Shelter KC, a mission-driven organization in Kansas City, Missouri, got a call from Lisa and Kellie, owners of The Upper Crust, a renowned bakery in Olathe, Kansas. For three months, the bakery had collected money in a “tip-jar” to donate to the Shelter.

The nonprofit provides comprehensive support for individuals experiencing homelessness. In addition to stop-gap needs, many clients face mental health challenges, medical challenges, crisis situations, and other traumas, requiring sustained care and encouragement to rebuild their lives.

The bakery owners reached out to Shelter KC to deliver the money in person. The Shelter’s Donor Relations Specialist Alisha Roberts offered them a tour as well. What happened next was unexpected and profound, as one inspired idea led to another.

At the time, Shelter KC was in its $8-million Transformations campaign to expand and enhance its campus. After 30 years in the same complex, the Shelter’s facilities needed significant upgrades, and had outgrown its limited space.

As the organization’s Kinetic fundraising consultant, I had the privilege of witnessing the Shelter’s transformative work. I also learned about the powerful connection between a person’s emotional and physical well-being and their environment.

Through this lens of “trauma-informed design,” Shelter KC partnered with an architectural firm to integrate these principles into their expanded facility, incorporating calming colors, spaces that reinforce personal identity and features that foster autonomy—creating a therapeutic atmosphere that promotes hope and healing.

During their tour, Alisha showed the owners the Shelter’s kitchen: “Our oven has been down for three weeks. Your gift will help toward purchasing a new one.” As professional bakers, Lisa and Kellie were immediately moved to give even more toward the replacement. Not only had Alisha helped secure a new oven, but she deepened the relationship with The Upper Crust owners in a way that personally resonated with them.

But her creativity didn’t stop there. She tracked down the Shelter client who had created Shelter KC’s TV spot—the very ad that inspired the bakery’s tip-jar challenge. Then, she arranged for the client to meet Lisa and Kellie. As he shared his personal journey of overcoming homelessness, the donors were brought to tears, solidifying their connection to Shelter KC’s mission and demonstrating the power of philanthropy to turn inspiration into transformative donor connections.