FROM THE HEART
From our humble beginnings…in a Starbucks coffee shop in 2001, to our close to 2,000 member base today, the volunteer organization From the Heart continues its charitable mission.
From the Heart is involved in numerous projects, from making chemo hats for local cancer centers, preemie baby hats for the tiniest of our recipients, sleeping bags and warm mitten sets for the homeless in the Richmond community..
This Spring, we are so happy to have the opportunity to introduce you to a special new partner organization called From the Heart. Based out of Richmond, Virginia, they are a group of volunteers who use their special talents for making items for those in need to create moments of happiness and dignity for others.
Since the beginning of our partnership in December 2022 to the date of this post, From The Heart has donated over 150 Essentials Bags that we've been able to distribute to our Mobile Produce Pantry clients. These hand make bags are filled with crocheted wash cloths and a variety of toiletry items (toothpaste, toothbrushes, combs, etc.) and given to those who live in areas where basic needs are hard to meet.
Q: Who are you and where are you from?
A: We are From the Heart, a 501(c) 3 non-profit, entirely volunteer, organization which knits, crochets, and sews for people in need. We are based in Richmond, VA but have many smaller groups meeting in many other places.
Q: What's your mission and the community you serve?
A: Our mission is "...to serve our community by preserving and promoting fiber arts, creating a spirit of fellowship and love among our volunteers and board members, and producing handmade items which bring comfort, love and solace to others." The community we serve is those who are in need, anywhere they might be.
"The community we serve is those who are in need, anywhere they might be."
Q: What does community mean to you?
A: A community is a group of people living in the same location or having a particular characteristic in common. As such, we have many communities to which we belong, the largest being the community of the world - all people, all needing each other.
Smaller communities, such as From the Heart nestle inside of larger communities, such as the areas in which we serve. Bring that to its logical conclusion and the entire world exists as one community.
Q: What's the change you would like to see in Richmond?
A: From the Heart offers hope and solace to people in need. We would like to see a society in which there is a changed outlook towards a genuine concern for the wellbeing of others and less of a cookie cutter approach which assumes all people are the same and have the same needs.
Q: What do you love about Richmond?
A: The shared values of my community, From the Heart, are a concern for others and a desire to help those in need, regardless of who these "needy" people are, where they live, how they became needy, their social, religious, or political perspectives. These are things I think we should all love.
"...desire to help those in need, regardless of who these "needy" people are, where they live, how they became needy, their social, religious, or political perspectives."
Q: How do you or your organization/business/cause promote Understanding and Peace?
A: By being who we are. We are a diverse collection of people from all countries of the world, bringing with us just about all religions, all hair, eye, and skin colors and combinations thereof, all manner of beliefs and opinions. Our common desire is to help those who need. To let them know they are seen and that we want to help. From the Heart is diverse, we treat all in a fair and equitable manner, and none are excluded. Nobody is irrelevant or "less than" any other person. We live that concept.
Q: How can people support your mission?
A: By volunteering to knit, crochet, or sew items for donation into our communities. This can range from items needed by the police to give to a child in a bad situation, a pet bed for an animal shelter, a plarn mat for a homeless person, or anything else one can imagine another might need in a bad situation, for both animals and humans. We also have a workshop from which we run our main operation, so office items and monetary donations are also helpful.
Q: How can people find more about you/contact you?
Scroll down on the home page to "Sign Up For News"
to have our monthly newsletter sent to you. You will also receive alerts
about urgent and sudden needs.
https://www.facebook.com/FromtheHeartStitchers
Call our President, Tricia Ennis, at 804-683-9015 if you have questions.