Change for our Community

Change for our Community gives shoppers the opportunity to donate their spare change to local organizations every time they shop. In Lawrence, a different organization is featured as the recipient each month. In Kansas City, one organization is selected for the year. One hundred percent of all donations collected go to the organizations. In 2023, we — as a co-op community — raised $65,065.96. Since the program began in January 2014, we have raised over $700,000 for over 65 local nonprofits.

The Change for our Community applications are open October each year.

Kansas City’s 2024 Recipient

The Hub Argentine

The Hub Argentine, Inc. is a non-profit organization in the Argentine neighborhood of Kansas City, KS. Our mission is to connect people to their gifts, neighbors, faith and culture, vital resources for health and wholeness, stories, and joy.

We embody this mission through 7 programs, which include a free grocery store, free clothing store, community garden, after school program, community shower program, and groups for connection and health and wholeness. Your donation today directly impacts our community. Thank you!


Lawrence’s November Recipient

Lawrence Meals on Wheels

Lawrence Meals on Wheels provides daily hot nutritious meals made for individuals specific dietary needs, to help them remain safe and healthy in their own homes as long as possible. With the help of over 110 volunteers each week, we deliver so much more than just a meal. Our volunteers also provide a wellness check and a friendly visitor with each delivery. We serve homebound elderly and/or disabled individuals of all ages. With the support of the Lawrence Community, we do not turn anyone away due to their inability to pay for our services.

 

How Change Works

There are Four ways to contribute to Change:

  • Round Up: Round the amount of your order up to the next dollar and the difference will be redirected to this month's Change recipient.

  • Bag Refunds: Bring your own bag, and the 5¢ bag refund will be redirected to the Change recipient.

  • Donate online to our current Change for our Community recipient.

  • Change Jars: Drop your spare change into the jars at our cash registers. (Lawrence location)

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Together, we have helped fund a number or worthwhile needs and projects, including:

  • the purchase of special communication devices for children who do not have a voice or who are delayed in speaking (Tiny K Early Intervention, October 2015)

  • tuition scholarships for Douglas County children in need (Positive Bright Start, March 2016)

  • providing for the immediate needs of those seeking shelter, including fresh, healthy food (Willow Domestic Violence Center, May 2016)

The co-op cannot track Round Up donations for tax purposes. Currently our Point of Sale (POS) system only has the capability of retrieving an owner's receipts for the past 90 days. Customers who wish to track are encouraged to use the Round Up total on their receipts provided by the cashier. We will keep this request in mind when evaluating potential POS upgrades.


Recent Change Partners

After the Harvest

Lawrence Meals on Wheels

Friends of the Kaw

ECKAN Douglas County

Big Brothers Big Sisters

El Centro, Inc.

 

2024 Change Recipients

January 2024

Native Lands Restoration Collaborative

Native Lands Restoration Collaborative and our volunteers protect and restore landscapes on public property and support landowners as they strive to meet conservation goals.

Our work empowers land stewards (like you!) to build and conserve resilient native ecosystems through field excursions, hands-on workshops and trainings. Thank you for rounding up — your change will directly support our land stewardship team!

February 2024

100 Good Women

100 Good Women is a long-standing, volunteer-only organization that has spent the last 27 years raising resources for Douglas County locals. Your donation will go directly to local residents in need. We promote well-being in our community through service, education and social connection.

Learn more at 100GoodWomen.org

March 2024

The philosophy of the Children’s Learning Center is to help children develop skills that create a strong foundation for life and learning. High emphasis is placed on the emotional security of the children, and much personal attention is given to the children to allow them to feel they are loved and valued as individuals. We believe that children’s innate curiosity can lead them to discover new skills in areas of cognition, language development, motor development, creative expression, and social awareness. Both school locations provides a rich array of stimulating possibilities to arouse the children’s interest while preparing them for the next step in education.

April 2024

Growing Food Growing Health

Growing Food Growing Health’s mission is to nourish and inspire personal well-being, strengthen community connections, and support local, sustainable food systems. We fulfill our mission by creating beautiful and productive gardens, developing youth leaders who are the stewards of our gardens, and sharing our bounty with those most in need in our community.

We run two gardens — the Growing Food Growing Health Garden at West Middle School, and the Growing Food Growing Hope Garden at First Step, a residential addiction treatment center for women and their children. All produce from these gardens, over 4,000 lbs. in 2023, is donated to help feed and nurture our community, either distributed at our weekly Free Market at Edgewood Homes or given to the kitchen at First Step.

May 2024

The Ballard Center

The Ballard Center in North Lawrence helps families in lots of ways. Ballard provides affordable childcare and is very successful with getting children ready for kindergarten. Ballard also operates a food and clothing pantry open to everyone and assists families with paying rent and utility bills. Each year the Ballard Center helps more than 10,000 people in the Lawrence community.

June 2024

Lawrence Habitat for Humanity

Lawrence Habitat for Humanity brings people together to build homes, communities, and hope.  

For many families, safe, adequate, and sustainable housing isn't a reality. Locally, almost half of all renters and one in four homeowners can't afford their housing costs. In response to this severe need, Lawrence Habitat seeks to be a partner and a catalyst in building (and repairing) a community where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

Our efforts include building new affordable housing with volunteer support, completing critical system repairs, mobile home repairs, interior and exterior repairs for aging seniors, and first-time homeowner educational opportunities.

