WORK WELL. LIVE WELL.
65 Years of Radical Welcome – Real Results
Building communities together
Avivo’s values of absolute dignity, radical welcome, and bringing curiosity to life have been a foundation to the work with do for you, and for our community. Celebrate — together — with us, in 65 years of doing with we love. Thank you for your continued support.
individuals found work or entered careers
individuals served in 2025
people moved from public assistance to employment
of people served live in poverty
individuals increased wellness through chemical & mental health services
of individuals served are people of color
people experiencing homelessness found or kept supportive housing
people were served at Avivo Village in 2025
Absolute DIGNITY
We walk alongside our community without judgement while offering an integrated continuum of services to help people thrive. Everyone is deserving of happiness, health, and value. People trust Avivo with their lives, their next steps.
Desha
“I have two kids, so I have to show them that no matter what life throws at you, you can always come out on top.”
Desha spent nearly six years without stable housing, often living out of her car while trying to support herself and stay connected to her children. At her sister’s urging, she reached out to Avivo, where she found safety, encouragement, and a community that helped her rebuild her confidence. With staff support, she began pursuing her longtime dream of becoming a paralegal and discovered that her past convictions wouldn’t prevent her from entering the field. Completing an employment program showed her she could overcome challenges she once avoided. Now preparing to move into her own apartment and reunite with her kids, Desha feels more positive, patient, and hopeful, recognizing her own strength and potential.
Ground is broken for Avivo Village Central Minnesota.
In September, ground was broken on Avivo Village Central Minnesota, located in St. Cloud. This new, 48-unit Avivo Village will bring the nationally recognized success of Avivo’s Avivo Village North Loop in Minneapolis to the heart of Central Minnesota. Rooted in Avivo’s values of radical welcome, absolute dignity, and curiosity, the project marks a powerful step toward addressing unsheltered homelessness in the region.
Homeless Day on the Hill – March 12, 2025
Avivo staff headed to the Minnesota State Capitol for Homeless Day on the Hill, as part of the coalition of organizations working to end homelessness in Minnesota, with Minnesota Coalition for the Homeless. This day on the hill is a day to advocate for those experiencing homelessness and also those on the verge of losing their housing. Avivo staff and participants met with legislators to share their stories and how they can help.
Visiting artists offer their expertise to Avivo participants
Avivo partnered with COMPAS, an arts education nonprofit, to invite visiting artists to teach their craft to Avivo participants. One example was weaving at Avivo, thanks to teaching artist Chiaki O’Brien! Chiaki led a multi-week SAORI weaving session for participants in Avivo’s programs, with amazing results (see photos!)!
Megan
“We went through it together, so we can heal together.”
Megan, a mother of twins, is celebrating a year and a half of sobriety and her first successful semester of college as she works toward becoming a licensed alcohol and drug counselor. Her path to recovery began after legal challenges and relapse, when she chose to enter detox and commit to lasting change. Realizing she needed a program that allowed her to stay with her children, she joined Avivo, one of Minnesota’s few treatment programs where mothers and kids can live together. With supportive staff and a stable environment, Megan rebuilt her life, eventually moving into her own apartment and continuing her education. She now feels her life is moving in a completely new, hopeful direction.
RADICAL welcome
Avivo provides radical hospitality – spaces that are safe, inclusive, and culturally relevant to all. We celebrate the power of living authentically. We commit to fostering a culture that rewards the courage to do so.
Mia
“The people at Avivo helped me so much,” shares Mia. “I don’t know if I would have made it to where I am now … if I didn’t have this network of people here to help me get through it.”
Mia is preparing to celebrate three years of sobriety and two years since completing Avivo’s recovery programs. When she first arrived, she and her family were experiencing severe housing instability, and her daughters were staying with relatives. Determined to regain custody and rebuild her life, Mia found in Avivo both the treatment and the stability she needed. Even after the heartbreaking and devastating loss of her tenyearold daughter, she chose to stay committed to recovery, supported closely by Avivo’s staff. Eventually, she moved into a family unit with her younger daughter, strengthening their relationship and rebuilding trust. Now a kitchen manager and sous chef, Mia hopes to open a business that supports women in recovery, offering others the second chance she received.
