Friends,

I’ve got mentorship on my mind today. Last week we hit a significant milestone at Every Shelter, and the first people I wanted to tell were those I considered mentors. 

I watched my oldest daughter bouldering with her rock climbing coach, Mia, who also happened to intern for us this summer. Mia was such an asset to our team, but even more meaningful to me than her work ethic was that she knows my daughter adores her and engages her in their shared love for climbing. 

After leaving my daughter at the climbing gym with “Coach Mia,” I got to the office to see a book by a mentor of mine – Peter Greer – Hope International’s CEO. He was one of the first people I shared our exciting news with, and he immediately put his new book in the mail. 

It has me thinking about all of the folks who have cared enough about me to pour into me, who cared enough about our mission to want to help me lead Every Shelter better.

• Peter Greer has been a formative influence on me. He has charisma for doing good, desperately needed work in the world and bringing others into the fold. He believes that the world is abundant and joyfully brings together those of us who are privileged to be the hands of righting wrongs and those who can share in their abundance to help right those wrongs.

• Emily Stein was one of the first people I shared and celebrated our good news with. She was one of the first people to help teach me the inner workings of sharing our mission and vision with others and continues to be someone I turn to regularly for advice.

• Mike Beevers, the dad of one of my high school friends, was one of the first people I looked to for mentorship. Mike is one of my favorite kinds of people – someone who doesn’t telegraph outwardly who they are. Mike models for me what it means to be shrewd, diligent, and no one’s fool but compassionate and caring. He took me to Nigeria when I was 18, forever changing me.

• Carly Seidewand Eppley, current Every Shelter Board member, often feels like she is a part of our staff. Carly has shown me through example how to be well-researched and (possibly) over-prepared for every meeting. She’s taught me more about professionalism than I care to admit.

• Doug Meikle, a new mentor, once CEO’d a company with 17,000 employees and now pours into people like me. Doug is a consistently wise yet hard-pressing voice in my life. He pushes me in honest, insightful ways. He is a trusted, consistent voice in my life, personally and professionally.

It’s been a wild ride, but we’re growing and stabilizing and starting to do increasingly crucial meaningful work. 

Anyone in the nonprofit sector knows this is a significant financial milestone. We are validating our change thesis and have momentum.

Predictable, stable funding is the most helpful way to sustain and advance this mission. Even small amounts of money given on a predictable basis help us manage the planning, expenses, strategy, and budgets. 

We’d love to invite you to join our monthly giving community, The Haven. The Haven is a group of justice-oriented monthly supporters whose reliable monthly giving helps refugees rebuild their place of safety, stability, and refuge, their Haven. Our members believe in refugees and are building solutions to empower refugees for lasting, generational impact. 

As I watched my oldest daughter being poured into by someone she admires, I found myself sitting in my office grateful for all the people who have poured into me, including you. We wouldn’t be where we are without you, thank you.

– Scott Austin Key