SEATTLE, March 6, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Humble
DesignSM Fueled by U-Haul, a charity that helps families
and veterans transitioning out of homelessness through donated home
furnishings and decorating services, is opening the nonprofit's
third chapter in Seattle.
Detroit-born Humble Design has
served more than 900 families since beginning its philanthropic
mission in 2009. With the aid of national partner U-Haul®, the
group opened its second chapter in Chicago in 2017.
The expansion to Seattle is
possible through the ongoing cooperation and commitment of the
Schultz Family Foundation, Microsoft, King County and the City of Seattle.
"As Humble Design expands nationally, we look to cities like
Seattle that are innovators in
implementing new solutions for an overwhelmingly growing population
of fragile individuals," Humble Design co-founder Treger Strasberg
stated. "All of the companies and groups that have come together to
make this happen are hugely impacting the lives of those touched by
hard times."
Seattle-area companies are
encouraged to sign up for group volunteer days to decorate a home,
and also have the opportunity to sponsor a family. Email
tia@humbledesign.org with donation and volunteer inquiries starting
in late April, or learn more now by visiting
humbledesign.org/seattle.
Humble Design delivers dignity to families emerging from
homelessness by furnishing their residences with beds and other
necessities, personal comforts and loving touches. Turning empty
spaces into warm, welcoming homes has yielded staggering results:
only 1 percent of families return to homelessness after receiving
the group's services.
That level of success has turned more than a few heads in
Seattle.
The Schultz Family Foundation, led by Sheri Schultz, president and co-founder, and
Howard Schultz, Starbucks® Executive
Chairman and co-founder, has backed Humble Design's vision with a
$150,000 grant to get things rolling
for the new chapter.
"The Schultz Family Foundation is proud to partner with Humble
Design as they launch in Seattle/King
County," said Daniel Pitasky,
foundation executive director. "Humble Design is a complement to
the Schultz Family Foundation's interest in permanent housing
solutions. Their program offers stability and dignity to
families in transition, as well as the opportunity for members
the community to better understand and support these
families."
The support of Microsoft employees, combined with Microsoft
matching funds, helped generate early momentum, financing and
community support for Humble Design to expand into the Puget Sound
region.
"Our employees are determined to do their part to help children
and families in our region have beds to sleep in and roofs over
their heads," said Karen Bergin,
Director of Employee Engagement at Microsoft Philanthropies.
"They've helped blaze the trail into Seattle for Humble Design, an organization
that has provided a sense of security and dignity to formerly
homeless families in Detroit and
Chicago."
King County held a
ribbon-cutting on March 2 to showcase
a county-owned warehouse on Harbor Island where Humble Design will
be able to store donated furnishings. The facility at 3235 16th
Ave. SW in Seattle should be able
to receive donations by the end of April.
Humble Design Seattle will begin by helping one family a week
with the goal of quickly reaching three families a week.
Tia Chang has been named site
manager. Chang holds a Sociology degree from American University and comes to Humble Design from
a prominent Seattle law firm.
Strasberg will formally announce the new chapter on Thursday at
the Be Bold Seattle event celebrating International Women's Day,
but not before Humble Design works its magic today for its first
Seattle family. Single mother
Andrea and her eight children will have their new apartment
transformed into an inviting home after eight months of living in
her car and eight months at Mary's Place shelter for homeless
families.
Mary's Place will work with Humble Design to identify families
and veterans in need in King
County.
Humble Design has been profiled by NBC's Today show, ABC's World
News Tonight, CNN, Inside Edition, Forbes, and many other national
and local media outlets. Since starting the nonprofit, Strasberg
has focused her efforts on assisting single mothers emerging from
shelters and moving with their children into low-income housing.
Many families helped are victims of abuse and have left behind all
material possessions.
U-Haul International signed on as Humble Design's primary
sponsor in 2016, offering the equipment, storage and national
infrastructure to make the operation more seamless and national
expansion possible. Later that year, Humble Design appointed ad
industry trailblazer Rob Strasberg, Treger's husband, co-CEO to
oversee the expansion efforts.
"Our goal is to end the revolving door of homelessness by
turning empty spaces into warm, welcoming homes through a dignified
experience that leads to successful lives," Rob Strasberg
stated.
Chapters in additional cities, including San Diego, are in the planning phases as
Humble Design strives to fight homelessness on a national scale. By
the end of 2018, the group will have served more than 1,000
families and changed more than 6,000 lives.
"Our shared ideals to help people meet their basic human needs
make Humble Design and U-Haul effective partners," noted
Kim Merow, U-Haul Company of
South Seattle president. "There is
a collective passion to make a genuine difference in Seattle while fighting the epidemic of
homelessness. We're truly honored to be a part of this affiliation
and expansion into King
County."
About Humble Design
Humble Design is a Detroit-based nonprofit that helps families
transitioning out of homeless shelters by providing furnishings and
design services. The organization turns empty houses into clean,
dignified and welcoming homes — a very simple idea that can change
a family's future. Co-founded by Treger Strasberg, the organization
primarily serves single moms with children and helps homeless
veterans and their families. The Humble Design team has served more
than 900 families since 2009 and currently has branches in
Detroit, Chicago and Seattle. www.humbledesign.org
About U-Haul
Since 1945, U-Haul has been the No. 1 choice of
do-it-yourself movers, with a network of more than 21,000 locations
across all 50 states and 10 Canadian provinces. U-Haul Truck Share
24/7 now offers customers access to U-Haul trucks every hour of
every day through the self-service options on their
internet-connected mobile devices. U-Haul customers' patronage has
enabled the U-Haul fleet to grow to more than 150,000 trucks,
112,000 trailers and 40,000 towing devices. U-Haul offers more than
581,000 rooms and more than 51 million square feet of self-storage
space at owned and managed facilities throughout North America. U-Haul is the largest installer
of permanent trailer hitches in the automotive aftermarket industry
and is the largest retailer of propane in the
U.S. www.uhaul.com
Contact:
Jeff Lockridge
Sebastien Reyes
E-mail: publicrelations@uhaul.com
Phone: 602-760-4941
Website: uhaul.com
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