New Staff Member – Tim Elwell
How can I help?
That’s the question I like to ask myself when I approach any situation. Growing up playing sports and continuing with basketball at Maryville University (in the early 2000s), I’ve enjoyed the collaboration and results a team can accomplish. Now, joining the staff at Circle of Concern as the Communications and Development Manager, I carry on that question with this exceptional team.
My family and southwest Missouri roots guided my interest in helping others. Most recently, I served as the fundraiser for AmeriCorps St. Louis, a nonprofit focusing on the development of the next generation of leaders in the areas of environmental conservation and disaster response. While there, I helped build partnerships and expanded the network of resources for communities in need. Notably, the area that became a focus for me was the services we provided for the unhoused community. In addition to the AmeriCorps program, the organization offers weekly shelter services including showers, meals, clothing and case management for the unhoused individuals and families in the downtown St. Louis area. Creating relationships with these individuals was rewarding and revealing. As I saw the need for support, my interest continued to grow in assisting those least served, last served and never served.
“How can I help?” has become a self-motto which led me to Circle of Concern. As I begin my journey here, I hope to increase the support for clients and build upon the impact that the staff and incredible volunteers have established. I look forward to interacting with all of you in the Circle community and sharing progress of our guests on their path out of poverty.
Please stop by, call or email anytime! 636-861-2623 x106 – tim@circleofconcern.org
Tim and his wife Lauren live in Ellisville with their two cats, Clover and Willow.
Volunteer Spotlight on Kathie Fuchs
“As a caseworker, I have the privilege of getting to know clients on a more personal level.”
This says a lot about Kathie Fuchs, our newest volunteer in the spotlight. Kathie volunteers weekly as a caseworker, and also serves in the Client Resource Manager role several times a month. Her commitment to our clients is inspiring; she worries when she hasn’t seen a regular client and yet celebrates their milestones along the way! She remembers sharing a joyful moment with a client who overcame several challenges and was proudly stating that she no longer needed our services. The happy client said “it’s time for me to go so you can help someone new.” Kathie talks about how this was bittersweet but a great reminder about how Circle of Concern touches the lives of so many in our community.
Not only are we lucky enough to have Kathie guiding our clients, but she also serves on our scholarship committee and recently joined the Garden Greens team. She has a few other talents up her sleeve as well; her help on the Trivia Night silent auction team was invaluable!
When she’s not at Circle, Kathie is having fun! She has six grandchildren – all in St. Louis – and they keep her running! To channel her creative outlet, she enjoys painting furniture and cabinets for family and friends and also volunteers at the Fabulous Fox Theatre on Friday nights.
What’s Kathie’s favorite aspect of volunteering at Circle? The people! The clients, volunteers and staff all “working together to provide positive outcomes. That’s a win-win for me!”
Thanks for all of your efforts Kathie! We appreciate you.
Kids Love Cereal!
Kids love breakfast cereal. They just do! Will you help to stock our pantry shelves with kid-friendly options?
You can shop at your favorite grocery store and deliver during our business hours (www.circleofconcern.org), or you can shop virtually from our Amazon wish list here: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2VVNMVF6EMQQX?ref_=wl_share
Thank you for filling hungry little bellies!
Our Volunteer Spotlight Shines on Jim Brockman
Jim Brockman is a quiet, behind-the-scenes kind of guy, but his contributions make a big impact. He has volunteered at Circle for more than ten years as a member of our warehouse team, warmly greeting donors and helping to process thousands of pounds of donated food each year.
Beyond that, Jim can literally fix anything! He has made countless repairs and improvements here at Circle. He was instrumental in helping to get our vegetable garden plot configured, building the compost bin, and repairing the water line the garden team uses. Recently, he was part of a team of volunteers that installed new commercial shelving in our pantry.
When Jim isn’t volunteering at Circle, he enjoys tennis, golf and gardening; and on occasion – fishing! He volunteers at his church and another food pantry. Jim says his favorite thing about volunteering at Circle is “being able to help others in a small way that truly makes a big difference in their lives.” He says he enjoys working with many “wonderful people” who have also become close friends. Well said, Jim! Thank you for being such a great Circle ambassador!
