That’s exactly what Christopher Schafer provides to men every Wednesday.

Christopher makes custom suits for a living in Baltimore. His passion for clothing, and the need to find an organization to donate unwanted suits, pushed him to create Sharp Dressed Man.

“I was bringing new suits to a client who had a couple bags of old clothes he didn’t want to wear because he told me I spoiled him with new custom suits. It was quite a compliment, but it came with trying to find a home for these clothes,” Christopher says.

Christopher discovered many organizations provided everything for men who were in need of a job – resume building, practice interviews and setting interview appointments – but they didn’t have the clothing to make the right first impression, so he created his own nonprofit.

“At Sharp Dressed Man, we focus on the finishing touch. Other organizations are bringing us guys going through a transformation, and we’re there to send them out the door to their interviews,” he says.

Sharp Dressed Man has suited more than 8,000 men, and is on track to dress 2,000 men this year. The men come to Sharp Dressed Man with a referral from a partnering organization. Every Wednesday at noon, Christopher sees a line of men stretching down the street. And all of them are waiting for a suit.

“We bring the guys back one at a time, working one-on-one with a stylist who measures them, sizes them and finds options. I want them to try the suits on for fit.

“If the clothes fit, we’ll give them all kinds of stuff, but they have to have clothes they want to wear and feel confident in.”

Sharp Dressed Man received a $25,000 State Farm Neighborhood Assist^® Grant in 2018 to help impact more lives in their community. Part of the State Farm Neighborhood of Good^® initiative, State Farm Neighborhood Assist is back for its eighth year in 2019. The program awards $25,000 grants to 40 nonprofit organizations to help fund neighborhood education, safety and community development projects.

The grant helped keep Sharp Dressed Man open.

“The grant covered our overhead costs – paying the rent and electric bill – and we got a new spot. It’s really hard to focus on trying to help people when you’re worried about paying the bills,” Christopher says. “Now, we can work on planning for the future.”

With more submissions and more grants, State Farm Neighborhood Assist^® is going bigger on building stronger neighborhoods together in 2022. In celebration of the 100th anniversary of State Farm^®, we’re awarding 100 $25,000 grants (vs. 40 grants in previous years) to causes making a difference in their communities. We are also doubling the number of submissions to 4,000. Submissions open on Feb. 16 at 1pm ET!

Mentor for good.

Mentoring helps strengthen our communities today in order to make them even stronger tomorrow.

In June 2020, State Farm began working with Leap Year. The Atlanta-based nonprofit is dedicated to improving literacy and college enrollment in metro-Atlanta. A mentorship program is part of that relationship.

It connects members of our Young Business Professionals (YBP) employee resource group with area youth. They help with everything from improving test scores, giving career advice and providing valuable insight. The sessions help the teens further their education and determine their future goals.

“It’s fulfilling to know that I get the opportunity to be a positive impact on someone else's life,” said YBP mentor Glenn Gaston.

The relationships are a two-way street.

“If you're interested in being a mentor, whether it's with Leap Year or in your community in whatever way, do it,” said Brandie Bryant, YBP mentor.

“Everyone has something they can offer and instill into someone else, and you learn that it makes you a better person too.”

Mentoring is a great way to extend the good neighbor spirit all year long. Our Good Neighbor Day Toolkit suggests other ways you can share your time, talents and treasure to make a difference and be a part of 100 for Good.

State Farm and 1871, a Chicago-based non-profit that supports entrepreneurs, teamed up to sponsor and organize the “Hackathon for Good.” The event benefited the technical needs of True Star Foundation, a Chicagoland youth non-profit. 

“The Hackathon for Good gave us a glimpse into the future. It provided technology solutions that allow the organization to operate at a higher level, engage youth in ways that excite and inspire them, and allow us to reach more young people in a cost effective way,” said True Star Foundation Co-Founder DeAnna Sherman.

True Star's weekly after-school, in-school and summer programming teaches students about a variety of disciplines in the media industry. Students not only learn about the profession, they actually work cooperatively to produce professional-quality work in each area.

The hackathon teams provided True Star with several technical solutions. These included digitizing its curriculum, helping its students create digital portfolios, and providing the organization with a blueprint for a mobile app that will extend their reach and mission.

It’s all part of a commitment to build a better future for our communities through innovation.

“State Farm believes in supporting our communities, in being a Good Neighbor. We were excited to be part of the Hackathon for Good with 1871 and to support True Star Foundation,” said Fawad Ahmad, State Farm Senior Vice President and Chief Digital Officer. “It was a great opportunity to observe innovative ideas that will ultimately benefit the students True Star serves.”

“At 1871, we support innovators that are building a better tomorrow for their communities,” said 1871 CEO Betsy Ziegler. “Organizations like the True Star Foundation are doing the necessary, on-the-ground work to empower youth in Chicago to lead. We were proud to join our longtime and dedicated partner State Farm to create technical solutions for this important non-profit.”

Rankin is the executive director of Happy Wheels, a nonprofit organization that provides toys and books for hospitalized children at three hospitals in South Carolina. Although their mission is on hold because of COVID-19, the organization is still working to provide happiness and a distraction for children.

