YWCA Minot does such a great job advocating for domestic abuse survivors, the homeless, the LGBTQ+ community, POC, and even babies! The diaper bank is the main reason I became a donor, as I feel it opens doors to further opportunities to connect to families who may not be aware of the community resources and services available to them. Welcoming them into YWCA’s programming at through diapering promotes infant wellness, lowers parental financial and emotional stress, and gives families a space to seek other beneficial services per studies conducted by NDBDN. Minot YWCA has a fabulous caring staff and they work tirelessly to help the community.
Honestly I am so grateful to have worked with this organization. I hope others have the same experience.
Great organization!! There are so many programs readily available for those who are in need. I love what they do for the community of Minot!
Project BEE is an amazing organization that serves many in our community. From their Winter Warming Center to their Diaper Pantry, they change a lot of lives through their many programs. As a volunteer, I know that helping Project BEE is only a step into helping those in my community. The staff is amazing to interact with and they make sure to encourage you when you don't feel like you're making an impact. Great organization and we are so lucky to have Project BEE in our community.
I am a sailor in the US Navy. Serving this country also opened my eyes to what families in other countries are facing. Some families need just a little support and it will have a very high impact on their current conditions. Cameroon, my home country has a civil war/crisis that has intensely affected the Northwest and Southwest(English Speaking areas). As a result, families are homeless, kids become orphans, families migrate to other regions or neighboring countries for a new start and life has become a living hell for most of them. The people staying back live in fear for their lives from either the government or the freedom fighters.
I decided to follow NGOs like this to get support and ideas to help families affected by these wars in Cameroon. I recently created a page to pass the word and hope I get more people to see these struggles and send aid to these people. Help can be sent via physical stuff to support a kid's education and basic life requirements for survival or contributed to our “GoFundMe” to build temporary housing for some families. Our instagram page is uss_eli1 and please show support at gf.me/u/479rnw.
This nonprofit group is so important to the community at large. It provides well needed services for clients in such vulnerable situations. By Assisting individuals with basic needs Project BEE helps clients build self-esteem and motivates them to achieve and/or set long-term goals. I’m proud to be on the board of this successful local, community-based program.
Project BEE helps local families in Minot with just about everything. From diapers to shelter, they're there for you with whatever you need. It has been tough times in the world, but Project BEE makes life a little lighter and easier.
Project Bee is very much a life line for many struggling families and individuals. I very much appreciate Project Bee for the work it does to offer shelter and to provide for other needs of domestic abuse survivors, single mothers and families struggling to get by.
Such a great program for our community! This program gives amazing opportunities to where even the employees of Project BEE can see the life changing impact they themselves have on the community.
Five stars all around :)
This is an amazing organization for our community and I’m so happy for the work they are always doing!
This is a wonderful program!! Helping parents with their children's needs is a much needed program in any community. Thank you for all the work you do!
It wonderful to have such programs for those need help in certain areas to better themselves. With staff that do care for the wellbeing of those they serve.
I am raising 4 grandchildren youngest being 8 mos. with the help of Project BEE I am able to get the extra help that I need to ensure the happiness of the children.
I LOVE what Project BEE does for Minot. From diaper giveaways to opening their Warming Center, they listen and respond to their community. All of the staff members are amazing to work with and treat everyone with respect and dignity.
I'm excited to support this organization's future endeavors!
In January 2020, I found myself in the position of needing help and the YWCA of Minot, ND was able to provide it. Meghan and Liz not only gave me shelter, but also supported me, while helping me get back on my feet. The YWCA was able to help in so many little and big ways, from supplying appropriate clothing for interviews, to having guest speakers who could advise us on budgeting, writing resume's, etc., to helping with apartment deposits. Thanks to Meghan and Liz, I was able to find a great job, move into my own apartment and have stability.
The YWCA is an amazing organization! They are focused on helping the Minot community. They have great programs all concentrated on this community - Dakota Diaper Pantry, Fresh Start Shower Program, Community Closet and of course the Women and Children's Homeless Shelter - and are growing! They deserve 5 's and more!
