There’s work to do. We are gearing up for it, and we need your help.

Honestly, regardless of which way the election turned, there was going to be work to do. As a nation, we are having trouble hearing one another. There are voices that simply go unheard. There are wounds that need healing and relationships that need mending.

For the last 15 years, A Peace of My Mind has used stories and art to bring people together. To talk about difficult issues. To amplify voices that need to be heard. To practice the art of deep listening and to say to everyone we meet, “I see you, I hear you, and you matter.”

We’ve bitten off a lot in the last 12 months. We published our latest book, Lessons on the Road to Peace (which won the Minnesota Book Awards plus other honors!) We moved into a physical space to call home. We added Nick to the team to help with logistics. We started working with interns. We gathered the first of our international stories on an exploratory trip to Northern Ireland. We started creating a series of stories on addiction and recovery.

It feels like a lot. It feels like risk. And it feels like we are right where we need to be. We are stretching and growing because I see a world in need of healing and everywhere we go, I see that A Peace of My Mind delivers it. This work creates connections. It helps people feel seen. It offers an alternative to the corrosive “us vs. them rhetoric” that fills our airwaves and limits our potential. It creates a space where people can imagine a different world.

For 15 years A Peace of My Mind has been guided by the head and the heart. We have been strategic and intentional and purpose driven. And also, we have listened closely for that quiet voice within that tells us when it’s time to grow. And we’ve leaned into it. It has been scary each and every time. And…each and every time…people who believe in this work have responded and helped us do it.

It’s time to ask for help again. It’s our donors who make the new stories possible. It’s our donors who help us fill up another tank of gas, book a cheap hotel (truth is, we sometimes still couch-surf to stay lean and make sure this work happens), pay for transcription services, web hosting, new gear, and helping hands when it’s needed. And we can’t do this work without you.

We will continue to expand that list above in 2025. And as the days and weeks and months unfold, I know that there will be new and important stories to tell that ground us in our need to care for one another.

I’m asking you to help us say yes. Help us get ready to tell the stories that need to be heard in the new year. We have set a goal of raising $25,025 by the end of the year. Of course, that’s not our whole operating budget, but this is the wiggle room that lets us reach farther and do more. 

We have been quietly running this campaign for a couple weeks now, and we are half-way there. It’s time to finish so we can focus on the work. I know we can make this goal and if we surpass it, we’ll simply say yes to even more.

We’ve built a giving pyramid to imagine what success looks like. It’s going to take a lot of hands, but I’m hopeful you can see yourself somewhere on this graphic. That you can pitch in at some level and help us do this work. 

If you’ve found any sort of joy or comfort or new understanding in these stories through the years, now is the time to join our small and mighty team of donors who support this work. We can do more together.

I’m grateful for each and every one of you. Keep shining your light.