Furniture Mission breaks ground on large new location

People in need soon will have a new place to turn for gently used furniture and housewares.

The Furniture Mission of South Dakota breaks ground today on a 27,000-square-foot warehouse and office on the Empower Campus in east Sioux Falls.

The new location will be the main home for the operation, which accepts donations and then provides them at no cost to those in need. Its current home is at 209 N. Nesmith Ave.

Additionally, the new building will have space dedicated to quilting, a woodshop, paint room and more to allow ample space for volunteers and for mentorship to teach these skills to the next generation.

“This is more than a building for us,” said Janean Michalov, executive director of the Furniture Mission. “It’s about people, the lives that we change every single day. For just over two decades, we’ve been making houses into homes and answering a calling to make sure that family dinners are happening at a dining room table, that bedtime stories end with being tucked into a warm and cozy bed, and that these needs are being met without any additional stress of cost to a family.”

Each person who receives furniture is referred by a social service agency, school, church or hospital. In 2022, Furniture Mission served 5,708 individuals and 2,846 children and placed 28,564 items.

The site of the Furniture Mission’s new building on the Empower Campus at 2100 E. 10th St. also will allow for greater access to clients who may be using services of other organizations on the campus, leaders said.

“The Empower Campus is proud to welcome the Furniture Mission,” said Rich Merkouris, a member of the campus’ board of directors. “The work of this organization will be a perfect complement to the services provided by our other tenants and partners in ministry.”

The $7.5 million facility has been funded in part by a Community Appeals campaign through the Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce and is expected to be complete by the spring of 2025.

Furniture Mission looks to the future, offering hope alongside home furnishings