PORTLAND, Ore. -- Ten years ago, Heidi Berkman simply wanted to say thank you to the hospice workers who cared for her family member.
Today her nonprofit, The Bloom Project, is closing in on a decade of bringing joy to the lives of people in hospice or palliative care.
Heidi, and her army of volunteers, spend most mornings at their beautiful work space on Tueful Holly Farm, arranging flowers into bouquets that will be distributed around the Portland area. These flowers come from local grocery stores, farms and flowers markets who donate their product because they believe in Heidi and what she is doing. On an average week Heidi and her team distribute upwards of 500 bouquets. During the busy flower times (Valentine's Day and Mothers Day) they can deliver upwards of 5,000.
With Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler proclaiming November 6-10, 2017 "Give Back to the Giver" week, and with the momentum of their upcoming "Bouquets of the Heart" fundraiser, Heidi is hoping they can reach their goal of delivering 200,000 bouquets by Valentine's Day 2018.