Matr Boomie participates in a community volunteer day a few times a year. On May 20th, our staff volunteered at a local organization called Sunrise Navigation Center.
What is Sunrise Navigation Center?
Sunrise is the largest provider of homeless services in Travis County. They help people experiencing homelessness find access to housing, as well as providing medical care and mental health services for clients in need. One goal of this holistic approach is to keep clients from falling through the cracks and missing out on crucial resources.
This organization plays an important role in supporting unhoused people in Austin, and the work they do is deeply personal. For some members of our wonderful Matr Boomie team, the connection is personal too.
“As someone who has experienced homelessness, volunteering with Sunrise brought up a lot of complex emotion and reinforced how precarious housing really is - so easy to lose, so hard to get back,” one team member explained. “Working with my team to help people who are where I once was, and where I could easily end up again, was really humbling. It means a lot to work for a company like Matr Boomie that actually cares about lifting up people in our community who need support.”
Matr Boomie’s Volunteer Day
While volunteering at Sunrise, our team lended support in a few key areas. The organization accepts clothing donations for clients. We organized the donated clothing, and worked in the clothing donation “store” where clients select items for free. We were able to sort through clothes that would typically take one employee about three days to organize.
Sunrise also accepts donated electronics for clients in need. We helped organize and store laptops for future use. Additionally, our team sorted through onsite medication to get rid of expired items.
An often overlooked area of support for people experiencing homelessness is pet care. Clients need to provide food and healthcare for their pets, and Sunrise supports this priority. While our team was at Sunrise, we bagged up dog food into individual portions for clients’ pets.
Overall, the Matr Boomie team had a wonderful experience volunteering at Sunrise Navigation Center. Giving back to our community is an important part of our mission to be more kind, compassionate and connected.
Our founder explained, “I am grateful for our wonderful community, Sunrise and our team to have a heart to support those in need and to work together.” Sunrise Navigation Center does important work every single day, and we were glad to spend a day volunteering with them.
At Matr Boomie, through Fair Trade practices, we work diligently to provide a way to break the cycle of poverty in India and to empower our partner communities. We go beyond living wages and actively invest in development projects, healthcare, and education. We are passionate about supporting marginalized communities near and far. With our Kandu collection, a Home Fragrance collection, made in Austin, TX, our mission is to create meaningful, well paying employment opportunities that act as a catalyst for change in the lives of our community members. Kandu partners with women from at-risk groups including those who have been previously incarcerated, victims of domestic violence, refugees and those on the brink of becoming homeless.
How to Give Back
There’s a couple ways you can help support this organization. If you are in the Austin area, you can volunteer on the second Saturday of every month. You can also donate funds or goods. Sunrise accepts donations of gently used items, food, and gift cards.
Learn more about Sunrise Navigation Center.