LAKE CITY— A Northern Michigan non-profit that helps support the unhoused forced to increase their fundraising goal because of increased need in the area.
Lake City’s Harvest of Kindness supports people struggling with homelessness, supporting their immediate needs but over the past year, they’ve also been working on a more permanent solution to provide shelter. A healing farm but the non-profit says homelessness has increased so much, they had to funnel all of their funds to help people right now.
Julie Neumann has spent 9 nights so far sleeping in a tent outside of the Lake City thrift, her business that funds her non-profit Harvest of Kindness.
“I still have to run my business. So I come in during the day, and then at night, I sleep out in the tent,” said Neumann.
She said the annual ‘Tents of Hope’ fundraiser raises awareness and money for the homeless by showing people what it’s like to be in that situation.
“The first five days were very cold. We had wind. Really bad wind at one time where it was lifting my tent. I thought it was going to fly away like Mary Poppins. I had snow coming in my tent from when it would lift the snow would blow.It was pretty rough and brutal,” said Neumann.
The goal this year is $20,000. That’s significantly more than the previous goals of $5,000 for last year and $3,000 for the first year.
So far, she said she’s raised more than $12,000 since February 1st. She said the goal is bigger because the need is that much greater.
“It’s so much more need. I have more homeless. The price of everything has gone up, and I need to start saving to get the property to start the homeless farm,” said Neumann.
She said last year’s fundraiser was supposed to be split between helping people who had immediate needs and for a healing farm she has been trying to start but that all had to be diverted to help people with immediate needs.
She said demand has doubled from last year, but she’s not giving up the hope of starting a healing farm.
“It’s going to be an extensive program, it’s not going to be, hey, let’s go to the farm, let’s work, let’s go. No, they’re going to have to follow rules. They’re going to have to do meetings. Support groups, classes,” said Neumann.
She plans to keep sleeping out in the elements until the $20,000 is raised.
She said she’s hoping to buy a small piece of property before next winter hits
“It could be five acres, but at least I could get them in campers where they’re a little bit more secure than in tents. And then grow from there,” said Neumann.