The recent arrival of Valentine’s day reminded us of love and passion, and the different things we all love. So we thought this month we’d explore things that those of us at Solberg Creative love. While we’re all happily married, we thought we’d take a different approach: We wanted to tell you about the nonprofits we love. Because at Solberg Creative, we’re all passionate about nonprofits, and this list is a drop in the bucket of what we love.

Kerry Solberg
Solberg Creative’s fearless leader counts many nonprofits as near and dear to her heart. Among them: the Minnesota Horticultural Society. This local nonprofit, which has been around (impressively!) for more than 150 years, supports gardeners of all ages and skill levels as they work with Minnesota’s at-times challenging gardening conditions. They do this through a seasonal magazine, the creation and distribution of gardening kits each year, promoting public green spaces and community gardens, and providing workshops on how to save seeds from vegetables, fruits, and native plants. “The Minnesota Horticultural Society feeds my creativity and helps the pollinators,” says Solberg, an avid outdoorsperson and gardener.

Carrie Stolar
Stolar’s passion project is the U.S. Masters Swimming organization, which provides a magazine, insurance, and sanctioned events across the U.S. But for Stolar, what drives her involvement is the group’s efforts to create opportunities for adults across the U.S. to learn the skill of swimming. It doesn’t matter why someone wants to learn—maybe they want to swim for exercise, fun, or safety reasons (and unfortunately, people who don’t know how to swim can easily become drowning victims). But if they want to learn, the USMS group wants to help. A long-time swimmer and USMS member, Stolar says, “My passion is to give back to the sport that I love, the sport that has shaped me into who I am today. Teaching adults who don’t know how to swim/are fearful of water is one such way that I give back to swimming.”

Amy Rea
Rea is a huge fan of the Minnesota Historical Society. And not just the main MNHS, but the satellites of city and county historical societies around the state. Maintaining the state’s history is important in order to understand what came before and, perhaps, prevent some of the state’s sadder chapters from reoccurring. Whether it’s visiting the Minnesota History Center’s large set of exhibits in St. Paul, visiting the Finnish Homestead Tours in Embarrass, or the Treaty Site History Center in St. Peter, there’s always something new to learn. “The way these centers make history come alive is amazing,” says Rea. “And there’s always something of interest for people of any age.”

Are you involved with a nonprofit that would enjoy working with creative service people who are passionate about nonprofits? Contact us here.