You’re Invited To Our 9th Birthday!
You're invited to join us at the GMS gallery to celebrate this milestone
with warmth, laughter, and of course - cake!
WHEN:
First Thursday, April 2, 2026 5:30-7:30pm
WHERE:
GMS Gallery, 1335 NW Kearney St. Portland, OR 97209
It’s hard to believe that it’s been 9 whole years of Gather:Make:Shelter! Gather:Make:Shelter was founded in 2017 to create a collaborative model of engagement connecting people experiencing houselessness and poverty to creative opportunities. Intended as a year-long project by artist and activist Dana Lynn Louis, with the fervent support of the Portland community it quickly took on a life of its own. Today we are a 501(c)3 organization continuing to grow through the combined passion and imagination of our community.
Over the years we’ve continued to engage folks not only in Portland, but around the state of Oregon. We’ve widened our reach to connect more community members, while also deepening our programming to more acutely serve our Collective. Some of the highlights in recent years have been opening a gallery to host 5-6 exhibitions per year, hiring new staff members to bolster our operations and programming, partnering with more organizations around Portland, creating a robust volunteer program, expanding our Board of Advisors and Board of Directors, and much, much more.
We’re incredibly proud of the work we’ve done over the past nine years to connect Portland’s unhoused community with the arts, and we look forward to continuing this work in the years to come.
