Events
The Human Relations Commission (HRC) sponsors and attends events supportive of our purpose and goals and invites everyone in the community to participate. Feel free to contact the HRC (HRC@stcharlescitymo.gov or 636-949-3590) if you have any questions, comments or suggestions. The following are some of our past events.
Past Events
2023 Human Relations Award
Jaunary 17, 2023- The 2023 Human Relations Award for service year 2022 was presented to Dr. Jose Jones with Boxing Therapy.
2022 Helping Hands for the Holidays
December 14, 2022- Commission members attended and participated in the Helping Hands For the Holidays. The event included a free holiday meal, photos with Santa, games, activities for children and winter coats. The Commission hosted a table featuring information on the City, the HRC, CDBG and Fair Housing. Personal care items were also available at the table.
24th Annual Community Services Summit
October 25, 2022, The Commission hosted a community services table at the Community Services Summit. The summit was held at Calvary Church. The Commission table featured items on Fair Housing as well as CDBG information. More information on the summit is located here.
2022 St. Charles Jewish Festival
Pride St. Charles
Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDoR)
2021 St. Charles Jewish Festival
August 15, 2021 – At the invitation of Rabbi Chaim A. Landa extended to the HRC Commissioners, Commissioners Ed Bryant and Donalee Gastreich, Staff Liaison Chuck Lovelace and Commission Chair Babs Gellman attended the ribbon cutting for the first St. Charles Jewish Festival, organized by the Chabad Jewish Center of St. Charles County and the St. Charles Jewish Family Network, and held outdoors at the Foundry Art Centre. Attendees had the opportunity to enjoy Jewish music and kosher food, and learn about Jewish holidays, rituals and traditions in a fun and meaningful way. At the request of the HRC, Mayor Borgmeyer officially proclaimed the day “St. Charles Jewish Festival Day”.
2022 Human Relations Award
The 2022 Human Relations Award for service year 2021 was presented to Tina Meier at the February 22, 2022 City Council Meeting. See more about the award here.
City of Saint Charles Respect, Harmony, and Understanding Week, April 19 - 23
The Saint Charles Human Relations Commission is committed to championing the rights of all citizens, as our City continues to be an inclusive community where citizens and visitors are respected and welcomed. In support of this mission, St. Charles City Mayor Daniel Borgmeyer proclaimed the week of April 19th through the 23rd as “Respect, Harmony, and Understanding Week.”
“I want to thank the Human Relations Commission for their dedication to promoting diversity and inclusion in our City,” said Mayor Dan Borgmeyer. “Groups like the HRC are a great example of how we can all work together to make Saint Charles a great place to live, work and play for today’s generation and for generations to come.”
There were five fun ways to get involved! Every one of all ages, including individuals, couples, and families, along with businesses and organizations, can participate. YOU can get involved by participating in multiple social media challenges through Facebook. See below for the various challenges.
Monday: Decorate your home or business windows with a message of openness and acceptance.
Tuesday: Create a video to thank or recognize someone who, because of the pandemic, has been doing more for us than ever before!
Wednesday: Keep in touch with socially isolated friends and family by sending them a card or letter.
Thursday: Create a chalk drawing on the sidewalk or driveway outside your residence or business to show what diversity means to you.
Friday: Donate to a local group working to assist vulnerable people in the community.
Read the Proclamations received in honor of this event here: City of Saint Charles and the Missouri House of Representatives
2021 Human Relations Award
The 2021 Human Relations Award for service year 2020 was presented to Alex Reichert at the January 19, 2021 City Council Meeting. See more about the award here.
17th Annual Saint Charles City Lights
This yearly contest is open to all City residents and businesses. It is an opportunity to foster participation in the holiday season and to recognize residents and business owners who beautify our City with varied, diverse holiday displays. Displays were voted upon and the top ten received a yard sign and ornament designed and hand-painted by local artist Serena Boschert. Photos of all entrants can be found on the City Lights 2020 Nominees Map. The 2020 winning entries were announced on December 15, 2020 at the City Council Meeting.
Future City Lights events will be managed by the Special Events and Communications Department.
Second Annual Step-Up and Sleep-Out
The Second Annual Step-Up and Sleep-Out event was held on Saturday, November 1st. In the Saint Louis area, forty-five percent of homeless youth have been turned away from shelters due to lack of capacity. And each night, 1,500 youth are on the streets or without safe shelter in the Saint Louis region. Youth In Need's Young Professionals Group (YPG) held the event with participants raising money and awareness to help end youth homelessness in the Saint Louis region.
