NeighborLink supporter, Jerriah Miller, got into creating stained glass art pieces a year or so ago as a hobby and a way to create cool collectibles for friends and family. He's made pieces that include runners, Ninja Turtles, Grateful Dead logo, Cubs logos, and even logos for a local burger joint called Bravas.

After hearing about and considering the realities that some neighbors seeking assistance at NL will go without heat this winter because their furnace is broken and their fixed income won't allow them to fix it, he came up with idea to create these small, stained glass feathers in exchange for donations to NL. He set out to make 15-20 feathers and raise around $300. People loved the designs so much and the fact that they would make great gifts, Jerriah has ended up with orders for nearly 40 feathers and has raised over $750 to help get a furnace installed for a neighbor. That's almost half the cost of a furnace.

It takes right around an hour per feather to produce, so he's got his work cut out for him. But, Jerriah says it's all worth it knowing that he's going to be able to help someone have a warm house this winter, something easy to take for granted.

Right now, NeighborLink is lining up two different furnace replacement projects for fundraisers we're doing before the end of the year. In addition to producing these feathers, Jerriah is hosting an annual holiday party where he invites guests to bring a donation. We also have a few runners going to run a 50k run in December who hope to raise money during that event. Finally, we have a year-end celebration and fundraising event on December 7th that we hope to raise enough money at to fund a furnace just through ticket sales.

We love just how simple it is to put your skills, gifts, and hobbies to use for the benefit of others. Thanks, Jerriah.