The ladies at the YWCA work hard to make sure these moms get the help they need to get back in their feet! The ladies that work there go above Dani’s beyond to make sure the needs of the women are meet. They are loving and compassionate.
Review from Guidestar
Such a wonderful organization. I will continue to be a donor to support the work being done at YWCA Minot
Review from Guidestar
Giving to the YWCA is a wonderful experience. I appreciate that I can see the good that is being done in the community due to social media as I live a distance away. It is wonderful to see the diaper bank and know that the kiddos are being helped as so many go without through no fault of their own. It is wonderful work that this organization does to help people in the Minot community. What a wonderful place to have in a community for help.
Covid brought many things, including income loss and a new baby to our family. Diapers not only cost a lot but she is allergic to many disposables. The diaper bank got us cloth diapers to use and it has saved us hundreds already and my little one has been spared painful rashes. I couldn’t have afforded to diaper her without their help. Thank you!
Review from Guidestar
The YWCA Minot works hard to be transparent with their donors and clients. I appreciate the interactions from their development team and the personalized, handwritten notes. I love the stories of the impact our donations have-we can help them to help so many!
Also the diaper program is the greatest program!
I volunteer here when I’m able, growing up we needed help from a woman’s shelter and I enjoying being able to help others now. The ladies there are kind, strong and very hard working.
Review from Guidestar
The YWCA does great work for many folks. We are lucky to have such a comprehensive organization locally.
I was previously a YWCA board member and am again in that role. I believe in the Y's mission and support its endeavors for women and children. I have also had this past year the opportunity to observe the excellent child care services provided to this community!
I was introduced to the YWCA in 2009 through community volunteer efforts. They provide an amazing service to the local women and community. Additionally, their recognition of the contribution of local women through the Women of Distinction event is amazing. So many women and children are in need here in Minot and the surrounding areas. Many are homeless due to very limited availability of housing and outrageous rent prices. The YWCA gives women a chance to get on their feet and off the street. It is unfortunate that the YWCA struggles with funding as a much bigger shelter is needed as well as more program availability.
I have been with the Y.W.C.A only a short time but have already seen first hand what good work is being done in the community. The housing shortage is at an all time high in our area with the recent oil boom and I have been working with a homeless mother of three. I had exhausted all my resources then remembered the Y.W.C.A. I contacted the "Y" and without hesitation the director accepted my client into the shelter apartments. Thanks to the Y.W.C.A. and the opportunity I have had to volunteer there, a mother will have a home tonight, she will retain her employment, provide for her family, and most of she will retain her dignity in this difficult time.
The YWCA was the first non-profit board I had served on besides my Church. The mission of the YWCA is so wonderful, "Empowering Women and Eliminating Racism" is such a good platform. The YWCA Minot helps so many women and children who otherwise would have no place to go. The Florence Anderson Center of Hope helps chronically homeless with shelter, food, training and a step up to get back to being a productive member of society.
My connection to the YWCA in Minot, ND began six or seven years ago. I was serving on a child care committee at Minot State University, where I am a professor in the Social Work program. We were studying the issue of child care in the hope that (at last) we would be able to successfully have a child care program at the university. At the end of the year, the only conclusion that had been drawn is that there was not sufficient support to move ahead on our own. The situation continued to worsen, as the wait for child care grew longer still.
We then brought together a number of community partners, such as the agency responsible for child care licensing, the Child Care Information and Referral Center, a church or two that had child care in their facility, and the director of the YWCA. MSU and these partners worked for several years, moving toward a possible site, which then became unavailable, at about the same time that the largest child care facility in Minot closed. The need for child care became even more critical.
