would like to paint and install new flooring in the bathroom.
Last but not least they need volunteers to work directly with clients at the coffee shop and at recreation events year round. This is great experience for folks and can sometimes lead to paid employment. Their agency can only stay open through volunteers!
You can reach Leslie at: 503 740 1503 or 971 570 8680 or email leslie@bridgestoindependence.org
Thank you!
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