By Beacon Staff
Despite the nation's deep economic recession and record-high unemployment rate, most of the 72 graduates of the local Bridges Out Of Poverty Program are working this Labor Day.
For those who have struggled with poverty, the Labor Day holiday is less about picnics and more about building a better life for their families. It's a day that celebrates the honesty of labor in a system that doesn't always work for those who need it the most.
The central focus of the Bridges Out of Poverty program is finding and keep keeping a job — or advancing to a better one. But it takes money and hours to run such an active non-profit program.
“Once they graduate the class, they are put into a support group with a mentor,” said Mona Ash, program coordinator for the adult learning program.
She added: “We need funds to continue doing our work."
With fundraisers and events affected by the novel coronavirus pandemic, Ash thought she could combine the silent sleekness of an online auction with the loud, creative expression of area artists.
That’s how the organization’s first online Chair-ity Auction was born. Hand-painted donated chairs will be up for bid starting Sept. 17, and nearly 30 chairs have been donated.
Many of the chairs have been set up in the window of The Loft on Jefferson Street, which houses the Bridges Out Of Poverty office.
“People have been walking by (The Loft) and looking at the chairs,” Ash said.
The online auction begins Sept. 17 and stretches through part of October, which means there is still time to donate artistically altered chairs. For more details, check out the Facebook page “Building Bridges A Southeast Iowa Initiative” or call Ash at (319) 754- 8421.
Photo by William Smith
.Mona Ash sits in one of the chairs inside The Loft on Burlington Street. The chairs, decorated by local artists, will be up for bid during an online auction starting Sept. 17.