As we worked with these community partners, the one place that stayed focused on the problem, and continued to actively seek a solution, was the YWCA. The provision of quality child care not only does not make a profit, but is a financial drain on whoever hosts the program. The University backed away from hosting, citing lack of funding. The YWCA continued to move forward. At some point, an agreement was reached whereby MSU would offer the location, and provide outside lawn and snow care, if the YWCA would raise the money to build the building, and to pay ALL expenses related to the program, including utilities, and of course, the high cost of personnel. When I heard this was their proposal, I was very disappointed in the partnership. The YWCA would build a building that would belong to the University, and pay all the expenses of the program? Not a very equal partnership, in my mind.
But the YWCA did what women have always done. They moved forward to make it happen, even when the problem was not being attended to by city fathers or state legislators. They have begun a capital drive to raise money for the building, but they didn’t stop there. They opened a child care center at another location in the meantime, which they are managing without MSU as a partner. I have long admired how women find the resources to make happen what they have been told cannot happen, and the YWCA in Minot is a shining example of that.
But that was not enough. On top of all the programs the YWCA already has in place, they saw an immediate need for housing for homeless women and children. While everyone outside our state has heard how rich ND is, and how well we are doing, they are only looking at the dollars being brought into the state through energy development, and the high wages being paid to oil workers. The reality for single women and their children is that their wages for women have not gone up at all, but the rent they pay has sometimes doubled or tripled, as the oil company employees pay exorbitant prices for housing. There is now an even bigger problem with homelessness for single women and their children in Minot than there is across our country. The YWCA didn’t talk about the problem. They are opening up a shelter in response.
I cannot say enough about the positive impact the YWCA has on women and children in our community. But the value of what they do far exceeds the programs they run. The empowerment they give to women builds strength in every woman they serve.
My grandkids go to the YWCA in Minot and it is quite a load off my mind to know they are receiving such good care. They love their caregivers at the Y and are always anxious to go each day!
My 2 grandchildren go to daycare at the YWCA. As a retired educator, I am thrilled that my grandchildren are sang to, and worked with on their basic skills (colors, numbers, shapes, etc.) The kids love daycare and their providers. I know that my son and daughter-in-law are very pleased with the level of care, professionalism, and communication between the staff and the parents.
They YWCA of Minot takes GREAT care of my children and other children in the community within their daycare. We've been bringing our children for almost 2 years and we love it! The staff is great and caring and our kids just love them. My husband and I can go to work without worrying about the care of our children during the day. We know they are being cared for by people who love them.
They are also a huge support system to women and children everywhere who need a little extra assistance.
The Minot YWCA Mission statement says that we are dedicated to the elimination of racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all. The Minot YWCA does this by providing 7 long-term apartments for the chronically homeless, offering temporary shelter for women and children until they are able to find their way on their own, and providing childcare in a city that is in dire need of those services. I have been a board member for one year and have become more aware than ever of the hope that the YWCA provides for women and children in need. I have also learned the importance of educating our community about the services that the YWCA provides and the difference that it makes in our community.
The YWCA Minot helps our community in many ways. The Florence Anderson Center of Hope helps homeless women and children. Besides a roof over their heads the YWCA helps with food, clothing, supplies, transportation and mentoring. They work with other agencies to get help for people with mental health issues. With a shortage of childcare providers in Minot the YWCA came to the rescue and opened an early child learning center. The child care need in Minot is still not being met so the YWCA is looking to expand but that requires more financial support. The YWCA conducts "A Day of Giving" many times throughout the year where people can stop and get free clothing and necessities all at no cost. Many people benefit through the efforts of the YWCA.
The Minot YWCA is fulfilling a need in our region of North Dakota that is not being met by any other organization: The Minot YWCA's Florence Anderson Center of Hope is the only shelter for chronically homeless women in the area, providing small apartments for single women and their children. The YWCA also helps the women with childcare and job searches, and generally helps them get back on their feet. The shelter also has rooms to house women on an emergency basis (domestic violence)
The Minot YWCA also operates an excellent childcare facility (Early Learning Center) to help fill a great need for childcare in the city of Minot, even though it is a struggle to maintain financial support of the center.