Partners for Good
Making a Big
Difference in
the Community
O
ver the past couple of years,
the VHEDC has supported
the area nonprofit community
by creating learning and networking
opportunities for nonprofit leaders.
With the help of a steering team made
up of area nonprofit leaders, VHEDC
is proud to host the Partners for Good
2020 cohort as a continuation of the
efforts.
The group will engage in lunch
and learn opportunities, after-hours
networking, and other special events
throughout the year. All Lunch & Learns
are held at Merrick (3210 Labore Rd, St
Paul, MN 55110) from 11:30 a.m. to 1
p.m.
Tara Jebens-Singh, Adult Programs
Coordinator for the White Bear Lake
Area Schools, and Steering Committee
Chair of Partners for Good in 2020, says
every effort will be made to make sure
the content provided is what meeting
attendees need. “What we’ve tried to
do is be responsive to the group that’s
around the table,” she said.
“For example, the idea of social media
could have ten different angles we
decide to take. What we will do is
have these themes, and then create
programming around the specific needs
that are localized by the group.”
Jebens-Singh’s employer, White
Bear Lake Area Schools, is one of
the nonprofits participating in the
program. Its strategic mission is to
52
Northeast Metro Business
make sure there
are abundant
and engaged
community
partners helping
it do its work,
something
Partners for Good
has provided.
“Because of
Partners for
Good, over
the last three
years we have
been able to
collaborate with
Mahtomedi
Area Schools, Century College and
a number of other nonprofits on
community workshops around equity
and inclusion,” she said. “If we hadn’t
had the meeting space in the Partners
for Good arena, I don’t think we would
have had the relationships for us to
work together towards building that
collaboration.”
Another Partners for Good participant
that appreciates the relationship
building the program provides is Solid
Ground, a supportive housing agency
in White Bear Lake whose mission
is to prevent and end homelessness
for families with children through
housing resources and opportunity.
The organization works with families in
Washington and Ramsey Counties.
Lizzie Rainville, Director of Development
and Communication for Solid Ground
says she really enjoys the programming.
“Every time I go to a session, there
is something new to learn,” she said,
“and the ability to network with other
nonprofits in the community has been
invaluable.”
Mike Greenbaum, Executive Director
of Newtrax, Inc., a nonprofit that
provides transportation services for
those in need, agrees. “To me the
best part of Partners for Good is
bringing together the area nonprofit
organizations to brainstorm, work
together and collaborate,” he said.
“Coming together helps us identify
and understand what the transportation
needs in our community are, and
partner with those organizations to help
fill those needs.”