SASS Celebrates 60 Years!

Saline Area Social Service (SASS) is excited to announce their 60th Anniversary Celebration as part of their Annual Fundraiser on August 17th. The 1960s-themed event at Wellers Carriage House will include appetizers and cocktails by Moveable Feast, a wine pull, live auction, and is an opportunity for SASS to thank its donors, volunteers, and the community for helping provide for local families and individuals in need.  

Marian Hering started SASS in 1961 to provide holiday baskets to those in need. Initially, the organization operated out of the basement of a house on Henry Street and the office consisted of a phone on the wall. SASS has grown and changed over the years, now serving an average of 300 people each week. During the uncertainty of the pandemic, the pantry provided assistance for as many as 780 people in one week. Last year alone, poverty levels in Saline grew by 51% and need is greater than ever before. 

“I’ve seen SASS grow from a little office on Main Street by the old post office to what we are today,” said Mike Raham, President of the SASS Board of Directors. “We’re now able to help many more families in town, not only with transportation, rent assistance, and medical, but now even school mentorship and mental health services. It’s something I’m very proud of.” 

The 60th Anniversary Celebration will be SASS’s largest revenue-generating event this year. SASS needs to raise $504,000 in order to continue their annual food and emergency assistance programs.  So far, they have raised 50% of their goal. 

“SASS continues to see increased need in our community for food, rent assistance, and other emergency aid, especially given the challenges many local families are facing due to the economic strain caused by the pandemic,” said Anne Cummings, Executive Director of SASS. “The Annual Fundraiser is one of the most important events of the year to help ensure we can continue to provide that support. We certainly couldn’t do it without the generosity and commitment of our incredible community.” 

Saline Area Social Service’s 60th Anniversary Celebration will take place on August 17, 2021, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., at Wellers Carriage House (555 W. Michigan Ave., Saline). Recommended attire is ’60s themed or business casual. The final day to purchase tickets is August 6, 2021.
 

About Saline Area Social Service 

Saline Area Social Service (SASS) is a private, tax-exempt non-profit organization that has been in the community for 60 years and serves the most vulnerable students, families and senior citizens that live in and around the Saline area.  With 2,740 individuals in Saline experiencing food insecurity, it is SASS’s mission to provide our short- and long-term aid, directly and through referrals, to its participants in need.