Isaiah with Jacob, supported at our Knollway home

Home is so important to us all. It’s the place that holds our memories. It’s where we gather with family and friends to celebrate holidays, enjoy a meal, or just hang out together. We want our homes to be comfortable and safe and to provide what we need to have a good life. Home is where we want to live as long as we are able.

At Hammer & NER, home means everything to the people we serve. And to our dedicated caregivers, home is where they provide the care and support that ensures everyone enjoys the best life possible. It’s important and noble work.

We recently launched the Together, We Ensure Tomorrow campaign, which provides us with the opportunity to ensure the future for the individuals we support and their caregivers. The goal of this campaign, our most ambitious fundraising effort ever, is to raise $5 million or more by April 2026 for immediate critical funding needs and to lay a solid foundation to fulfill our mission long term.

The needs of Hammer & NER are changing rapidly as we prepare for the impact of Medicaid and state program changes. Government funding for services to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities continues to be restricted, and the gap between what is funded and what is needed is widening. The Together, We Ensure Tomorrow campaign will ensure we can continue to provide excellent, person-centered care in the face of these challenges. The people we serve can’t wait. Their future—and ours—depends on what we all do next.

Meeting New Challenges with This Campaign

• Medical advances mean people with disabilities are living longer, healthier, and more active lives than ever before.
• Homes must be remodeled to improve accessibility with lifts, elevators, widened floor plans, and updated bathrooms.
• Staff need advanced training and new resources to meet increased medical and mobility needs.
• Additional nursing support and medical care are required, even when Medicaid does not cover it.

Lillian Marriott, Program Manager at Cedarwood East, with Shannon

Increased funds are needed to fill the gap in order to prevent cuts that would be detrimental to the people we serve and their families. We must face these challenges head on and take action now. Together, we can ensure a future in which the people we support can live their lives in their Hammer & NER homes with full support from highly trained and well-equipped caregivers who are committed to providing them with the best care possible.

Throughout our history, Hammer & NER has moved and changed with the reality of the world around us. This is such a moment. With donors like you who believe in our mission, we will keep moving forward because our mission is too important and because the people we support deserve to live their best lives. Thank you for your commitment to Hammer & NER.

To learn more about the Together, We Ensure Tomorrow campaign, please visit: hammer.org/together-we-ensure-tomorrow/

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The Mount Olivet Lutheran Quilters aren’t just stitching fabric—they’re stitching love and comfort into every square. This dedicated group of 14 women crafts 12–20 quilts each month, each measuring 60” x 80.” Over the past 28 years, they’ve created more than 2,400 quilts, wrapping countless lives in warmth.

Max

Patricia

The quilts find homes through local nonprofits. Since 2012, the Quilters have donated over 170 quilts to Hammer & NER, each one personalized with colors and patterns that reflect the recipient’s favorite hues or interests. “We pick out interesting and quirky ones for Hammer & NER,” says Nancy Vande Vegte, who helps organize the quilt donations. “We’re happy to help where there’s a need.” Nancy adds that the daughter of one of the members is supported at Hammer & NER.

Laura and Kim

Sam

This year’s delivery brought 24 cozy quilts to eight Hammer & NER homes. At the Currie home, Program Manager Rachel Carson shares how much the quilts mean: “Laura loves hers and had a huge smile on her face when she got her quilt,” Rachel says. “She says she could always use more of these!” For Laura, this gift was more than fabric—it was comfort and care.

Dru

These quilts aren’t just warming bodies—they’re warming hearts. Thank you to the Mount Olivet Lutheran Quilters for sharing your love with us.

In photo above, members of the Mount Olivet Lutheran Quilters are pictured in the church sanctuary with some of the quilts they made this year.

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Every year, Apartments.com’s ThanksGifting program honors deserving nonprofits that partner with the multifamily industry to build a brighter future. This year, Hammer & NER was selected to receive a $10,000 gift from the ThanksGifting program.

