Furniture Mission of The Red River Valley is providing household essentials during challenging times
The Furniture Mission of the Red River Valley is a non-profit organization based in North Dakota that works to provide essential household furniture and items, at no cost, to individuals and families facing challenging times.
Operating as a faith-based organization, the Furniture Mission, which was founded in 2020 by Evert Van Engelenhoven, specializes in facilitating access to furniture for households in crisis or undergoing significant life challenges. Their work involves collecting gently used furniture donations and then re-gifting these items to people who are in the process of rebuilding their lives. Essential items such as beds, dressers, and lamps, which are fundamental in setting up a home, form a significant part of their donations.
In order to ensure that the most in-need people are getting access to their donations, the Furniture Mission of the Red River Valley works with 40 other agencies in our community. These agencies are also walking alongside people as they navigate a lot of really challenging situations, including homelessness and domestic violence situations.
By The Numbers
- 20,000 pieces of furniture given out over 3.5 years
- 1 Employee
Addressing Furniture Insecurity with the Furniture Mission of the Red River Valley
Did You Know?
The Furniture Mission of the Red River Valley’s Founder, Evert Van Engelemhovens, won the AARP Community Service Award for the state of North Dakota.
“There are a lot of different situations that these people are coming from,” said Jordan McCormick, the Furniture Mission’s executive director and only employee. “The common denominator is that these individuals and families are completely starting over. Inventory is always a challenge so we might not have something that everybody needs, but we’re here to help people with the basic necessities so they can get back on their feet.”
According to McCormick, the average family takes home 12 pieces of furniture with them and they work with an average of 17 families per week.
“Last year, we served 624 families in the calendar year,” McCormick said. “Furniture insecurity is a real thing in our community, unfortunately. [People] don’t think of this when you think of basic needs. You need shelter, food, and you need access to medical care. But furniture can fall between the cracks and it can really make or break a situation where someone is doing all they can to get back on their feet.”
Types of Furniture
“We take couches, loveseats, chairs, table sets, dressers, lamps are the only thing we accept that plugs in, and beds are our most requested items,” McCormick said. “And, they’re the hardest thing for us to keep stocked because usually when we get them, they go right out. Obviously, beds can be gross, so we’re pretty picky when it comes to which bed we will accept—we want to serve people with dignity.”
How to Get Involved
- Volunteer
- Donate Furniture
- Donate Money
Support Furniture Mission of the Red River Valley
furnituremissionrrv.org
Facebook | /Furnituremissionrrv
