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Housing Donation Drives

Help Refugees Make a Home

Imagine the impact that simple comforts — like bedding, towels, dishes and cookware — can have on newly arriving refugee families as they start over in Minnesota. By organizing a Housing Donation Drive to collect essential items with your friends, neighbors, co-workers or faith community, you’ll provide these new neighbors with the basics to create a home.

Join us in helping to ease the transition for refugee families. Your generosity makes a world of difference.

How to Start Your Housing Donation Drive

  • 1) Make a Plan
    • Download our list of essential household items to collect.
    • Choose a time frame for your drive.
    • Commit to collecting complete sets of items that families need on move-in day.
  • 2) Spread the Word
    • Rally support on social media and through your school, neighborhood, community center or faith community.
    • Remind supporters they can also shop IIMN’s Amazon Wish List for easy delivery.
  • 3) Collect and Deliver
    • Sort, count and quality check your donations.
    • Schedule your donation drop-off.
    • Celebrate your community’s collaboration and the difference you’ve made for a refugee family!

Frequently Asked Questions


No. We cannot accept furniture, clothing or individual household items that are not part of a complete housing set up. Due to limited storage space and the rapid pace of refugee resettlement, it is most helpful for us to receive complete sets of items from our Housing Donation Drive supplies list.

Yes! Shopping from our Amazon Wish List is an easy way to purchase exactly what we need to welcome newly arriving refugees. Your purchases will also ship directly to our office, making it extra simple for you!

Absolutely. Volunteers are an essential part of our housing team’s work. Learn about volunteer opportunities with the International Institute of Minnesota.

A complete housing donation set for a refugee family includes at least 92 items. Some of those are larger items like bedding sets, but 25 of them are clothes hangers! We also provide a list of “bonus items” like baking sheets and rugs, which are helpful, but not required for a set to be considered complete.

If that’s too much for your group, you can still organize a mini drive. Please contact Rachel Kennedy at [email protected] or 651-377-8663 to find out which items are most needed right now. Thank you!

We prefer to receive new items to welcome refugees into their new homes. Please refer to our Housing Donaton Drive supplies list to see which items we can accept in used, but good, clean condition.

Thank you! We’re happy to work with you on a mini drive to gather our most urgently needed items. Contact Rachel to make a plan.

There are many other ways to support our work as well. Here are a few ideas:

  1. Make a Gift: Financial contributions in any amount support New Americans with a strong start to a new life.
  2. Shop our Amazon Wishlist: We keep this list updated throughout the year with our most urgently needed items. Your purchase will ship directly to our office and make a difference right away!
  3. Winter Coat Drives or other drives: Sign up for our monthly newsletter to stay informed about need-specific donation drives throughout the year.

Contact Us

Call or email us if you have questions about volunteering.

Kaela Schweisthal
Volunteer and Community Partnerships Manager
(651) 377-8663

Email Kaela