2023
January’s Justice Partner is NAACP – Rochester, Minnesota Branch
Founded in 1909 in response to the ongoing violence against Black people around the country, the NAACP is the largest and most pre-eminent civil rights organization in the nation. Their vision is to ensure a society in which all individuals have equal rights and there is no racial hatred or racial discrimination. How do we get there? Through equity and social justice. The Rochester Minnesota Branch of the NAACP was established October 11, 1965.
2022
Christmas Eve’s Justice Partner is Crisis Nursery of Olmsted County, MN
Crisis Nursery is a child abuse prevention and family support program that provides temporary, short-term care for children in Olmsted County while families address a crisis situation. Additional services include: crisis counseling and support, parent education, and referral to community resources- all at no cost.
Total Raised: $1,330.00
December’s Justice Partner is Family Promise.
Family Promise delivers innovative solutions for family homelessness including prevention, shelter, and stabilization services. Families come to them in crisis. They help them rebuild their lives with new skills and ongoing support.
Total Raised: $3,006.00
November’s Justice Partner is The Village Agricultural Cooperative.
The Village Agricultural Cooperative creates opportunities for our communities to grow culturally relevant food. Their goals are founded in our community needs, and by creating space for public and market gardens in urban areas, they address the health needs of our people and planet while building hope for future generations. They believe that sustainable agriculture creates healthy communities.
Total Raised: $1,885.01
October’s Justice Partner is Immigration Justice Fund
The Immigration Justice Fund provides support to individuals and families navigating refugee, immigration, and asylum processes. This fund is an ongoing fund of First UU Church and supports various initiatives, including current support for an asylum-seeking family.
Total Raised: $8,442
September’s Justice Partner is UU the Vote
UU the Vote is our national Unitarian Universalist campaign organizing on the state and local levels to fight for fair elections, advance voting rights, protect abortion access, and resist the targeting and criminalization of Black, Indigenous, and people of color communities.
Total Raised: $1,586
August’s Justice Partner is Channel One
Channel One Regional Food Bank provides food assistance to low-income individuals and families and rescues surplus donated food product from the food industry and distributes the food to area food shelves, meal programs, group homes, and shelters throughout Southeast Minnesota and Western Wisconsin.
Total Raised: $1,366
July’s Justice Partner is Just the Pill
Just the Pill is a nonprofit organization in the upper Midwest dedicated to improving abortion access in the face of increasing restrictions, especially in underserved communities. It provides mobile care, positioned to provide access near borders of states with restrictive care.
Total Raised: $1,526.03
June’s justice partner is Immigration Justice Fund
Immigration Justice Fund provides support to individuals and families navigating refugee, immigration, and asylum processes. This fund is an ongoing fund of First UU Church and supports various initiatives, including current support for an asylum-seeking family.
Total Raised: $7,255
May’s Justice Partner is PFund
As the regional LGBTQIA+ grant maker in the upper Midwest, PFund supports activists, organizers, practitioners, artists, educators and communities. They support many communities in the work of eradicating homophobia and transphobia for lasting change.
Total Raised: $823.50
Revolutionary Earth works to restore a natural ecosystem in Rochester that rejuvenates soil, reduces
pollution, rehabilitates pollinators, and replaces the current food system with one that focuses on the health and well-being of everyone, starting with those who are most food-insecure.
Total Raised: $1,122
Total Raised: $566.50
March 13, 2022 – Special Full Plate Offering Sunday for Ukraine Relief
Total Raised: $4091.00
February’s Justice Partner is Southeastern Minnesota Interfaith Immigrant Legal Defense (SMIILD).
Southeastern Minnesota Interfaith Immigrant Legal Defense (SMIILD) is a non-profit corporation formed in December 2018. Since October 2019, through two non-profit immigrant legal services organizations, we have provided legal representation to 12 people in ICE custody. In 2022, we extended our contract to represent people not in detention also, including asylum seekers and people released from ICE custody who still have unresolved cases. Our UU Church has been a key supporter of SMIILD.
Total Raised: $833.50