Press
Summer 2007
Opportunity Partners – 2007 Annual Report
An innovative Twin Cities company is delivery smiles to new moms and a growing number of jobs to Opportunity Partners workers.
Opportunity Partners assembles 500 Welcome Kits each month for NewMom, Inc., a marketing company that delivers them to doorsteps throughout the Twin Cities. The workload has grown substantially since Opportunity Partners began packaging for NewMom three years ago. In the beginning, Opportunity Partners was assembling just 35 Welcome Kits per month.
Now, participants at Opportunity Partners’ Asplin Center in Plymouth work 1 ½ days per week filling and wrapping the baskets, which contain a variety of products such as baby socks and rattles, pamphlets on baby care and financial planning, and coupons for local restaurants and attractions. In addition, Opportunity Partners’ Karlins Center assembles about 150 Welcome Kits and delivers the baskets to homes in Plymouth, Maple Grove and surrounding communities.
NewMom owner Stacey Schneider said she was drawn to Opportunity Partners because of its mission. “One of the greatest experiences we’ve had so far was the opportunity to meet the clients of Opportunity Partners working on our project,” Stacey said. “Their enthusiasm was contagious and reinforced our goal to keep improving and expanding.”
The job is particularly appealing because it is a good fit for workers with mobility challenges. Kelly Hook and Jacki Mills, who use wheelchairs, enjoy the variety of the job and can work comfortably in familiar surroundings.
“I like the opportunity to work and earn money,” Kelly said. “It’s a job I can do sitting in my chair.”
Jacki added: “I like the money, and I like to work for Stacey”
Stacey is pleased the workers enjoy the project, and she gives high marks to Opportunity Partners for handling it as it has grown. “Opportunity Partners has provided consistency and flexibility in meeting our aggressive growth initiatives over the past three years,” she said.
Opportunity Partners staff said the project is an exciting one. “It really is a fun product, and the variety is nice – every group of baskets for each community is a bit different,” said Asplin Center Manager Beth Honer. “It really has been wonderful to see the relationship between Opportunity Partners and NewMom grow over the years and to see how workers with disabilities have been an important part of the process.”