"TWICE THE GIFT"...

Even more than what I thought it was. I worked there tonight, it was enlightening, amazing, etc...

My original take on this non-profit boutique was that it was a bunch of non-profit artist groups that rely on fundraisers like art sales to fund their businesses. NOPE. Some of them are... like the Bloomington Art Center that I'm involved with... it's a beautiful art center that has a gallery & many many great classes, as well as two different theatrical theaters. They rely on memberships & fundraisers to keep them going & their involvement in this boutique will help fund scholarships for low income children to come take classes & workshops. BUT, there are many many other non-profit groups that are involved in this boutique who do such incredible work with people in so many dire situations, it was a pure pleasure to be there to offer my time to help.

Another volunteer there tonight was a man from "Camp Heartland". He works with children who are HIV/AIDS infected or affected by someone in their homes/lives who have HIV/AIDS. Josh. Neat guy. They had items there that were from artists who work w/ the children or even who just donate their art to help raise funds.

MANY MANY other groups... people who work w/ homeless or even ex-cons just need someone to reach out & give them a little boost to get them moving in the right direction. Gosh, there were so many groups, I can't even pull up names at this point. It was very cool.

One of the really awesome things that this boutique had was a wall of "ShareGifts" that are available exclusively at Twice the Gift. A ShareGift honors the recipient by supporting specific services or items needed by Twin Cities nonprofits, such as:

- Purchase a set of classroom books for elementary school students participating in an academic enrichment program.

- Provide one week of emergency shelter for a family of four fleeing domestic violence.

- Provide one day of spoken language instruction for a child with hearing loss.

Scholarships, funds for an individual to get his GED, the list goes on.

If you're in the Minneapolis area, please come by & check it out. Gaviidae Common II, now through January 1st. There are so many beautiful items for sale, many great books, too, & it's all for a good cause.