Have you met Homey? 🐼

You may have already seen him waving from our social feeds. Here's the proper introduction.

His name is Homey. He's a panda. He grew up right here in Rochester — loves bamboo and recess, is a little scared of the dark, and gives some of the biggest hugs you'll ever get.

He's also been through something a lot of families know too well. There was a stretch when his own family didn't have a stable place to land. He knows what that kind of uncertainty feels like — the not-knowing, the worry that sits in your chest when the one thing every kid should be able to count on isn't a sure thing.

His family found their way through it. But Homey never forgot what it felt like. So when he learned about Family Promise Rochester — about the people here who show up for families when things get hard, who believe a roof isn't a luxury but the ground everything else is built on — something clicked. He couldn't imagine not being part of it.

So that's his job now. Homey is Family Promise Rochester's first mascot and community ambassador. You'll find him at events and fundraisers throughout the year, waving, dancing, and reminding people that this is a community that takes care of its own.

And he has one more role, the quiet one that matters most. Every child who comes through the doors at Promise House gets a Homey plushie of their own — something soft and familiar to hold onto when everything else feels uncertain. A reminder, right from day one, that they're not facing any of this alone.

He's not a gimmick. He's a way of saying the things that are sometimes hard to say out loud: that every kid who walks through our doors is loved, and that every family we serve deserves a home.

That's really all Homey is here to do. He just wants every kid to know they're loved. And every family to know that a home is something they deserve. 💜

Homey coloring pages-1.pdf

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