For Immediate Release:

The Junior League of Buffalo and The Buffalo News are pleased to present The Tool Library with $175,000 in proceeds from the 22nd Decorators’ Show House, The St. Patrick’s Friary. The show house was open to the public from June 3-24 2023 and raised a total of $175,000 in grant money.

The Tool Library shares the tools our neighbors need to create the change they want. At The Tool Library, we believe that cost shouldn’t be a barrier to fixing up your home, growing your own food, and improving your community. As a community-driven non-profit, a membership to the Tool Library gives community members access to thousands of tools, free educational programming, and a community of doers and makers. Since 2011, The Tool Library has grown from a small storefront helping neighbors fix up their homes to a region-wide resource center helping individuals and organizations make a significant impact in their community through the power of sharing. The Tool Library will use the Show House proceeds to purchase its new home at 2626 Main Street and establish a vital civic campus that empowers the community, grows our programs and impact, and continues to build out Western New York’s sharing and repairing economy.

“After 13 years of renting, we can finally plant our roots at 2626 Main Street and build a space that truly meets our needs and the needs of our community thanks to this transformative funding from the Junior League of Buffalo and the Buffalo News” said Darren Cotton, the founder and executive director of The Tool Library. “More than four times the size of our previous location, this is more than just a building — it is our home — and a springboard to help realize a world where sharing tools, repairing our things, and caring for our public spaces is the norm and not the exception.”

Since 1981, the Junior League of Buffalo has proudly collaborated with the Buffalo News in presenting its largest fundraiser, the Decorators’ Show House. The semiannual event has raised more than $4.4 million to date. A few of the previous Show House proceeds recipients include: Providence Farm Collective, A Playground for All at Chestnut Ridge Park, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Darwin D. Martin House, Jericho Road Ministries, Massachusetts Avenue Project, Torn Space Theatre, and many others.

“The Junior League of Buffalo has a proud history of acting as catalysts for change and serving diverse communities in WNY” said Stephanie Wilkinson, Junior League of Buffalo President. “We are thrilled to provide this funding to The Tool Library to achieve their goal of building ownership in order to further their mission. We look forward to our new partnership with their organization.”

About the Junior League of Buffalo:

The Junior League of Buffalo is an organization of women committed to voluntarism, developing the potential of women and improving communities through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. Its purpose is exclusively educational and charitable. The Junior League of Buffalo is located at 45 Elmwood Ave., Buffalo, NY 14201, 716-884-8865, buffalo.jl.org