On Saturday, November 22, a group of Heirloom team members, friends, and community volunteers spent the morning working on a project that many described as “simple, but overdue.” Across the street from Heirloom’s downtown office sits the Union Gospel Mission, a vital organization that serves more than 300 meals a day to people in need. With only enough indoor seating for about seventy people, many guests grab a meal and head straight back outside.
For years, this has meant people sitting on cold sidewalks, leaning against buildings, resting near doorways, or gathering in open parking areas because there was nowhere else to go. Everyone downtown sees it daily. The Heirloom team sees it right outside their windows. And many felt that it was time to do something that would offer people a better place to pause, eat, and rest. Partnering with Essentia Health who matched the cost on materials, Heirloom set to build a solution.
Over the past several weeks, a group of Heirloom carpenters designed and built a collection of seating structures and simple privacy planters with one purpose in mind: create a calm, respectful, and safe place for anyone who needed a moment off their feet.
On November 22nd, more than thirty community volunteers showed up at 9 a.m. ready to help finish the project. The group spent the morning fastening deck boards, sanding edges, assembling seating, and hauling the completed pieces into place across the street. It was the kind of work that brings people together. Folks who had never met before were partnered on assembling the benches, measuring boards, or carrying lumber. There was good conversation, a lot of laughter, and a shared sense that this was something that mattered.
By early afternoon, the space had taken shape. What had been an empty parking corner now looked like a small outdoor courtyard, with ample seating behind planter walls to shield guests from wind and traffic. And for many who rely on the Mission, dignity is something that can be in short supply. After volunteers went over to neighbors Juicepharm who were offered beverages for all volunteers.
Helping Duluth’s Most Vulnerable
“Union Gospel Mission serves over 300 people each day, but our dining hall only has 75 chairs, so guests often spill out onto the sidewalks simply because there isn’t enough room inside. Heirloom’s willingness to step up and build a safe outdoor space reflects the best kind of partnership. They’ve given their time, their talent, and their own resources, alongside support from Essentia, to help create something that prioritizes dignity and community through understanding and action. We couldn’t be more grateful.”
Homelessness is complicated, and no single project will solve every challenge people face. But creating a place that is safe, calm, and welcoming is a good start. It is one small way to show care for people who are too often pushed aside
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Heirloom plans to continue looking for ways to support the Mission and the surrounding community and hopes this project inspires others to look for small but meaningful ways to help their neighbors.
