Matter Brothers Furniture Donates Over $25,000 to Help Create Nurturing Spaces for Foster Families On the All Star Children’s Foundation Campus
(SARASOTA, FL) Matter Brothers Furniture recently donated over $25,000 worth of furnishings and design services to All Star Children’s Foundation for its Campus of Hope and Healing in Sarasota. Matter Brothers Furniture also worked with Sealy Mattress Company who also donated 36 mattresses for All Star’s six foster family homes. Matter Brothers, based on the west coast of Florida, is the 85th largest furniture retailer in America, and is family-owned and operated.
What sparked this generosity?
According to John Matter, the president of Matter Brothers, his commitment began on the day the company’s design team first introduced him to All-Star Children’s Foundation.
In November, Matter and the members of his team visited the All Star campus and met with Graci McGillicuddy, the organization’s board chair and co-founder. As they toured the campus, McGillicuddy passionately shared the vision behind All Star. Matter and his team were all deeply touched.
“Graci passionately sketched the future plans for All Star,” Matter recalls. “That vision includes six beautiful foster homes, tree-lined playgrounds and gardens, picnic areas and the All Star Children’s Center, a state-of-the-art clinical treatment center. Her optimism and excitement for creating a haven for children to heal was infectious.”
Matter and his team were intrigued by All Star’s mission to create stable, safe and nurturing home environments for foster children within our community.
“We wanted to learn more,” says Matter. “Right then and there, we knew we wanted to help.”
He adds that Matter Brother’s most valuable contribution was obvious—designing and furnishing the interiors of All Star’s six foster family homes. “Our expertise would make those nurturing spaces as welcoming as they could be,” he says. “They’d be the foundation of a new start, a renewed spirit and a place for each child to feel loved and nurtured.”
Since that initial visit, Matter Brothers Furniture has designed the interiors of all six homes, donated an entire home of furnishings valued at over $25,000, and provided 36 mattresses for all six foster homes. Matter Brothers continues to support the foundation at its local Sarasota showroom by encouraging customers to sponsor a piece of furniture or make a monetary contribution directly to All Star. The Sarasota showroom, located at 4675 Clark Road, offers areas in the store with the specific rooms featuring the exact furnishings needed.
“We feel profoundly honored to help Graci and the All Star team bring this vision to life,” says Matter. “We look forward to helping create a brighter future for the foster children of All-Star.”
“Matter Brothers Furniture are experts in the art of creating spaces,” says McGillicuddy. “Over the years, they’ve helped countless families throughout southwest Florida bring their dream homes to life. Thanks to their generosity, All Star’s children and foster parents can find their own dream homes. Our gratitude is beyond words.”
Caption: (left to right): Andrea Matter; Graci McGillicuddy, co-founder and board chair of All Star Children’s Foundation; and John Matter, president of Matter Brothers.