COC March 2024 Enews
- New Pantry Shelves Improve Safety and Capacity
- Summer Opportunities
- Our Volunteer Spotlight Shines on Jim Brockman
- Kids Love Cereal!
Summer Opportunities
We think EVERY child deserves the opportunity to learn, laugh, grow and meet new challenges through safe, organized summer activities. So, our Summer Opportunities Program offers “camperships” – small scholarships enabling our clients’ children to participate in a sports, music or STEM camp, take swim lessons, go to a Scouts camp, or participate in another approved summer enrichment program.
With a gift of $100 – $150, you can bring joy to a child this summer. Simply make a “summer camp” notation on your check or online gift.
For information, call Cyndi or Beth at 636.861.2623.
COC March 2024 Enews
- New Pantry Shelves Improve Safety and Capacity
- Summer Opportunities
- Our Volunteer Spotlight Shines on Jim Brockman
- Kids Love Cereal!
New Pantry Shelves Improve Safety and Capacity
For every organization, big or small, strategic planning is critical; and the initiatives that come from that work vary in complexity and effort. New commercial pantry shelving may not seem like the stuff of strategy-making, but when that new shelving improves safety and maximizes storage and display capacity for our core program, that puts the project in a whole new perspective!
Our shelving project was months in the making, and it was unveiled mid-February after a four-day shut-down of the pantry. Our Building and Grounds committee and pantry staff lead the project with the help of some hard-working volunteers.
The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive from our client families and volunteers, who love the clean, professional look of the shelving and the more “open” feel of the pantry space. We love the sturdy, easier-to-reach units, and the bolted-to-the-wall features that eliminate the risk of tipping.
Improvement projects like this one are made possible by our generous community; and those who love investing in the brick and mortar of our buildings. We are filled with gratitude for all who play a role in both our day-to-day work, and especially the strategic initiatives that make us better!
COC March 2024 Enews
- New Pantry Shelves Improve Safety and Capacity
- Summer Opportunities
- Our Volunteer Spotlight Shines on Jim Brockman
- Kids Love Cereal!
Thank You 2023 Golfers & Sponsors!
Thank You Golfers & Sponsors! Another successful Circle of Concern golf tournament is in the books, and we are grateful to everyone who made this event possible! The event raised nearly $35,000 ($5,000 more than 2022!) for the food pantry and our other programs.
Many thanks to our hosts from St. Mark Presbyterian Church, our dedicated volunteers, Greg and his team at Aberdeen and our players who are the lifeblood of this popular tournament!
We especially want to thank our sponsors, who are the foundation of this event!
Presenting Sponsor – Orthopedic Specialists
Leaderboard – BASF St. Louis
Hydration
– Boyd & Barbara Jones
– Paul & Betty Taylor
Par 3
– Dean Team
– Midwest ToxPath Sciences LLC
– Ron Ridgway
– Union Machinery
Practice Green
– Crowder Construction
– Environmental Landscaping Company, Inc.
– Kirkwood Eye Associates
– Dolores & Arthur Rodenberg
Hole
– Custom Type
– Family Golf & Learning Center
– The Lienemann Family
– Montgomery Bank (formerly Meramec Valley Bank)
– Mosaic Family Wealth
– NSC Diversified
– Peoples National Bank
– Sonrai Solutions
– Carl & Eileen Tenpas
– Welsch Heating & Cooling
– World Wide Car Service
Special Friends
– Scott & Nina Collier
– Britt & Sharon Holt
– Chick-Fil-A, Sunset Hills
COC June 2023 Enews
• Circle Celebrates a Fulbright Scholar!
• So Much S’more than Camp!
• Thank You 2023 Golfers & Sponsors!
So Much S’more than Camp!
Mention summer camp, and visions of swimming, arts & crafts and maybe the ubiquitous chocolate marshmallow sandwich come to mind. Summer camp means so much more, especially for the children of Circle clients.
To date this year, 104 children have been awarded Summer Opportunity camperships. The nearly $13,500 in camperships cover admission to summer enrichment of the child’s choice. Swim lessons? Absolutely! Baseball? Sure! Music lessons, cooking classes, theater or chess camp? Yes!
