Dreaming Big at Amplify’s September Gathering

At Tuesday’s AMP Session, the spotlight was on big dreams. Two featured nonprofits, Elevate Hope House and The Urban Village, shared bold visions to expand their impact through new spaces and facilities. With the right support, those dreams have the potential to transform lives across Minnesota.

Business and nonprofit leaders gathered at Christ Presbyterian Church in Edina to hear these stories, offer ideas, and rally around these organizations shaping brighter futures for young people in our community.

Andrea McMaster, Amplify’s President, opened the evening with a reminder that God sees each of us—sharing how He met her in a moment of difficulty with something as simple as a box of chocolates, and celebrating the ways our featured nonprofits see and serve their communities.

Guest speaker Erik Westrum took us from middle school hockey to the pros, reflecting on victories and setbacks along the way and how faith played an integral role in his growth and success. He challenged us to live at an elite level and to be people of action, reminding us that, “We label, we judge, and we don’t lead with our faith, and we sit. We have an opportunity to make a difference together. Step up, be bold in your faith, and lead with that.”

The evening then transitioned to the featured nonprofits who shared their missions and dreams for the future.

Melinda McDermott, founder of Elevate Hope House, shared her vision of building ten affordable housing units in the next five years to support young moms and their children. She invited Amplify partners to collaborate by offering ideas for land, construction materials, labor, and operational support to turn this dream into reality.

Jesse Phenow, founder of The Urban Village, described the challenges Karen and Karenni youth face as they resettle in Minnesota. With a newly gifted home adjacent to their property, he invited business leaders to help strengthen the organization so they can quickly seize this opportunity to expand their impact.

Amplify partners responded with action. Through facilitated brainstorming, they offered ideas, connections, and solutions to help both organizations overcome current barriers and expand their impact.

A special thanks to True Talent Group and Tradition Capital Bank for generously sponsoring this event, and Randy Hoepner Photography for sharing his gift to capture the energy in the room!

In Their Own Words

what guests had to say

"It was such a wonderful Amplify event. I always leave each event feeling so filled with a sense of connection and purpose."

"Erik Westrum was fantastic speaker! He spoke about his journey with hockey, setbacks, victories, where his faith was strong and where it was weak, and how his faith in Jesus was strengthened in college and in pros through Hockey Ministries.”

"Thank you so much for the opportunity to work with Amplify and to present last night in front of so many incredible leaders. The conversations were a true blessing, the prayer was deeply appreciated, and the joy I felt leaving the event is honestly hard to put into words. Being surrounded by such encouraging, faith-filled leaders was both humbling and truly life-giving for me in a moment I honestly needed it." - Melinda McDermott, Elevate Hope House

AMP Accelerators

can you make it?

Partners are needed to help advance ideas that began at our meeting on Tuesday. Spend one hour in consultation with these nonprofit leaders and meet other Amplify partners. Together, we’ll support the nonprofit leaders in refining their 90-day action plan using the ideas and connections that emerged from brainstorming. A Zoom link and full summary report of the ideas and feedback generated at the meeting will be provided after you RSVP.