But imagine trying to find a job in order to support your family while living on the streets. Or envision trying to obtain employment if you are just out of prison with a felony conviction.

Over the last couple years, it has been difficult for many people to find employment. And research shows that a job search becomes almost impossible when one is trying to rebuild a life from prison, addiction or homelessness. This is the problem that Belay Enterprises seeks to solve with its mission of partnering with the church to develop businesses that employ and job-train individuals rebuilding lives.

Out of this vision, Belay launched in 1995 its first faith venture Bud’s Warehouse, a home improvement thrift store selling recycled building materials. In 2002, Belay opened Baby Bud’s, a baby products thrift store that employs disadvantaged single mothers and Freedom Cleaning Services, a commercial cleaning company that also employs single mothers. These projects were followed in late 2003 by the incubation of the Good Neighbor Garage, a job training and car placement program, which has since incorporated into its own independent organization. Baby Bud’s and Freedom Cleaning Services were also spun off into their own non-profit organization in 2009.

And this year, Belay successfully started its fifth faith venture, New Beginnings Custom Woodworks, a custom cabinet manufacturing business that employs and job trains ex-offenders. Last year, these five Christ-centered enterprises employed 80 individuals with 41% of participants successfully graduating into better jobs in the community. Christianity Today recently profiled Belay Enterprises as part of its “This is Our City” Project viewable here.

Bud’s Warehouse employs single moms like Rachel who came to the program last year shortly after making a commitment to live drug free.

“I was absolutely jobless and living completely off of government assistance, but I didn’t want that anymore.” Rachel remembers. “I was tired of the ex-offender, former drug addict pity party and wanted to make a big change.” Within weeks of coming to work at Bud’s Warehouse, Rachel was quickly able to realize her biggest goal. Her young daughter moved back in with her. And today, Rachel has graduated the program into another job in the community.

“When I joined Bud’s, I had no self-worth, but I gained confidence working alongside others in Bud’s positive Christian environment. In five years, I plan to be driving an ambulance for a living,” Rachel says with a smile.

As we enter our 17th year as an organization, would you consider partnering with us by making an end-of-the-year donation? Over the next five years, Belay Enterprises hopes to grow our employment and job-training opportunities to 750 self-sustaining positions a year. Your contribution will help provide start-up funding towards several new projects including expanding New Beginnings Custom Woodworks, starting Purple Door Coffee to employ homeless youth, a new location for Bud’s Warehouse, and a new commercial kitchen project in partnership with the Denver Jail.

And your donation will be deposited into a revolving venture fund at Belay to be invested in the above projects. When the new businesses become self-sustaining, these monies will be repaid back to the fund for future investments in other new projects. So your donation today will invest in job creation for many years to come, making a big difference for the kingdom.

Thank you for your consideration. If you need more information on our programs, please feel free to give me us a call at 303-296-3990. Visit the Belay Paypal web site to make an online contribution here. All contributions are eligible for an additional state enterprise zone credit.

Thank you for your support!

Christmas and New Year’s are almost here! To celebrate, we’re introducing our 12 Days of Christmas Sale. Read below for the details on special savings everyday until Christmas.

Visit Bud’s this season and save even more on these one-day deals:

Saturday, Dec. 10 – Take 20% off all the brand new, custom built cabinets we have in stock. Kitchen or bath. Coupons don’t work on these, so today’s the day!

Monday, Dec. 12 – Every window in the store is 30% off!

Tuesday, Dec. 13 – Check the Tweets! Follow us on Twitter for today’s special savings.

Wednesday, Dec. 14 – Take 30% off all our used kitchen cabinets.

Thursday, Dec. 15 – 50% off all laminate counter tops. That’s right, half off!

Friday, Dec. 16 – All cabinet doors 30% off! Birch, oak, maple,any species new or used!

Saturday, Dec. 17 – Such a great deal we had to do it twice… All cabinet doors 30% off! Birch, oak, maple,any species new or used!

Monday, Dec. 19 – The entire bath department is 30% off! Sinks, tubs, toilets, etc…

Tuesday, Dec. 20 – Need new counter tops? Take 30% off our selection of granite, marble, quartz and more!

Wednesday, Dec. 21 – Doors, doors, doors… We’ve got a lot of them. Take 30% off as many of them as you want!

Thursday, Dec. 22 – Find us on Facebook! Today’s deal will be posted for all our friends to see!

Friday, Dec. 23 – Take 30% off any appliance in the store!

As always, Bud’s Warehouse is open to the public.  The innovative concept of a home improvement thrift store has become increasingly popular with area homeowners seeking savings of up to 70% on home improvement items while helping others.  The organization offers vinyl flooring, marble and granite, doors, kitchen cabinets, appliances, carpet, hardware, light fixtures, windows, cabinet doors, bathtubs, sinks, and many other building materials.

For more information or to donate tax deductible building materials, call (303) 296-3990. Bud’s Warehouse is open Monday though Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.

Bud’s partners with businesses throughout the Denver Metro area to keep quality products out of the landfill. For example, longtime Bud’s donor, KC Cabinetry, recently highlighted the partnership on their website:

“At KC Cabinetry, we’re committed to not only helping you design a kitchen remodel as unique as you are, but we also strive to create a community and world that helps others and is sustainable. When we renovate a kitchen, we make sure to carefully remove the kitchen cabinets so there is little to no damage and donate them to Bud’s Warehouse.”

