BALTIMORE — You can buy a tree for the holidays just about anywhere. But how about buying a tree to change a young person's life?
On House St. at the Baltimore Peninsula, folks with the Brooklyn-based City of Refuge nonprofit are trying to encourage folks to do just that. Rows of Fraser firs straight from North Carolina sit in the lot at the Peninsula.
"It's a purpose-driven tree," noted Billy Humphrey, the charity's founder.
Everything earned at the South Baltimore site goes toward youth engagement in Baltimore - the kind of programs Neal Carter, the nonprofit's youth empowerment director, leads.
"Just about all the work we do is relational," Carter explained to WMAR. "And a lot of that work is revolved around youth-driven activities. Whether that's music or media, culinary classes, training classes for different jobs or whatever skills they want to pursue with their dreams or their goals."
The City of Refuge's youth programs include "HYPE" - an in-school club at Ben Franklin High School teaching students about producing music. The nonprofit also hosts youth groups.
Carter works with about a hundred students throughout any given week, and tells WMAR his work is personal.
"Just myself, growing up in poverty and beating poverty. And to be in a position now to come back, into a community I was raised in and give back, it's full circle for me," Carter added.
City of Refuge partners with the "Love Wins" nonprofit, which hosts another tree sale in Severn, and gives half of those sales to the Baltimore efforts, Humphrey explained.
"100 percent of the proceeds go to underwrite all of our youth empowerment, youth impact work at City of Refuge. This is just one of those fundraising events we use to get the word out about who we are, what we do," explained Humphrey, a South Baltimore native.
The tree sale is open Monday to Friday from 12pm-8pm and Saturday and Sunday from 9am-8pm. Humphrey said they'd be at the site until they sell out.
"It's just a great opportunity to give back to show love, and light," Carter concluded.
The sale is located at 2455 House St.
