A Season of Giving

January 16, 2018

We at BSM are so fortunate to step into the New Year completely astounded by the show of generosity from all of our many supporters!

The holiday season is a special time of the year and the Tuesday after Thanksgiving has become popularly known as Giving Tuesday-a day that encourages and supports charitable giving. We kicked off our Giving Tuesday at BSM by partnering with local businesses and running an online campaign to help sponsor a Breaking Bread meal.

Several businesses chose to collaborate with us to support our guests and spread the word about the great work we are doing. Whole Foods Market Center City and South Street donated $1 to BSM for every coffee and tea beverage sold in their cafés. The Franklin Fountain donated 100% of the proceeds from hot fudge sundae sales from November 20^th to November 28^th. Metropolitan Bakery in Rittenhouse, Rival Bros. Coffee and Greenstreet Coffee all ran tip jar campaigns to collect donations at their shops. Good Karma Café’s Wilma Theater location and Bus Stop Boutique both donated 10% of their net sales to us.

However, before Giving Tuesday took place, Core Power Yoga, the largest privately held chain of yoga studios in the country selected BSM to be the recipient of their Thanksgiving Day donation class. All three Core Power Yoga locations in the area, Center City, Cherry Hill, NJ, and English Village, PA worked together to make a collective impact.

Also, during the holiday season, Little Baby’s Ice Cream collaborated with us a second year in a row by organizing a personal care drive. During the month of December they collected 89 pairs of underwear and 92 pairs of socks for the Personal Care Pantry.

With the help of people like you, including our online fundraisers and donors, as well as corporate partners, we raised over $6,700 for Giving Tuesday, which is enough to sponsor two Breaking Bread meals.

Tips Turned into a Meal

Last February, a group of Metropolitan Bakery associates gathered at BSM for an evening tour so that they could learn more about radical hospitality. Forty-five minutes and one eye-opening tour later, the Metropolitan team left inspired and determined to raise funds and awareness for radical hospitality.

To help make a consistent difference at BSM, Metropolitan Bakery decided to launch a tip jar campaign at their flagship shop and café in Rittenhouse in March. The goal was for customers to leave a few dollars for BSM and help give back. In a nine month time span, Metropolitan Bakery’s loyal customers have steadily donated over $200 a month in tips to BSM and have raised enough to help sponsor one of our Breaking Bread meals.

We are so grateful to each and every one of these local businesses (and their dedicated customers) for coming together to support the community! We also extend gratitude to everyone who participated in our end of year appeal. Together we raised $82,177, which was matched up to $60,000 by our generous board members and staff leadership.