“We’re all about providing a moment of kid time to enjoy non-medical time during their hospital stay. We hear a lot that the Happy Wheels cart is the only bright spot for the kids,” Rankin said. “For those couple of minutes, it takes their mind off what they are there for and lets them be a kid.”

Happy Wheels also focuses on teaching younger generations to give back and help those not as fortunate by providing volunteer service hour opportunities. High school and college students host toy drives or fundraisers for Happy Wheels, and also help Rankin write thank you notes and sort toys into each age group.

Rankin said when Happy Wheels is allowed into the hospitals, about 300-350 kids receive a toy or book a week.

“The best part is seeing the change in their faces when we tell them why we’re there,” she said. “A majority of the kids don’t know who we are, so we knock on the door and they’re skeptical. When they see the cart, the change in their faces is indescribable. The child-like joy and ability to forget everything going on – there is no other feeling like it.”

Happy Wheels received a State Farm Neighborhood Assist grant in 2019.

In its ninth year, State Farm Neighborhood Assist provides $25,000 grants to 40 nonprofits each year to help fund neighborhood improvement projects. Because of the many challenges facing our nation right now, State Farm^® is removing all category requirements for submissions this year. This action will free up communities to submit causes to address their greatest needs.

The submission phase opens July 15 and ends when 2,000 submissions are reached. The State Farm Review Committee narrows the field to the Top 200 finalists using a scoring rubric. The voting phase will then take place Sept. 23-Oct. 2, when voters can vote for their favorite cause 10 times a day, every day. Finally, the 40 causes that receive the most votes will each win a $25,000 grant. Winners will be announced on Wednesday, Nov. 4, at www.neighborhoodassist.com.

"Grant programs that address community needs, like Neighborhood Assist, are more important than ever,” said Annette Martinez, State Farm Senior Vice President. “This initiative truly embodies the spirit of being a Good Neighbor.”

Last year, 163,000 people cast 4.4 million votes in support of their favorite causes, selecting winners from small towns and big cities. Since the program began, State Farm has awarded $8 million in support of more than 300 causes.

Rankin is hoping to win again this year.

“As a small nonprofit, it’s difficult to get grants. Neighborhood Assist gives us a chance to compete with the larger nonprofits,” she said. “I’ve never seen a grant process like it. I’m really grateful to State Farm.”

“When you lose everything, it is natural to be so emotionally attached to the things that you have lost,” Keith says. “It’s a painful process to have to think about everything you lost.

“However, if you take the time to go room by room, opening cabinets and closets and taking pictures or getting it all on video, in a large catastrophe like this, it speeds up the process.”

Keith completed his own home inventory, as well as doing one for his mother. Many of 1,100 customers who filed claims, however, didn’t have one to refer to.

“It is a frustrating process when submitting a claim,” Keith says. “Think about getting asked about everything you own? How many pair of socks, shirts, shoes, pants.”

Santa Barbara, Calif., Agent Irene Henry helped a customer who had a total loss in the Jesusita Fire in 2009 update her home inventory with a smartphone.

“It’s important to update an inventory, or do one if you haven’t already, of the contents of your home” Irene says. “Whether taking pictures or video, or writing down an inventory list, you have that information. If you have a claim, an inventory will make it smoother and easier to process.”

Irene walked customer Mary Knapp through creating an inventory of the Knapp’s home on Mary’s smartphone, opening drawers and cabinets in the kitchen, closets in bedrooms and walking throughout the house recording every detail.

“It’s so important,” says Mary. “It triggers your mind because there is so much you could never be able to recall it later.”

Mary stored the inventory in her phone, and also has it on a backup hard drive. A home inventory can also be emailed to a customer’s agent.

“Recovering from the fires, it has been emotional. It still is,” Keith says. “But the claims were emotionally easier for customers who completed the inventory.”

She found safety and skills there, too.

Deja participated in the Outreach Program through Perennial, a nonprofit that teaches creative skills by reusing materials to make something new. Perennial partners with local programs supporting women in transition, such as former prisoners or survivors of domestic violence or homelessness.

“When we started Perennial, I had done work that served former prisoners and homeless vets. I found it was a fundamental tie to what they were going through – trying to rebuild their lives and transferring that into fixing something and being creative with it,” says Perennial Founder and Executive Director Jenny Murphy.

When Deja first started coming to the shop, she knew exactly what she wanted to make.

“She has really great ideas. Often times, we have people who are more timid. She was ready to create,” Jenny says. With the help of Jenny, Deja made a colorful display for her sunglasses.

“The Outreach Program is a safe space,” Deja says. “With the life experiences I’ve had, I’ve been searching for places I could feel safe. That’s exactly what Perennial is for a lot of women.

“Honestly, it’s going to sound clichéd, but everyone at Perennial is family.”

Jenny founded Perennial as a way to provide a space for people to reuse old, broken, castoff materials and make something new and useful with them.

