This Saturday June 23, 2018, for the 2nd year in a row I will be deadlifting heavy stuff at the Pull For Pride nationwide deadlifting fundraiser, open to all gender identities and experience levels. It is a simple lift that is imbued with meaning: coming forward to face a challenge, and succeeding through the simple mechanism of one’s own strength. Participants will be raising $1 for every pound they plan to lift, to uplift homeless youth around the country. I am asking for any and all forms of donations as I try to reach my goal of $450. Think of the kids. Everybody loves kids, right!!??
All seven Pull For Pride events will be fundraising for nonprofits in their community that provide direct support to LGBTQ youth struggling with homelessness. All donations go to benefit Avenues for Homeless Youth, a non-profit dedicated to providing housing, basic needs, and supportive services to help homeless youth. Avenues is also one of the few Home Host programs available for LGBTQ homeless youth. Homeless adolescents and young adults, who number roughly 6,000 in Minnesota on a given day, are so often a segment of our population that feels powerless in the face of trauma and abuse.