Nonprofit Center at Pare in St. Clair Shores hosts open house

ST. CLAIR SHORES — The Nonprofit Center at Pare held their first open house since the COVID-19 pandemic on Jan. 24, and representatives of the organizations in the building indicated they are appreciative of the space and those who made it possible.

Kristy Schena, founder and director of Kids on the Go, said the building was previously closed for seven years before nonprofits started to move in and clean it up. It used to be Pare Elementary School owned by South Lake Public Schools.

“Kids on the Go moved in 2018, and I believe Gilda’s Club was the first one to move in.  At the time, they were called the Lake House, and I believe they moved in between 2016 and ’17,” Schena said.

Tom Cleaver, the president of the We Are Here Foundation, had volunteers who helped clean up the building.

In total, there are six organizations in the old elementary school: Gilda’s Club, Ribbons of Hope, Kids on the Go, Lakeshore Kiwanis, Big Family of Michigan, and the We Are Here Foundation.

Kids on the Go is beginning its 25th year. They provide free therapy for kids with special needs, ages 3-17, Schena said. According to their website, this includes occupational, physical, speech and recreational therapies.

Schena said there is no competition between the organizations and thinks the South Lake district has created a beautiful model for others to follow.

“So, it gives all of us an opportunity to work together. None of us are competing against (each other) for donor money; we all do separate things and are serving different populations,” Schena said.

Katrina Studvent, COO of Development & Engagement for Gilda’s Club Metro Detroit, said to be in the building was a great opportunity.

“Love it, yeah — I mean those cooperative spaces afford opportunity for us to collaborate, whether it’s on a grant, whether it’s resources or specifically one our members here at Gilda’s Club Metro Detroit,” Studvent said. “So it’s a great opportunity.”

Gilda’s Club is an organization that helps cancer patients, survivors and family members of cancer patients. They offer support groups in person and virtually for people of all ages.

Rosanne Minne, of the Shorewood Kiwanis Club, said it’s been good in the building. She said it started when a Gilda’s Club member reached out to the school board.

“She worked with South Lake school board and the appropriate people and she started using that end of the building and little by little all of these nonprofit organizations came into this building,” Minne said.

Shorewood Kiwanis is the driving force behind the Harper Charity Cruise. It collects money through sponsorships for many projects and events aimed toward helping children and community members.

Sharon McCaughrin, president and CEO of Big Family of Michigan, said it’s been wonderful in the building so far.

“Oh yes,” McCaughrin said. “Yes, we hope never to move again.”

Big Family of Michigan helps kids in foster care and who are living with grandparents by providing tools, gifts, and experiences to help them through life. One of the things they do is offer a “Birthday in a Bag” that provides a child with everything they need to celebrate their birthday, including cake mix and gifts.

The We Are Here Foundation helps preserve and clean Michigan waterways by providing new and gently used furniture to school districts in need, according to their website. They take donated boats and cars to fund their programs.

“Cleaning Southeast Michigan by providing new furniture to school districts,” Cleaver said.

Maryjane “Mj” Gaspar, one of the sisters behind Ribbons of Hope, said the organization designs apparel related to awareness for autism, Alzheimer’s and cancer as well as providing “Boxes of Hope” to breast cancer patients given to them by nurse navigators. A portion of their sales are donated to cancer, Alzheimer’s and autism programs.

Schena said the organizations want to make sure that their appreciation for the space is known.

“A big message for this is we want to make sure that the school board and City Council know how much we appreciate this space,” Schena said. “And I think I said it earlier, of that, this building, the value of how many people and populations the impact has had on.”