“My background is in art, so I had this foundation of experience that allowed me to find uses for discarded materials. Without much money for resources, I could make spaces and clothing I wanted,” she says. “There’s so much trash, so I wanted to find a commercial application for it where it’s a community project to educate people and teach those skills.”

Perennial hosts classes for a slew of DIY projects – from home and garden to sewing and fashion to woodworking, upholstery, textiles. Not only do participants get a great piece they made, they can take those new skills and apply them elsewhere.

“Everyone comes from different backgrounds there, but you would think we grew up together. We find common ground and that makes us realize we’re not that different. We all love art,” Deja says.

“Perennial, in so many ways, has saved me. Being from this city, it’s something I never knew was here. It makes me look at my city completely differently. We do have these amazing programs and now I know that. I’m grateful, eternally grateful, for what I’ve gotten out of this program,” she says.

Perennial received a $25,000 State Farm Neighborhood Assist^® grant in 2018 to help impact more lives in their community. Part of the State Farm Neighborhood of Good^® initiative, State Farm Neighborhood Assist is back for its eighth year in 2019. The program awards $25,000 grants to 40 nonprofit organizations to help fund neighborhood education, safety and community development projects.

Cause submissions will be accepted starting June 5 and will end once 2,000 submissions are reached. The voting phase will follow from Aug. 14-23, where the public can vote for their favorite cause from the list of 200 finalists. The 40 winners will be announced Sept. 25. To submit a cause, visit the Neighborhood Assist website.

Students across the nation have learned how to be environmentally conscious through the work of Earth Force, a nonprofit focused on educating teachers on how to build environmental community projects with their students.

“We target fifth to 10^th grade students because that’s the age people start to develop their personality, belief systems, value systems, and where environmental work needs to happen to build environmentally educated people,” says Justin Zakoren, Earth Force program manager for the Denver, Colo., area.

Earth Force works with teachers to give them a framework for their classroom work, which guides students to ask questions, identify issues and create solutions.

“Service learning is the best way to learn because you learn by doing,” says Earth Force President and CEO Vince Meldrum. “We’re encouraging students to do things in their community and they come away with a base knowledge of how to influence their community. They create a skillset inside and outside the classroom.”

“We’re creating environmental citizens, but also creating students who can independently research issues and understand the distinction between policy and practice,” Justin adds.

One class of sixth graders from Rooney Ranch Elementary School put the Earth Force curriculum to work. Students took an inventory of their school grounds and surrounding community and found the storm water outlet behind their school was littered with garbage and graffiti. The students focused their energy on how to clean up the area and keep it clean.

“They wrote to the city to help cover up the graffiti and secured a trash can for the litter. In that process, they spoke to the mayor, invited the city’s public works department to the storm water outlet and made an agreement that they’d let the city know when the trash can needed to be emptied,” Justin says.

The following school year, the students came back and noticed the trash can was being used, but the graffiti was back, so they created another task force and decided to cover up the graffiti with a mural that would be covered with a clear coat of special paint that is graffiti-resistant.

“I liked this because a lot of times you come into situations where you have the issue, but the solutions are simplistic, and here they’ve thought it through with a solution that will stop it,” Justin adds. “The students have also reached out to the fourth-graders to ensure the work is continued next year.”

“We work with educators who are under so much pressure to train them on our model and help them translate that to middle school kids,” Vince says. “I have teachers who tell me learning the Earth Force model has kept them in teaching. It makes education what teachers hope it will be – fun. We evaluate our programs and find teachers do more projects and we see kids as assets to the community.”

State Farm^® has supported Earth Force programs since 2008, allowing youth to complete tangible environmental programs and supporting teachers with education and project support.

“State Farm has been a big partner of ours. The grants we’ve received have allowed us to innovate and add another angle to the program and our State Farm partners have helped us identify community resources, volunteers and where we need to expand next,” Vince says. “There’s a credibility having an ongoing relationship with a company like State Farm.”

Jesse Bryson, president and founder of I Will Mentorship Foundation in Fort Myers, Fla., works with low- income communities to engage residents in a broad range of gardening and nutrition education programs.

“In Fort Myers, if you think about the beach, you think about luxury. But if you think of the Harlem Lake community, you think of crime,” Jesse says. “It’s one of the poorest communities in the city. There is not a grocery store within a 10-mile radius of most residents. They don’t have access to organic foods because they are not affordable.”

That vacant lot will soon be home to a thriving garden. Using hydroponics and aquaponics in the organization’s lab, 500 pounds of fresh fish and 1,500 pounds of fruits and vegetables will be available every quarter.

“This garden can show people a better way of life,” Jesse says.

Jesse says the $25,000 State Farm Neighborhood Assist^® grant his organization received from State Farm^® last year helped him to pursue this dream. “The grant allowed us to lay the foundation for a beautiful community.”

The 2018 State Farm Neighborhood Assist top 200 finalists have been chosen. The public can vote 10 times a day, every day for 10 days – Aug. 15-24 – for their favorite causes from the list of 200 finalists. Forty winning causes will be announced Sept. 25 and will be awarded $25,000 each.

To vote for your favorite cause, visit www.NeighborhoodAssist.com.