FARGO, ND (KFGO) – With Giving Hearts Day tomorrow, hundreds of non-profits are raising money to help local communities.
Rob Swiers
The New Life Center in Fargo provides a path forward for people who are homeless and hurting that will help them discover value, find hope, and move from a life of merely surviving to truly thriving.
“Year-round, homelessness is an issue in our community. Over 1,000 people at any given time are homeless in the F-M area. For the New Life Center, Giving Hearts Day is the single largest fundraising event of our whole year. When folks can give $10 or more, we’re talking about being able to shelter, feed, and clothe the people in our community.” says New Life Center Executive Director Rob Swiers.
The annual Tent City event, where people can sleep in a tent to experience a night outside, has been canceled. Swiers said because of the cold temperatures they don’t want anyone exposed to the elements for long periods of time.
Micahel Kanwishcer is a recent arrival at the center. He has had quite the journey to Fargo. Last March, He was living in Louisiana when he got into a car crash that fractured his spine. Local hospitals and homeless centers told him, Because of COVID-19, there was nothing they could do for him.
Micahel Kanwishcer
“I spent almost 2 weeks on the streets in Lafayette, Louisiana. I was crawling around the streets for about 5 days because of my back. Thanks to a few kind people, they bought me a bus ticket up to South Dakota. Then I caught a ride with a truck driver to Fargo. I spent the night at the Flying J truck stop, the next day I found this place. I got lucky, I got a roof over my head and food in my belly,” he said.
“If it wasn’t for this place I would’ve been out there freezing. And in fact, if you really wanna know the truth. At 3:30 that morning when I was at Flying J before I found out about this place, I was gonna figure out a way to end my life.”
If you want to donate on February 11th visit GivingHeartsDay.org and search “New Life Center”
To learn more about the services the New Life Center provides click here.
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