Leslie Klecatksy is the property director of Lake Place Apartments & Townhomes in Eden Prairie, which is affiliated with Apartments.com. This year, she won the opportunity to select a nonprofit organization to receive a $10,000 gift courtesy of Apartments.com. She chose Hammer & NER, as 12 of the men and women it supports are proud to call the Lake Place Apartments home. Our apartment programs support people who have the desire to live more independently. Hammer & NER staff help them build essential life skills to do so and provide 24/7 onsite assistance, lending a helping hand as needed.

DSP Rita Tri with Jenna

Our apartment programs, like Lake Place, make it possible for people with disabilities to live meaningful, self-directed lives. We are pleased that community partners like Lake Place Apartments welcome those we support to be a part of their community. This is what inclusion looks like and it means the world to those we support and their families. We are grateful for this $10,000 gift and to Leslie and the Lake Place staff for making it possible.

Hammer & NER opened its apartment program at Lake Place 15 years ago. Leslie Klecatksy says it has been more than a landlord-tenant relationship. “It has felt more like a partnership, and one we are proud to be part of,” she says. “We couldn’t think of anyone more deserving to be nominated for the Apartments.com donation. We have seen firsthand the positive impact the apartment program at Lake Place has had on the Hammer & NER residents and in our community as a whole.”

The Apartments.com gift will make a difference in the lives of the people we support. At a time when significant changes to government funding are deeply concerning, the $10,000 gift from Apartments.com will help us continue to provide the support and services the people at our Lake Place Apartments and the 360 other people we support rely on.

Thank you to Leslie and the team at Lake Place Apartments & Townhomes and to Apartments.com for this generous gift!

Photo above: Back row (from left): Hammer & NER staff, Sam and Edison; Lake Place Apartments & Townhomes management, David, Leslie, Lori, and David; Dave, Hammer & NER staff; Chris, supported at Lake Place Apartments. Front row (from left): Mark, Debra, Alyssa, Jenna, Christine, Kari, Jenny, and Katherine, supported at Lake Place

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Friends Alyssa and Marnie

Marnie & Alyssa
Marnie and Alyssa (Alyssa is supported at our Lake Place Apartment program) have been friends for a year and a half now, through Hammer & NER’s “Make a Friend, Be a Friend” program. They get together twice a month, and Marnie says it’s always fun with a touch of adventure thrown in. “We enjoy getting outdoors and engaging in activities around our community, plus we never miss a chance to talk together and share laughs,” Marnie says. Recently, Alyssa shared some of her favorite times with Marnie. “It was special to reflect on all the experiences we’ve had and how close we’ve grown,” says Marnie. “Some highlights for her include visiting the Russian Museum of Art to see the Russian doll exhibit, enjoying Bachman’s Spring Flower Show, checking out the scarecrows at the Arboretum, shopping in Excelsior, and attending a kettle drum concert. We also LOVE going out to enjoy a meal together whenever we meet up,” Marnie says.

Friends Jenna and Sarah

Jenna & Sarah
Jenna and Sarah (Sarah is supported at our Royal Oaks Apartment program) make plans to hang out once a month and have been friends for just over a year now. They have enjoyed a variety of activities together including going out to the movies, eating out together or going to a coffee shop, or staying in have to dinner together at Sarah’s place. “When we hang out at Sarah’s, we tend to like crafty activities like painting or coloring, scrapbooking, working with modeling clay, or painting our fingernails,” says Jenna. “When it is nice out, we play a game on her patio and go for a short walk in her neighborhood.” Jenna says It’s fun to have a friend to plan these connections with and gives them both something to look forward to!

The Rockford ladies

The Rockford Ladies
The four Rockford ladies are a perfect example of what it’s like to live with your friends. Stephanie, Carla, and Cindy have lived together for over 25 years–since the house first opened! They have had only one roommate change in all those years: when Amy was chosen as their new housemate five years ago. They agree it’s been another perfect fit. The ladies love to do everything together, including going to the movies, playing bingo, doing crafts, going shopping, going on Hammer Travel Trips, visiting the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, or talking about anything Disney related. The ladies have had the chance to try some new things this year from going to a Vikings game and MN Wild game and even taking a trip to Hershey, PA. What started with friendship, has truly developed into a Rockford family. Stephanie, Carla, Cindy, and Amy just enjoy being together every day.

