Windermere Redmond Blog February 17, 2017

Every Transaction Makes a Difference

Every time a Windermere agent sells a home, a portion of the commission goes to the Windermere Foundation, a non-profit organization established in 1989. Each year, contributions from Windermere agents, combined with donations from Windermere employees and community members, have allowed the Windermere Foundation to support non-profit agencies dedicated to helping low-income and homeless families.

Thank you for supporting the Windermere Foundation. You are making a positive difference in the lives of local low-income and homeless families, by providing necessary resources for emergency services, food, housing and more. Click Here to Donate Now

Windermere Redmond Blog February 2, 2017

Windermere Foundation Raises $2,246,829 in 2016

The Windermere Foundation had another banner year in 2016, thanks to the continued support of Windermere franchise owners, agents, staff, and the community. Over $2.2 million was raised in 2016, which is an increase of seven percent over the previous year. This brings our total to over $33 million raised since the start of the Windermere Foundation in 1989.

A large amount of the money raised last year is thanks to our agents who each make a donation from every commission they earn. These funds enable our offices to support local non-profits that provide much-needed services to low-income and homeless families in their communities.


SUMMARY OF FUNDS, GRANTS & DONATIONS IN 2016

  • Organizations served: 410
  • Number of individual grants fulfilled: 664
  • Average grant amount: $2,581
  • Average donation to the Windermere Foundation: $122.05

FUNDING BREAKDOWN

  • Total funds provided in 2016: $1,951,878.78
  • Scholarships: 4.79%
  • Youth/Child Programs: 32.65%
  • Emergency Assistance: 25.67%
  • Shelter: 12.85%
  • School Assistance: 6.76%
  • Education/Counseling: 5.10%
  • Administrative Expenses: 2.74%
  • Fundraising Expenses: 9.44%

So how are funds used? Windermere offices get to decide how to distribute the funds their agents raise so that they may help organizations in their communities. Our offices have helped to fund school lunch and afterschool programs, supported non-profits that provide housing assistance to homeless families, donated to food banks, purchased school supplies, provided meals and gifts for families in need over the holidays, fulfilled wishes for children through Make-A-Wish programs, and purchased shoes, clothing, blankets and other items to help keep families warm during the winter months.

This year was also marked by a new partnership between Windermere and the Seattle Seahawks to help #tacklehomelessness. During the 2016 football season, Windermere donated $100 for every Seahawks home game tackle to YouthCare, a non-profit organization that provides essential services to homeless youth. At the end of the season, the #tacklehomelessness campaign raised $35,000, which is being used to help fund YouthCare’s transitional housing program.

Thanks to our agents, offices, and everyone who supports the Windermere Foundation, we are able to continue to make a difference in the lives of many families in our local communities. And not just during the holidays, but throughout the year. If you’d like to help support programs in your community, please click on the Donate button.

To learn more about the Windermere Foundation, visit http://www.windermere.com/foundation.

This article originally appeared on the Windermere.com blog.

 

#TackleHomelessness November 3, 2016

Windermere Foundation Dollars at Work: 2016 Summer Report

 

 

We are excited to announce that as of third quarter of this year, the Windermere Foundation has collected $1.4 million in donations, which means we are well on our way to reaching our goal of raising $2 million by year’s end! Individual contributions and fundraisers accounted for 58 percent of the donations, while 42 percent came from donations through Windermere agent sales transactions. In total, we have raised over $32 million since the Windermere Foundation was started back in 1989.

 

Windermere/Seahawks #Tacklehomelessness Campaign

We recently made the announcement that Windermere is now the Official Real Estate Company of the Seattle Seahawks. And at the center of this partnership is a new #tacklehomelessness campaign in which the Windermere Foundation will donate $100 for every Seahawks home-game tackle during the 2016 season. On the receiving end of these donations is YouthCare, a Seattle-based non-profit organization that has been providing services and support to homeless youth for more than 40 years.

So far, the first two Seahawks home games have generated $5,700 in donations, but it’s still early, and we expect to raise upwards of $35,000 by the end of the season. These funds will help YouthCare provide services that help get youth off the streets and prepared for life—youth like Dana and Leslie.

 

Dana’s Story

Dana is 20 years old and has been living on the streets since she was 14 or 15. Dana was wary of accessing drop-in and other services due to family and personal trauma, and the failure of various systems to support her in her past. Once she learned that she was able to enroll in case management through YouthCare’s outreach services, she agreed to work with YouthCare’s Street Outreach Case Manager, Sam. Through Sam’s coaching and support, Dana has completed a housing assessment to get on the waitlist for available housing. Dana has a vision of herself beyond the streets, and she has Sam and YouthCare’s Outreach Team to walk that road beside her and offer the support she needs along the way.

 

Leslie’s Story

Leslie walked in the front door of YouthCare’s James W. Ray Orion Center, wet and cold from an early spring rainstorm, and asked for help. She had lived in Seattle her entire life, moving between her mother’s apartment and foster care, hoping always to be able to stay in one place for longer than a month. She had recently turned 18, and the friend’s couch she had been sleeping on was no longer available. Her education had been patched together over the years as she’d shuffled between schools, not connecting with any specific teacher—and she wanted to achieve her GED. She told the Orion Community Resource Specialist that she had met a YouthCare Outreach team member on the streets and came in to see how YouthCare could help.

 

The Community Resource Specialist sat down with her, completed an intake form and offered her food, water, dry clothes, and invited her to eat a hot lunch. Every day, YouthCare’s Orion Center offers a hot breakfast at 8:30 am, lunch at 12:30 pm, and dinner at 6:00 pm. Leslie stayed for lunch and then the cooking class in the afternoon, where she learned to cook falafel, pita bread, and tomato-cucumber salad. She stayed overnight at YouthCare’s Young Adult Shelter and was referred to YouthCare’s Barista Training Program, where she started an eight-week apprenticeship. Soon she was running the Orion Center Mock Café — an event hosted by graduating Barista program apprentices—and serving up complicated coffee orders with ease.

 

 

Thank you to everyone who supports the Windermere Foundation. Because of you, homeless youth like Dana and Leslie receive the services and support they need to get back on track with school, work, and life. If you’d like to help support programs in your community, please click on the Donate button.

 

This article originally appeared on the Windermere.com blog. To learn more about the Windermere Foundation, visit http://www.windermere.com/foundation.