JULY 2024

The Full Circle Youth Program offers youth programming focused on education, art, and wellness to low-income youth in Douglas County. Among FCYP’s programming is an after-school drop-in center which provides a free, safe, and creative setting for children ages 7–17, offering healthy snacks, academic tutoring, health and wellness programs, arts and crafts, field trips, leadership and life skills, mentoring, teen workshops and employment opportunities, and a computer lab for access to the internet and educational games.

August 2024

Lawrence Humane

Lawrence Humane’s mission is to nurture the human-animal bond by providing shelter, care, and advocacy for homeless and vulnerable animals, as well as resources for the pets and people in our community. Lawrence Humane cares for over 6,500 animals every year and has a 94% live release rate, never euthanizing animals for time or space.

In addition to finding loving families for homeless pets and reuniting lost pets with their owners, Lawrence Humane seeks to keep pets and people together through our pet pantry, Crisis Pet Retention program, and low-cost public veterinary services.

September 2024

Community Children’s Center

The Community Children’s Center is dedicated to increasing access to high-quality, accessible, available, and affordable childcare for infants to five-year-olds in Douglas County.

Our staff provides a variety of training, programs, and partnerships aimed at helping parents through the journey of parenting.

OCTOBER 2024

Children’s Advocacy Center

The CAC Douglas County works to ensure that children and families affected by child abuse receive a compassionate, community-based intervention through a multidisciplinary team approach to prevent, identify, investigate, prosecute, and treat child maltreatment.


2023 Change Recipients

february 2023

Centro Hispano

April 2023

Growing Food Growing Health

May 2023

The Sexual Trauma & Abuse Care Center

June 2023

KC Farm School at Gibbs Road

July 2023

Friends of the Kaw

august 2023

Sunrise Project

September 2023

Heartland Community Health

OCTOBER 2023

Willow Domestic Violence Center

NOVEMBER 2023

KC Healthy Kids

DECEMBER 2023

The 25th Annual Giving Tree


2022 Change Recipients

February 2022

Kansas Association for Conservation and Environmental Education (KACEE)

March 2022

The Arc of Douglas County

April 2022

Growing Food Growing Health

May 2022

El Centro, Inc.

June 2022

Senior Resource Center

July 2022

Lawrence Farmers Market

August 2022

Cultivate KC

September 2022

Bert Nash

October 2022

Kansas Rural Center

November 2022

Positive Bright Start

December 2022

The Giving Tree


2021 Change Recipients

January 2021

Big Brothers Big Sisters

February 2021

After the Harvest

March 2021

The Children’s Shelter

April 2021

Growing Food Growing Health

May 2021

Lawrence Meals on Wheels

June 2021

The Ballard Center

August 2021

Douglas County CASA

September 2021

Social Service League

October 2021

Groundwork NRG

november 2021

Just Food

December 2021

Giving Tree


2020 Change Recipients

January 2020

Centro Hispano

February 2020

Lawrence Interdenominational Nutrition Kitchen (L.I.N.K.)

March 2020

Lawrence Humane Society

april 2020

Growing Food Growing Health

May 2020

Friends of Hidden Valley

June 2020

Kansas Land Trust

July 2020

Sunrise Project

August 2020

Lawrence’s Change Partner

Friends of the Kaw

Kansas City’s Change Partner

Latino Health for All Coalition

September 2020

Lawrence’s Change Partner

Kansas Suicide Prevention HQ

Kansas City’s Change Partner

Project RALLY

October 2020

Lawrence’s Change Partner

The Willow Domestic Violence Center

Kansas City’s Change Partner

Groundwork NRG

November 2020

Lawrence’s Change Partner

The Coalition for Homeless Concerns, Inc.

Kansas City’s Change Partner

New Roots for Refugees

december 2020

Lawrence’s Change Partner

The Giving Tree

Kansas City’s Change Partner

El Centro Inc.


2019 Change Recipients

January 2019

Lawrence Community Shelter

February 2019

Audio-Reader Network

March 2019

Kansas Advocates for Better Care

April 2019

Sexual Trauma & Abuse Care Center

May 2019

Community Mercantile Education Foundation

June 2019

Lawrence Meals on Wheels, Inc.

July 2019

Children’s Learning Center, Inc.

August 2019

Full Circle Youth Program

September 2019

The Social Service League of Lawrence

October 2019

StopGap, Inc.

November 2019

Just Food of Douglas County

December 2019

The Giving Tree


2018 Change Recipients

January 2018

Centro Hispano

February 2018

Douglas County Dental Clinic

March 2018

Kansas Rural Center

April 2018

Growing Food Growing Hope

May 2018

Willow Domestic Violence Center

June 2018

Douglas County CASA

july 2018

Senior Resource Center

August 2018

Sunrise Project

september 2018

Communities in Schools of Mid-America

October 2018

The Bert Nash Center

November 2018

Kansas Big Brothers Big Sisters

December 2018

The 20th Annual Giving Tree


2017 Change Recipients

FEBRUARY 2017

CLO's Midnight Farm

 March 2017

Kansas Advocates for Better Care

April 2017

Growing Food Growing Health

May 2017

Falling Forward Foundation

June 2017

Friends of the Kaw

July 2017

Community Village Lawrence

August 2017

Ecumenical Campus Ministries

September 2017

First Step House

November 2017

Just Food

december 2017

19th Annual Giving Tree