Avivo rolls out naloxone “grab boxes” to save lives in an emergency
Avivo is rolling out naloxone “grab boxes,” meant to save lives in an emergency. Grab boxes are being distributed across Avivo’s campus and to other key locations in Minneapolis, funded by a micro-grant through the Minnesota Department of Health.
Naloxone, commonly known by the brand name Narcan, is a fast-acting counter to the effects of an opioid overdose. Opioids bind to receptors in the brain, which can lead to respiratory depression and overdose. Naloxone saves lives by binding to those same receptors displacing opioids and reversing their impact.
Avivo launches new program supporting single fathers in their recovery
A new program at Avivo is supporting single fathers in their recovery journey, thanks to a grant which supports the program through 2028.
The program is in the early stages of hiring and developing, with housing for fathers with children to launch late 2025 to early 2026. The program for pregnant and parenting mothers began in 2008.
“We see so much success with our families being able to have supportive, safe housing and stable housing,” shares Kristen Bewley, service area director for chemical health at Avivo. “That’s what we hope for our fathers too.”
Avivo Village mural
Working together with artists, Avivo staff, and most important — our Avivo Village residents.
Collaboration between artists, Avivo staff, and most importantly, Avivo Village residents, helped transform a blank, cinder block wall at Avivo Village into a vibrant, community-crafted mural thanks to a National Endowment for the Arts grant. Over three days, artists Olivia Levins Holden, Nell Pierce, and Bayou Bay, collaborating through Studio Thalo, led open design sessions on-site. As residents sketched words and images, the core concept emerged.
LEAN into curiosity
We ask questions, take risks, listen to people we serve, and humbly embrace learning. Challenges aren’t barriers; they are opportunities. We do what it takes and leverage relationships, science, and service to have life-changing impact in individuals’ lives and communities.
Collaboration with the North Loop
Multiyear partnership with zAmya Theater Project leads to Dis Place, a show blending real-word housing issues with a fantasy role-playing adventure.
Starting in the Summer of 2022, residents of Avivo Village began a multi-year project in collaboration with the North Loop
Neighborhood Association and zAmya Theater Project.
This project resulted in a series of events and short theater productions created through workshops held at Avivo Village, where residents shared their stories and acting skills. The culmination of this project was a four-day run at Luminary Arts Center in the North Loop of “Dis Place.” Avivo Village residents, among others, were actors in the play.
LinkedIn Portrait Days
One of our favorite days, 2-4 times per year, is LinkedIn portrait day for participants in our employment programs. Thanks to Tim Clark, a volunteer photographer celebrating 10 years of volunteering with Avivo, about 25 people received professional LinkedIn portraits, giving them a professional photo during their job search.
Providing meals to the community
The Minnesota Vikings Table came to Avivo’s Chicago Avenue Campus to spread cheer and share meals. Avivo participants and neighbors had a blast, and more importantly, people in Avivo’s programs and the surrounding community received meals thanks to the Minnesota Vikings’ Vikings Table, a food truck that provides meals to communities in need.
Jammin' with Bionik Music
Kids in Avivo’s programs had a chance to jam out, thanks to Bionik Music — a past Champion Award recipient at Avivo Night of Champions. Bionik worked with kids whose parents are in Avivo’s programs, and helped teach those kids how to produce music. He jammed with them while recording, then returned with a song they helped produce, so the kids could listen to their own music!
REVENUE
Government Contracts $26,990,827 65%
Programs 11,121,773 27%
Unrestricted contributions 1,403,32 3%
In-kind Donations 878,29 2%
Other Income 1,008,010 2%
TOTAL $41,402,231
EXPENSES
Government Contracts $26,990,827 65%
Programs 11,121,773 27%
Unrestricted contributions 1,403,32 3%
In-kind Donations 878,29 2%
Other Income 1,008,010 2%
TOTAL $41,402,231
Giving and Gratitude
Volunteer hours: 27,500
Volunteer hours labor value: $1,092,969
In-kind Donation value: $965,633