These camps provide instruction and play, but they offer even more. By engaging children in extra activities in the summer, they tend to remain intellectually engaged between school years, learn lifelong skills, build social connections, bolster self-esteem and resiliency and much more. And parents benefit by sending their children safely to camp, easing summer day care costs, and knowing their child is experiencing all that summer can offer.
Life stories are written at summer camp. Thank you for helping to write those of our Circle kids!
Both our Scholarship program and our Summer Opportunity camperships give young people the chance to pursue their interests and expand their view of what life can hold. Will you consider bolstering those two programs with a donation today?
Click here to make a contribution, perhaps in memory of a teacher who changed your life or in honor of a camp experience that lives in your memory. Or aim your phone’s camera at the QR code to make a gift.
Thank you for your generous support. Our scholars and campers appreciate your support!
COC June 2023 Enews
• Circle Celebrates a Fulbright Scholar!
• So Much S’more than Camp!
• Thank You 2023 Golfers & Sponsors!
Circle Celebrates a Fulbright Scholar!
Every recipient of a Circle of Concern scholarship is a winner. After all, the competitive application process assures that each student has already laid a path toward success, thanks to good grades, strong goals and a willingness to work for a bright future.
Sometimes, though, the future shines a little more bright. Fulbright, that is!
Lucy Grimshaw, a four-year recipient of a Circle scholarship, is now a Fulbright Scholarship awardee! Fulbright Scholarships are highly competitive awards that support international studies, professional connections and a broad, global perspective for the recipients to then bring home to serve their communities at home. Lucy will attend the University of Manchester in England to pursue a master’s degree in research and criminology.
A recent grad of the University of Missouri – St. Louis, Lucy received dual degrees in Public Policy Administration and Social Work with an Honors certificate. After her year abroad, she is considering law school, with the ultimate goal of positively impacting the intersection of mental health, race and poverty in the American criminal justice system.
We are so proud of Lucy’s achievements and wish her well with her Fulbright studies and beyond!
Read more of Lucy’s story here.
Both our Scholarship program and our Summer Opportunity camperships give young people the chance to pursue their interests and expand their view of what life can hold. Will you consider bolstering those two programs with a donation today?
Click here to make a contribution, perhaps in memory of a teacher who changed your life or in honor of a camp experience that lives in your memory. Or aim your phone’s camera at the QR code to make a gift.
Thank you for your generous support. Our scholars and campers appreciate your support!
COC June 2023 Enews
• Circle Celebrates a Fulbright Scholar!
• So Much S’more than Camp!
• Thank You 2023 Golfers & Sponsors!
Nutrition Insecurity / Garden Greens
Garden Greens & Healthy Families
The last few years have brought many changes to Circle of Concern. One of the most popular of them has been our on-site garden, which produced nearly 2,000 pounds of colorful, varied fruits and vegetable for our clients in 2022.
Plans are underway for this spring’s planting, and volunteers are poised to get seeds in the ground and harvest in our clients’ kitchens. We also look forward to the generous surplus that our home-gardening friends bring to share. Local church and community gardens bring such abundance, too. Throughout the summer, beautiful tomatoes, greens, beans and herbs are eagerly chosen by happy clients.
These foods are on the front lines against a common term in the vocabulary of poverty and hunger – nutrition insecurity. While many of us have heard of food deserts and food insecurity, nutrition insecurity gets at the heart of something we all face. Even when foods are inexpensive and easily available, they often don’t contain much in the way of the vitamins and other nutrients we need to thrive. Circle is staring down nutrition insecurity.
Each month at Circle, we offer three featured food items to boost the nutritional value of the groceries our clients take home. In April, those items are collard greens, herbs and the plant-based protein tofu, each of which is packed with vitamins and other nutrients. When combined with our traditional shelf-stable items, milk, eggs, fruit, potatoes, carrots, meat and more, we bring the foods we offer closer to recommended dietary guidelines offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. To learn more about these guidelines, please visit MyPlate.gov.
Your gifts make this nutritional bounty possible. In a world where processed foods are often less expensive than healthier fresh foods, your support gives our clients a chance for real nutritional security. On their behalf, thank you!
COC April 2023 Enews
• Drive-Up Donors!
• Nutrition Insecurity/Garden Greens
• 2023 Golf Tournament