Giving Hearts Day is TODAY! Do you know who you’re going to support?
We see it every February: red hearts everywhere, chocolate comes packaged in fancy boxes, and lovebirds flock to your favorite restaurants. It’s the season of love and celebrating that love.
But there’s another, more impactful and empowering day focused on love that takes place in February: Giving Hearts Day.
Established in 2008, Giving Hearts Day celebrates the good work charities do in North Dakota and northwest Minnesota. For 24 hours, charities from across the area beef up their donation calls, and donors shower them with love. Donors can donate money to any of the 150+ participating non-profits.
Donations don’t have to be monetary – many of our local non-profits also post volunteering opportunities and wishlists for goods (such as canned goods for a food bank) to their Giving Hearts Day webpage. When a person reports donated time or goods – instead of a traditional monetary donation – they’re entered to win dollars that can go to the non-profit of their choice.
Each winter at Tellwell, we’re hard at work helping our non-profit friends prepare for Giving Hearts Day. From films to social posts, we help them get the word out about their cause and reach as many supporters as possible on Giving Hearts Day.
And – not to bury the lede too much – today IS that day! Giving Hearts Day is here and in full swing!
Read on as we highlight local non-profits we’ve worked alongside. You can also check out the Giving Hearts Day website and donate to one or many of the amazing non-profits.
F5 Project
Adam Martin hoped that there was more to life than his five felonies, so he decided to make changes — both for himself and then as a resource for other individuals returning to their communities after serving time.
F5 works throughout North Dakota to bring full spectrum services to people struggling with incarceration, mental health, and addiction. By providing personalized support, F5 aims to deter repeat offenses.
As for its name, Adam Martin found inspiration in a computer keyboard. The F5 key is a shortcut to refresh a page, just as he originally hoped to do with his life. He couldn’t deny the connection between the letter, the key number, and his own five felonies, either. And so, the F5 Foundation found a name and a cause: to help individuals. reload their lives, no matter what data was in the background.
You can support the F5 Foundation’s work by donating today.
To learn more about F5’s incredible mission, visit their webpage. While you’re there, check out their podcast (created in the Tellwell studio!).
FirstLink
When you or a loved one is struggling with thoughts of suicide, it can be hard to know where to turn. Thankfully, the area has FirstLink.
FirstLink is a free, confidential service available to anyone 24/7/365 for listening and support, referrals to resources/help, and crisis intervention.
Hope is on the line when a person calls FirstLink. You can donate to them via the Giving Hearts Day website.
If you or a loved one are currently struggling with thoughts of suicide, you can reach out to FirstLink by calling 211 or texting your home zip code to 898-211. You can also reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling 988.
Visit FirstLink’s website to learn more about their important mission.
Haven
Too many of us know the pain of losing a child. When the unimaginable happens to our family or someone we know, navigating that grief can feel impossible.
The dedicated folks at Haven have learned that the only way to survive is to do it together. Their mission is to be a guiding light in the darkest days of grief after losing a child.
Haven’s classes, workshops, retreats, resources, community, connection, and healing gifts create a network of support and a safe haven for families during the initial loss and years down the road.
By donating to Haven, you are the catalyst for this mission. You can support those still experiencing the unimaginable through the Giving Hearts Day website.
To learn more about Haven’s work, visit their website.
M3
Hockey moms Amber Ferrie and Lezlee Vertie are passionate about Moorhead’s hockey players – they’re moms to some of the players themselves, after all. After losing MHS alum Eli Johnson to suicide in 2020, Amber and Lezlee knew the youth hockey community needed a resource to help young people struggling with mental health.
Moorhead Minds Matter (M3) works to raise awareness, eliminate the stigma, and connect resources surrounding mental health. Through events, locker room talks, M3-focused dryland sessions, and curriculum bags, M3 makes sure that each child who enters a hockey rink knows they matter–both on and off the ice.
Want to support Moorhead hockey players? Donate to M3 today.
To learn more about M3, check out their website.
Keep an eye out for a video we did with M3–coming soon!
RMHC of the Red River Valley
When parents find out their child is critically ill and needs medical care miles from home, they are often scared, unsure, and in need of support. Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Red River Valley is ready to welcome them in.
Our local Ronald McDonald House and Ronald McDonald Family Room give families a place to rest so they can focus on what matters most: getting their child healthy and home. Families find comfort in a place to rest, hope in a home-cooked meal, and encouragement from staff, volunteers, and other families experiencing the same uncertainty a medical diagnosis brings.
In 2023, they served over 800 families. If you donate today, your Giving Hearts Day gift helps provide hope, hospitality, and togetherness.
To learn more about RMHC of the Red River Valley, visit their website. While you’re there, take a peek at some of the video work we’ve done with them as their official storytelling partner!
YWCA Cass Clay
For 45 years, YWCA Cass Clay has offered emergency shelter for women and children escaping domestic violence and homelessness. Today, they are the largest emergency shelter for those women and children in North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota.
In 2023, YWCA Cass Clay served over 1,200 women and children. They also operate a Supportive Housing Program, serving 92 households in Fargo and West Fargo. After emergency shelter, this housing is a long-term solution for healing, stability, and independence. With this new-found strength comes the diminished likelihood that women will return to abusive partners or homelessness.
To support YWCA Cass Clay’s mission towards eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all, donate today.
To learn more about YWCA Cass Clay’s work, visit their website. While you’re there, check out some of their videos–we’re proud to have helped them tell their stories.
