A Night of Celebration

20th Annual Fundraiser Fashion Show

The Larrabee Center/Trinkets & Togs 20th Annual Fundraiser Fashion Show & Social was truly a night of celebration and a wonderful success in raising awareness and funds for Employment Services. On Thursday, September 28th at Prairie Links Event Center, guests gathered to enjoy live music from Mitch Laue, delicious food catered by Hy-Vee and The Mixing Bowl, a silent auction with fabulous packages, door prizes, and unique experiences like shopping our Trinkets Boutique, playing our Trinkets Treasure Hunt and even a Mystery Box Game with some fun prizes. The highlight of the night was our fashion show featuring clients, staff, volunteers and family members.

Sharing our mission and highlighting client success stories were prominent pieces of our event and we were thrilled to have clients who have worked at Trinkets & Togs as well as those who have obtained and maintained employment in the community be featured at our event. The purpose of our event was also to raise funds to support our Employment Services. Thanks to our generous sponsors and the overwhelming support from the community, over $16,000 was raised to support Employment Services, specifically to cover wages for participants working at Trinkets & Togs in Waverly. To close out the night, guests were treated to a giveaway of the beautiful floral centerpieces sponsored in part by Ecker’s Flowers & Greenhouses.

Special Thanks to our Red Carpet Sponsor Cedar Valley Dental Associates for their top level sponsorship and support of our event. Runway Sponsors included Kristi Demuth – American Family Insurance and American Family Dreams Foundation. Paparazzi Sponsors included Dr Celina Peerman – The Peerman Group, Municipal Pipe Tool Co., and Northern Iowa Therapy. Model Sponsors included The Accel Group, CUSB Bank, Denver Insurance, First Bank, First Maxfield Mutual, Grundy Mutual Insurance, Jerry Roling Motors, Rada Manufacturing, Tenenbaum’s Jewelry, The VGM Group, Waverly Health Center, Wells Hollow Landscaping, Yoder Construction, Additional Sponsors: Dunn Realty, Kaiser-Corson Funeral Homes, Krystal Liebau Century 21 Signature Real Estate.

Special thanks to Alexis Rose Photography for capturing the event. Check out the pictures from that night here: www.larrabeecenter.org/fashionshow2023

Support Inclusive Employment with a Gift Today!

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month. The Larrabee Center is proud to support individuals with disabilities to explore, obtain and maintain inclusive employment in our communities. Being a valued member of the community is something we all want and deserve. With the support of individual donors and local foundations, we offer paid work experience in our thrift stores as a stepping stone to community employment. We match clients to jobs in the community and help to fill employment gaps with qualified candidates.

During our 20th Annual Fundraiser Fashion Show, two local employers were recognized as Inclusive Employers for their commitment to hiring employees of all abilities. This year’s honorees were Seasonal Management as New Employer of the Year, and Pizza Ranch as a Legacy Partner. Clients who work at the businesses, along with a representative of each employer, accepted the recognition awards.

In September, we celebrated Direct Support Professional Recognition Week. What is a Direct Support Professional (DSP)? These are our frontline staff who carry out our mission working directly with our clients in their homes, workplaces, and community to increase independence and inclusion. They are dedicated, compassionate, caring individuals who are truly motivated by making a difference in the lives of others. And we might be a little biased, but we think we have the BEST DSPs around and are so grateful for their dedication to our clients and or mission. The Larrabee Center has 22 employees who provide supports to our clients.

“This is a special week to bring our focus to the truly life changing service our DSP staff bring to the clients we serve. They bring support, joy, and meaning to the clients of The Larrabee Center every single day. Thank you and enjoy this week of celebration!” - Bonnie Gesell, Executive Director

Community Partners

Our community is stronger when we work together and we are so grateful for the support of funders and community partners.

The 5th Annual Waverly-Shell Rock Area United Way Day of Caring brought together volunteers and nonprofits all over Waverly. We had a wonderful group from Assured Partners complete some outdoor/landscape projects at our properties, while volunteers from Rock Valley Physical Therapy joined us at the Waverly Trinkets & Togs!

We are grateful for the generous support of the Marvin and Helen Schumacher Family Fund. Their ongoing support of our mission ensures individuals are gaining independence and being included in the communities where they live.

Veridian Credit Union Fund supports nonprofits whose work addresses barriers to financial stability by educating individuals on financial literacy or employment readiness. We are honored to support our clients on their employment journey and greatly appreciate the support of Veridian.

THANK YOU FOR VOTING!

Make a Lasting Impact with The Larrabee Center Endowment Fund

The Larrabee Center Endowment Fund is a permanent fund with the Community Foundation; the donated dollars are invested, and only the income from the fund is granted out. Your contribution will help carry out the mission of The Larrabee Center now, and forever. Gifts to permanent endowment funds of the Community Foundation are eligible to receive a 25% state tax credit through the Endow Iowa program. Your gift will also be eligible for federal deductions for charitable giving. To learn more about this fund and the tax credit, contact the Community Foundation at 319-287-9106 or info@cfneia.org.

Gifts can also be made on our secure webpage at fund.cfneia.org/larrabeecenter.