Community Building With IKEA Merriam

Family Promise of Lawrence is proud to celebrate a meaningful partnership with IKEA Merriam, which fully furnished a home for families transitioning out of housing insecurity and into permanent housing during four community building events held the week April 19th.

Through thoughtful planning and a very generous donation of furniture and home essentials, IKEA Merriam helped create a welcoming, functional space where families can begin building stability and comfort. This collaboration reflects a shared commitment to dignity and belonging that ensures families have the supportive environments they need to thrive. (Read the press release here.)

This effort was made possible through the collaboration of many community partners, including Lawrence Memorial Hospital, A & A Precision Painting, Ninja Windows, River City Heating & Cooling and Rock Hill Church. By assembling furniture together and preparing the housing unit featured below for a family to move in, these supportive entities, the IKEA team, FPL staff and 30+ volunteers demonstrated how powerful a community can be! 

Get Ready for the 5K Home Run Event

Join us on Memorial Day (Monday, May 25, 2026) at 8:30 a.m. for the annual 5K Home Run event! All proceeds will directly benefit local children and families experiencing a housing crisis.

From seasoned racers to folks walking their leashed dogs, this race is open to anyone interested in participating! This is an in-person -OR- virtual event… you choose, and we will make sure you get a 5K Home Run themed T-shirt. Either way, you will want to register soon, because the first 100 runners who sign up will receive a swag bag!

If you want to help in other ways, we have almost 100 volunteer opportunities designed just for you! Some FPL supporters are so dedicated to the cause that they participate in the 5K virtually -AND- sign up to volunteer at the in person part of the event! This year, the first 50 volunteers who sign up will have their names enter in a drawing for a $25 gift card!

A few hot tips- If you can come to the event this year, be ready to cheer on every 5K participant, try to remember to thank the volunteers and plan to visit the enhanced Kids Zone, complete with a large bounce house from our friends at ATEC Services LLC!

To join us, simply click the blue buttons below! Together, we’re better!

Register to Participate
Volunteer

Kelli Russell, Overnight Staff

Kelli Russell is a compassionate overnight family support specialist committed to supporting families experiencing homelessness. With over 20 years of experience in early childhood education, she builds rapport quickly with parents and children to provide the emotional support necessary for a peaceful and safe environment. Kelli is dedicated to helping families transition from crisis to stability with dignity.
In her personal time, she enjoys spending time with her family and cats, traveling, and trying new restaurants.

Holly LeClaire, Overnight Staff

Holly LeClaire is passionate about supporting families in need, drawing on her lived experience and deep understanding of the challenges families face. She is dedicated to helping others navigate challenges, build resilience, and find hope, always approaching her work with compassion, respect, and a commitment to empowerment.

Grace Harris, Family Service Coordinator

Grace was born and raised in a rural community in Tennessee before attending the University of Tennessee, Knoxville where she received her Bachelors of Arts in Psychology and Intersectionality. It was here that she solidified her passion for helping others build strong connections with and feel empowered by their community. 
 
When she relocated to Kansas Grace was immediately drawn to Family Promise and their work. She loves working alongside the like-minded individuals within the organization that strive to empower others through advocacy and connecting them with their community. When she’s not in the office, Grace enjoys attending live music events, reading, and going to trivia nights with friends. 

Josie Hicks, Overnight Staff

Josie Hicks has lived most of her life in Washington state before moving to Kansas. She loves the beautiful open skies of Kansas. Some of her favorite things are Star Trek, reading, and her very active one-year-old husky.

Seasons Greetings from our Executive Director

SEASON’S GREETINGS!

Here at Family Promise of Lawrence (FPL), we are dedicated to opening doors and providing services to every family seeking stable housing  in Douglas County. With your help in 2025, our new Mount Hope Shelter opened its doors to stability, safety and hope for more than 40 children and their families. As the only family shelter in Douglas County, Mt. Hope is fulfilling the vision we set for it: to provide a safe, temporary shelter for more families than ever before!

To assist local families facing housing crisis, FPL opens doors for family stability and peace of mind through our Eviction Prevention, Diversion, Stabilization, and Housing programs. So far this year, 265 families (922 individuals) with 550 children have received vital support services. To date, as a strong testament to program effectiveness and family tenacity, 95% of the families who’ve completed the Eviction Prevention and Stabilization programs remain housed!

We’re also opening doors for the community by inviting everyone in Douglas County to collaborate through volunteerism. In fact, more than 410 unique individuals from across Douglas County have given their time and talent to a one-time project or through ongoing, weekly engagements this year! Their generosity and skills have greatly expanded our capacity to serve families across all our programs.

Looking ahead to 2026, our excitement is growing as we prepare to open new doors to affordable homes for families. In fact, a new six-plex apartment building is currently being built by our community partner, Ninth Street Missionary Baptist Church, for the purpose of offering supportive housing through our Housing program. We’ll also open the door to a single-family home, recently donated by a community member whose generosity will provide permanent housing to future FPL families. Lastly, we’re planning to collaborate with a new nonprofit by supplying case management services for their supportive housing units where we will be able to serve single moms and their children.

Today, I am throwing open our doors for you! In order to help make these life-changing transformations possible for local families, our goal is to raise $100,000 this holiday season. To kick off a successful year-end campaign and inspire others to give, Bob & Katherine Dinsdale, Brad & Amy Finkeldei, Cindy Haines, and Joel & Mary Kaczor are offering generous matching gifts worth a collective value of $27,500! As the foremost organization addressing the crisis of family homelessness in Douglas County, every donation is meaningful, no matter how small. Please invest in Family Promise and kindly help us unlock these donors’ generosity!

With appreciation for every door you help us open,

DONATE NOW