For information on future events, contact Youth In Need at 636-946-5600.
Community Services Summit
The Community Services Summit held on October 29, 2019, by the Community Council of St. Charles County is a collaborative training at which educators, social workers, first responders, health/mental health professionals and others serving children and families attain information about issues affecting our community and the local resources available to help. The Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) and St. Charles City Planning Division, as well as the Human Relations Commission participated in the Annual Regional Community Services summit at Calvary Church in St Peters. Our table featured items related to CDBG, Community Development, Fair Housing, Parks and Tourism.
The Community Services Summit held on October 2, 2018 by the Community Council of St. Charles County is a collaborative training at which educators, social workers, first responders, health/mental health professionals and others serving children and families attain information about issues affecting our community and the local resources available to help. The Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) and St. Charles City Planning Division, as well as the Human Relations Commission participated in the 20th Annual Regional Community Services summit at Calvary Church in St Peters. Our table featured items related to CDBG, Community Development, Fair Housing, Parks and Tourism. More than 650 professionals participated in the Summit.
Pride Festival -2019
In 2019 the festival was hosted by Pride St Charles (our local county-wide organization) and held at Frontier Park on the St. Charles riverfront. In support of the LGBTQ+ community the HRC hosted a table at which we provided information on the Commission, the upcoming 2020 census and its importance, Fair Housing, city services and tourism.
2019 Multicultural Reading Day
On March 9, 2019, the HRC and the Saint Charles City-County Libraries sponsored a multi-cultural reading day. The Commissioners visited both library locations located in the City of Saint Charles, McClay and Kathryn Linnemann, where they read aloud children's stories about people from all over the world. About a dozen children came and heard the stories, and they all walked away with several free books! See the event flyer and photos here.
2019 St Charles School District Annual Family Festival
The district held a back-to-school fair and the HRC hosted a table at the event. We gave away free children’s books and candy and provided information on Fair Housing, city services and tourism. We were happy to see our table was busy the entire time.
The Community Services Summit held on October 2, 2018, by the Community Council of St. Charles County is a collaborative training at which educators, social workers, first responders, health/mental health professionals and others serving children and families attain information about issues affecting our community and the local resources available to help. The Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) and St. Charles City Planning Division, as well as the Human Relations Commission participated in the 20th Annual Regional Community Services summit at Calvary Church in St Peters. Our table featured items related to CDBG, Community Development, Fair Housing, Parks and Tourism. More than 650 professionals participated in the Summit.
Fair Housing Conference - April 25, 2018
This session represented a unique forum for citizens from across the region to voice their suggestions, specifically on the topics of education and child well-being.
Mayor Sally Faith was a part of the dialogue, sharing details of how the City was utilizing School Resource Officers, the DARE program, an elementary school reading program, and a new community outreach effort; Coffee with a Cop. The Human Relations Commission participated in the discussion around the Project Read and Reach as well as the MLK Dream project art contest.
Other speakers, included: Community and Children's Resource Board (Bruce Sowatsky), Detention Alternative Initiative by Juvenile Officer (Ken Simmons), the Truancy Initiative (Jeff Marion), the new Boys and Girls Club facility (Craig Leavell) and Anti-Heroin efforts by law enforcement (Tim Lohmar).
Home Buyer's Assistance Seminar
The Human Relations Commission and City of St. Charles Fair Housing Commission co-sponsored this event. Speakers presented information about your rights as a home seeker, and as a renter under the Fair Housing Act. Attendees were provided first-hand knowledge of how they might have qualified to obtain down payment assistance as a 1st time home buyer for amounts between $3,000 - $10,000.
Project Read and Reach- St. Charles School District
Project Read and Reach was a program for elementary students in St. Charles, serving the academic enrichment needs of K-4th grade students through Service Learning, Character Education, STEM, Literacy, and Health/Nutrition. For several years, the Human Relations Commission supported the program that was made available under the School Age Community (SAC) Afterschool Program grant for before and after school academic programming awarded to the St. Charles School District. The Commission lead program activities which encouraged diversity awareness and inclusion in our community. The HRC also lead projects on various career opportunities such as work in the area of Geospatial Mapping and Barbershop careers.