Why This Designer Is Renovating a Nunnery
Earlier this year, designer Kelly Finley, founder of San Francisco-based design firm Joy Street Studio, signed a contract for a renovation project. The scope of the project is similar to many others the designer has completed: Several bedrooms, living spaces, and a kitchen. The difference? The building, a onetime nunnery, is called Elizabeth House, and it's a transitional home for women escaping domestic violence. The project is the first project under a nonprofit arm of Finley's business that she's long wanted to launch.
"I've always felt that I was very lucky to get where I am," says Finley. "The opportunities I've had all my life, I feel like I've always tried to give back. And so when I started the firm, I always knew there would be a nonprofit. Over the last few years, I've tried to figure out what that would be."
Enter: Joy Street Initiative, which she has just set up as a 501(c)3. Finley plans to funnel 10% of her firm's profits into the Initiative, using that funding—as well as donations, which she can accept as a registered nonprofit—to finance designs that benefit disenfranchised people.
Finley settled on a longer-term commitment with Elizabeth House after several à la carte volunteering jobs with various organizations. "We felt like we could really make a difference here," says the designer. So far, she has outfitted several bedrooms for women who enter the shelter (often with children—another big draw for the designer) and pay a small rent until they get back on their feet. Finley hopes to eventually create several "packages" that new residents can choose from when moving in.
Next up? The home's commercial kitchen, for which Finley is hoping to raise $50,000. "The kitchen is massive, so we're really hoping to get donations for that," says the designer, who, until now, has been filling in many of the gaps herself.
"I've always felt the home was a very important place to get rest, to recharge," says Finley, who saw her skills as a designer aligning perfectly with this need. "Of course people can give money, but I felt there was something about using the skills that I have to give something other than money."
Another factor? "The people who are most impacted, the people who are most often found in their shelters also happen to look like me," says Finley, who is Black. "So as a woman of color, I felt like, this is something concrete that I observe and help people that are in need."
"I just want to give them a little bit more dignity," says the designer. "You know, how nice would it be to, when their their kids come in, have them say, 'oh, it's so nice. I feel loved. I feel like somebody cares about me.' That's just a great way to start your rehabilitation."
Learn more about Joy Street Initiative or make a donation here.
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