Donating items to Bud’s helps businesses keep disposal costs down, recycle usable materials, pass along donation-related tax savings and, of course, make a difference in the community by supporting the Bud’s job-training program.

Recently donated cabinet set!

To find our more about donating to Bud’s Warehouse, click here.

As always, Bud’s Warehouse is open to the public.  The innovative concept of a home improvement thrift store has become increasingly popular with area homeowners seeking savings of up to 70% on home improvement items while helping others.  The organization offers vinyl flooring, marble and granite, doors, kitchen cabinets, appliances, carpet, hardware, light fixtures, windows, cabinet doors, bathtubs, sinks, and many other building materials.

For more information or to donate tax deductible building materials, call (303) 296-3990. Bud’s Warehouse is open Monday though Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.

All of our program employees at Bud’s Warehouse are facing significant barriers to finding work, including criminal backgrounds, substance abuse or unstable housing situations. Bud’s employees receive vocational and soft-skills trainings while on the job for six months to a year and then after successfully completing the program transition to employment in the community.

Before the store opens in the morning the staff attends training sessions on a variety of different skill building topics including customer service, workplace skills, computer education and job readiness development. Employees are also assisted with resume preparation, job search skills and interviewing tips. Our goal is that every Bud’s Warehouse employee is qualified to transition into full-time, long-term employment at a living wage. This reduces the need for community assistance while also decreasing the likelihood of a return to prison.

Some of our employees are hired directly by Bud’s and others come from a variety of sources. We partner with several county job training programs, transitional housing organizations, and many TANF and community service programs.

Besides supporting employment and job training, extra revenues from Bud’s Warehouse go to the creation of new ventures that employ individuals rebuilding lives. Bud’s has been instrumental in the creation and incubation of several other faith venture businesses including Baby Bud’s, Freedom Cleaning Services, Good Neighbor Garage and most recently New Beginnings Custom Woodwork.

Bud’s Warehouse recycles and sells to the public usable building materials not accepted by regular thrift stores.  Area home owners, builders, re-modelers, and suppliers seeking to keep new and used home improvement materials out of the landfill support the organization. Bud’s offers kitchen cabinets, appliances, carpet, hardware, light fixtures, windows, bathtubs, sinks, furniture, and many other building materials.

For more information or to donate tax deductible building supplies, call (303) 296-3990. Bud’s Warehouse is open Monday though Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.

Entry is simple – all you have to do is “like” Bud’s and be our friend!

Click here to visit the Bud’s Warehouse Facebook page. And be sure to check your inbox on Wednesdays to see if you’re our weekly winner! Once you’re our Facebook friend, you’ll be the first to know about new arrivals to the warehouse and special offers.

As always, Bud’s Warehouse is open to the public.  The innovative concept of a home improvement thrift store has become increasingly popular with area homeowners seeking savings of up to 70% on home improvement items while helping others.  The organization offers vinyl flooring, marble and granite, doors, kitchen cabinets, appliances, carpet, hardware, light fixtures, windows, cabinet doors, bathtubs, sinks, and many other building materials.

For more information or to donate tax deductible building materials, call (303) 296-3990. Bud’s Warehouse is open Monday though Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.

Bud’s Warehouse

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Custom vanity from Bud's!

Fill out our new online custom cabinet inquiry form here, and we’ll get the process started. It’s new, it’s easy and best of all, you’ll know that your new cabinets are top-quality at a great price and help support the Bud’s Warehouse non-profit mission.

Every month buddy card members get updates on the latest happenings at Bud’s Warehouse as well as special member-only discounts.

Bud’s Warehouse is one of Denver’s best finds for homeowners seeking to remodel on a budget while supporting the community and the environment. The organization recycles usable building items not accepted by regular thrift stores. It accepts items like cabinets, appliances, tile, paint, carpet, hardware, light fixtures, doors, windows, bath tubs, sinks, and many other building materials from area contractors and remodelers. These items are then resold to the public at discounts of up to 70% to support the organization’s employment job training programs.

As we discussed in a past post, joining the Bud’s Warehouse buddy program is one way to get the best results from your shopping experience.

Sign up today by entering your email to the left for Bud’s News by Email or fill out the red form next time you’re in the warehouse.

For more information, call (303) 296-3990. Bud’s Warehouse is open Monday though Friday from 10  a.m. to 5 p.m and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.

We think you’ll agree, this stuff looks good! Do you have any pictures of Bud’s products in action? We’d love to see them! Email your photos to Bud and we’ll share them with the world.

As always, Bud’s Warehouse is open to the public.  The innovative concept of a home improvement thrift store has become increasingly popular with area homeowners seeking savings of up to 70% on home improvement items while helping others.  The organization offers vinyl flooring, marble and granite, doors, kitchen cabinets, appliances, carpet, hardware, light fixtures, windows, cabinet doors, bathtubs, sinks, and many other building materials.

For more information or to donate tax deductible building materials, call (303) 296-3990.