Theresa Living Center celebrated its 30th anniversary at the fourth annual fundraising breakfast on October 30th at the Midland Hills Country Club. We raised more than $60,000, which enabled us to access two matching grants from the Katherine B. Andersen Fund of The Saint Paul Foundation ($25,000) and members of the Theresa Living Center Board of Directors ($30,000), giving us a total of over $100,000 raised! Thank you so much to all who attended and supported the event.

We also marked our 30th anniversary with a special presentation to the School Sisters of Notre Dame and the Church of St. Casimir, who have supported us so generously over the decades and continue to do so today. See more about the event in the photo captions.

We’d like to especially thank the Katherine B. Andersen Fund of The Saint Paul Foundation for underwriting the cost of the event, and to all the volunteers and staff who helped make the event such a success.

More than 200 attended our 30th anniversary fundraising breakfast. Thanks to generous donations, we raised more than $60,000, helping us to earn more than $55,000 in matching grants from the Katherine B. Andersen Fund of The Saint Paul Foundation and the Theresa Living Center Board of Directors. Thank you to everyone for your wonderful support for our mission! Pictured: Mary Kasel, Jerry Sanft, and Dewain Kasel.

Keynote speaker Acooa Ellis, Senior Vice president of Community Impact for the Greater Twin Cities United Way, spoke about the challenges of addressing homelessness in the Twin Cities.

Board Chair Dennis WIlliams gives a plaque to Sisters Marilyn Orchard and Rita Jirik of the School Sisters of Notre Dame. Sisters Marilyn and Rita founded Theresa Living Center, which opened its doors to help homeless women and children in 1988 as a project to honor Mother Theresa Gerhardinger, an educator of girls and the foundress of their order.

Thrilled to have so many School Sisters of Notre Dame at the breakfast, including many stalwart volunteers and supporters, not to mention our two founders! Left to right: Sisters Paulette Pass, Suzanne Eichler, Mary Gen Olin, Marilyn Orchard (founder), Rita Jirik, (founder), and Paulissa Jirik. We are so grateful for all of the love, hard work, and generous financial assistance the SSND has given us over the past 30 years!

Sisters Marilyn Orchard and Rita Jirk, SSND, our two founders. They were presented with a plaque acknowledging the SSND's role in the creation of Theresa Living Center in 1988 and their generous ongoing support in time, financial assistance, and talents.

Sherellia Moore, keynote speaker Acooa Ellis, and Theresa Living Center board member Karla Benson Rutten.

Wonderful music by keyboardist Thomas West and vocalist Maurice Jacox, who performed several selections during the event. They added so much to our morning—thank you, gentlemen!

Celebrating our 30th anniversary this year—thanks to all the volunteers and board members who made the event such a smashing success! The event was held at the Midland Hills Golf Club. Thanks to Mary Jo Mahowald for being our Midland Hills sponsor.

Jan Pithey, Marilyn Sanft, and Mary Kasel.