The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis is one major gift closer to reaching its $40 million Restoring Hope Capital Campaign goal thanks to a generous contribution from UMB Bank.
Peter Blumeyer, UMB Bank St. Louis president, and D’Wayne Sargent, Jr., UMB community mortgage banker, recently toured the Urban League regional headquarters and presented Urban League President and CEO Michael McMillan with a check for $300,000 to support the campaign.
The Restoring Hope project is transforming the former Sears Department Store at 14008 North Kingshighway, into a one-stop hub providing critical safety net services to nearly 200,000 clients each year.
“We are incredibly grateful to UMB Bank for this historic partnership being launched for the benefit of our Restoring Hope Capital Campaign supporting our new regional headquarters,” McMillan said.
“Their infusion of resources is going to immediately give us the ability to expand the scope, the depth, and the work we are doing here to create the crown jewel of North St. Louis. We are very grateful to the staff, the board and everyone else who made this possible and we look forward to a long and productive relationship serving the St. Louis community.”
“At UMB we want to be good stewards of the communities in which we live and work,” Blumeyer said. “Understanding the mission of the Urban League and the organization being so important to the growth and continued prosperity of St. Louis, we couldn’t be more pleased to support them in this important initiative.”
The Restoring Hope Campaign will raise $35 million for renovations of the old Sears building, which is now the Urban League’s Regional Headquarters, and $5 million for an endowment to help maintain the facility.
The funds will be used to establish an essential community resource: a spacious, accessible hub for critical programs and services that foster continual self-improvement, vibrant neighborhoods, and equitable opportunity for all, according to McMillan.
In addition to the headquarters building, the Urban League is also developing nearby parcels along Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive and Aubert Avenue creating an entire campus.
A hydroponic urban farm is also included in the project. Fresh produce grown by Vested Urban Farms and Fresh Harvest 365, will be distributed free at the Panera Pantry, and offered for sale at local markets.
The Restoring Hope project not only anchors the historic Academy and Kingsway neighborhoods, but it also anchors the hopes and dreams of the people who turn to the Urban League seeking utility assistance, jobs, skills training, home purchases, financial literacy, and more.
The 205,000-square-foot Sears building houses the Urban League’s executive and program offices, the Panera Food Pantry, The Urban League St. Louis Empowerment Center, medical and dental offices, retail space and a daycare center.
The building will be anchored by a state-of-the-art African American history and culture center on the main level. The center, supported by the Regional Arts Commission, will feature interactive displays with video content documenting local African American history provided through a historic partnership with Nine PBS.
“When complete, we will have a modern, efficient campus that will allow us to increase capacity to serve clients, provide a public cultural arts space, expand meeting and classroom space, and add services including free health and legal clinics, a food pantry, and a minority business incubator,” McMillan said.