Friends Ryan and Chris

Ryan & Chris
Ryan first met Chris (supported at our Lancaster home) during Chris’s senior year of high school when he sat down with Ryan at lunch. “He recognized me from the football team,” says Ryan. “We quickly formed a friendship. Chris came to my games, and I attended his adapted sports events. Through that, I got to know Chris, his friends in the DCD program at Maple Grove, and his wonderful family: Judi-Marie, Mitch, and Lauren.” Ryan says his bond with Chris has lasted well beyond high school. “Chris cheered me on as a Gopher football player, stood by my side as a groomsman in my wedding, and today knows my children.” Chris has been an incredible friend to Ryan and has inspired him as a school principal to advocate for DCD students. “Seeing the independence and purpose Chris has gained through his group home and Hammer & NER’s activities is why I am so grateful to support this amazing organization. Chris is truly a lifelong friend, and I am blessed to know him.”

Sharla and her friends at Nelson Place 

Sharla & the Nelson Place Men
As a volunteer at Nelson Place, Sharla says she has had the joy of spending time each week with four incredible young men. “Together, we fill our year with activities and adventures,” she says, “exploring the neighborhood on walks, attending Christ for People, enjoying games at Scheels, celebrating holidays, catching movies, bowling, crafts, playing board games, and sharing meals on special occasions. What I treasure most, though, are our conversations about family, pets, and the things we’re looking forward to.”

Friends Susan and Kelly

Susan & Kelly
“I’ve had the privilege of getting to know Kelly (who is supported at the Cedarwood Apartments) over the past few years,” says Susan. “We get together once a week and hang out, usually working on a jigsaw puzzle.” Sometimes it’s just the two of them, and sometimes some of Kelly’s friends join in. “We laugh and have lots of fun together. Some of the puzzles Kelly and her friends choose are pretty challenging and I am constantly amazed at Kelly’s patience to finish the puzzle!”

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Tom and Alex

Tom Venable is one of those people always looking for ways to give back to the community. It’s one way the high-energy former corporate leader and now passionate entrepreneur and owner of newly launched Sales Macgyver, creates work/life balance for himself. When Tom heard about the many individuals with intellectual and other disabilities supported at Hammer & NER looking for a one-on-one volunteer, someone to be a friend to them and take them out into the community, his ears perked up. He soon signed up for the organization’s “Make a Friend, Be a Friend” program—and gained a lifelong friend in Alex, who has been supported by Hammer & NER for 17 years.

Hammer & NER recently named Tom Venable as one of the recipients of this year’s Community Partner Award. The award recognizes those who have made a positive impact on the lives of the people we serve, or whose efforts have greatly supported our mission to provide people with intellectual and other disabilities the opportunity to live life to its fullest.

For the last eight years, Tom and Alex have built a strong bond, sharing countless adventures out and about in the community and enjoying various activities like attending JJ Hill Days in Wayzata, going bowling, taking in a movie, going on boat rides, or grabbing lunch at Snuffy’s Malt Shop or Punch Pizza. Their bond is built on trust, laughter, and genuine connection. Tom says he can be having a bad day, but when he walks through the door to visit Alex and sees the huge smile on his face, it turns his day right around. “Alex is such a wonderful part of my life,” Tom says. “He’s like the little brother I never had.”

Besides being a friend to Alex, Tom volunteers at our annual Reach for Ralph fundraising event, has called bingo, made meals for our homes in need, and volunteered at our Golf Open and Trunk or Treat events. He has donated more than 300 hours of his time to Hammer & NER and the people we serve.

Alex helped present Tom with a Community Partner award.

We are proud to celebrate Tom Venable for the friendship he has built with Alex and for his dedicated support of our mission. If you would like to volunteer with the Make a Friend, Be a Friend program, please contact our Director of Volunteer Resources, Cathy Thoma, at cthoma@hammer.org. 

Editor’s Note: We are saddened to share that Alex passed away July 18. Our condolences are with his family, friends, and the staff at our Carlson home where Alex resided for many years, along with his good friend, Tom Venable. To see Alex’s obituary please visit Alexander Luther Obituary | Minnesota Star Tribune

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