Havenly Treats Fundraiser

Join us in supporting refugees in our community. Donate to Havenly this holiday season

Havenly Treats was founded with a mission to celebrate and support refugee women. Our co-founder, Nieda, ran a bakery and two cafes in Iraq. She has a degree in business management and an uncanny culinary talent. But in New Haven, without proof of her education or previous employment, and no English, she struggled to land even a normal job. Pressured to make an income for her children, she chose underpaid jobs over English classes and education.

No one should be forced to choose between making an income and getting an education. That is why we have envisioned a training program where trainees earn while they learn.

The Havenly Fellowship allows women to work at our commercial kitchen while attending workshops in food safety, English, digital literacy, and more. Our fellows can gain skills without sacrificing work experience or an income, at their own pace, and in a comforting and supportive environment.

Thanks to donated kitchen space and community support, we have welcomed 5 women into the Havenly fellowship. But to truly realize our dream, we are raising money to open a storefront and training center in New Haven.

Why?

1. A storefront would allow our trainees to truly run the store, getting experience in customer relations, accounting, and more. When facing so many barriers to employment, providing trainees with immediate, hands-on work experience in a variety of tasks gives them access to many more professions in the food industry in much less time. 

2. Our training center would become a hub to provide refugee women with community and support, breaking the isolation that perpetuates their marginalization. 

3. Having our own centralized training center and storefront would streamline our operations and allow us to drastically increase the number of women we can serve. 

We are currently exploring a number of spaces in New Haven that want to support this venture. $40,000 would allow us to cover the initial costs of equipping and furnishing the space, proving the concept for grantmaking foundations. This will ensure we can provide a welcoming, supportive space conducive to learning and creating community, equipped with childcare support and more.

Each and every donation counts, as all proceeds from sales go directly to the women in our program. Thank you for helping us make a difference. 

Donations will be processed by our fiscal sponsor, Dwight Hall at Yale, so that all donations are tax-deductible and registered with the IRS.

To learn more: www.havenlytreats.com