Graze 4 Good to Spotlight Local Nonprofits Focused on Housing Equity

What do you get when you mix great food, games and networking, and a great cause? The recipe for a great Thursday evening. Grab your tickets now for Graze 4 Good, the annual fundraiser of the Minneapolis Foundation’s Fourth Generation giving circle.  

Graze 4 Good will be held at La Doña Cervecería from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on April 18. Event proceeds will support grants to local organizations focused on housing equity, Fourth Generation’s 2023-2024 grantmaking issue. 

Tickets are available at bit.ly/graze4good24.  

Graze 4 Good is a great opportunity to get a closer look at one of the collective giving groups that the Minneapolis Foundation is proud to host and hear firsthand from some of their latest grant recipients. 

Fourth Generation is a giving circle for rising leaders who care about local issues and want to make a bigger impact. This year, the group chose to focus on housing equity, with a particular emphasis on efforts to end homelessness and support Minnesotans experiencing housing insecurity. The needs are urgent: Despite last year’s historic state investments in housing, more than 20,000 people still experience homelessness in Minnesota every year, half of them children. 

As part of their grantmaking process, Fourth Generation members spent the past few months learning about promising community-based strategies and public policies to support people experiencing homelessness. In addition to researching local needs, they heard directly from community organizers and individuals who have personally experienced homelessness.  

Fourth Generation is happy to announce that they have chosen to support six local nonprofits this year. Based on how much the group raises, they will determine specific grant amounts in May. The grantees include: 

• 180 Degrees provides a range of services, including emergency shelter and transitional housing for youth at risk of homelessness and sexual exploitation, as well as housing and supportive services for formerly incarcerated men. Funding from Fourth Generation will support their community re-entry services for men at risk of or experiencing homelessness.   
• Lived Experience Advocacy Network supports people who have experienced homelessness as they engage in advocacy to end homelessness in Minnesota. A grant from Fourth Generation will support the network’s Day on the Hill programming and board stipends that will remove barriers to participation and help the network recruit board members with more diverse perspectives. 
• Onward Eden Prairie is a site-based youth transitional housing program that provides housing and support for young people age 18-24 who are experiencing homelessness or housing instability. Funding from Fourth Generation will support this nonprofit’s operating expenses and fuel their long-term plans for program expansion.  
• Phumulani Minnesota African Women Against Violence provides culturally specific resources to women and girls of African descent, with the goal of preventing domestic violence and sexual abuse in communities of color throughout Minnesota and the nation. Fourth Generation’s grant will support operational costs of the organization’s outreach and housing navigator services, as well as feasibility studies on the housing needs of survivors.  
• The Bridge for Youth empowers youth experiencing homelessness through safe shelter, basic needs, and healthy relationships. Fourth Generation’s grant will support programming such as the organization’s youth response center, housing programs, and outreach services. 
• United Renters for Justice convenes low-income, BIPOC, and immigrant tenants to organize for a just housing ecosystem in North and South Minneapolis. Funding from Fourth Generation will support geographic expansion of the organization’s usual organizing in one neighborhood at a time and expand access to their services by covering direct program expenses and occasional court fees. 

During the 2023-2024 grantmaking year, Fourth Generation will grant an estimated $80,000 to local organizations. Since its founding, and with the support of more than 400 members, the group has raised and distributed more than $500,000 to local organizations serving issues ranging from mental health to economic justice.