Giving back to the communities where we live and work is part of who Securian Financial is as a company. Our employees, retirees and board members are at the heart of our culture of giving, and they are empowered to support causes they care about.
Transforming lives one smile at a time
If you’ve had the good fortune of meeting Stephanie Scibora, Business Operations director at Securian Financial, you know she has a bright and easy smile. It comes naturally to her, and she knows that while it can seem like a small gesture, a simple smile can have an enormous impact on someone’s life — especially people experiencing homelessness.
That philosophy has inspired Stephanie to spend the past 19 years helping people experiencing homelessness through volunteering at the Dororthy Day Center in downtown St. Paul and now as the board chair of Listening House, a daytime shelter, dubbed the “Living room of the streets.”
In 2005, around when she began working at Securian, Stephanie started serving meals at the Dorothy Day Center and was soon helping organize groups of associates to volunteer.
“It was there that I realized a smile and a simple hello had a meaningful impact on people; it may be the only one they get all day. I wanted to be intentional about that,” Stephanie said.
After years of volunteering, Stephanie wanted to give back in a deeper way, so she talked with Kate Mayer, Community Relations senior consultant, to learn more about non-profit board service as a way to deepen her commitment. Knowing her passion for helping the homeless coupled with Securian’s support of Listening House, it seemed like a perfect fit.
Listening House is a daytime shelter for people experiencing poverty, homelessness and loneliness. Stephanie joined the board in March 2021. She became vice chair the following fall and then chair in the fall of 2023.
A non-traditional shelter with unique services
Listening House is a daytime facility where people can go to get a cup of coffee, take a warm shower, get clean clothes and hygiene products. They also come for friendly, smiling faces and a listening ear.
“The big differentiation between us and traditional shelters is that we are open during the day, and we do everything to say ‘yes’ to our guests,” explained Stephanie. “We’re giving them the help they need to move beyond homelessness.”
In addition to providing rest and refuge, people use the Listening House’s address to receive mail and access WIFI. They also get help with paperwork and documents needed for employment, paying fines or tickets and can even get work on the spot from the Work Now program with the City of St. Paul and Ramsey County, a program that puts people to work cleaning up downtown. If you see people in purple vests picking up downtown, they are Work Now employees.
Listening House now has a permanent location
In her brief time with Listening House, Stephanie helped spearhead a capital campaign to create a permanent home for the organization in the former Red Savoy’s location, just outside downtown on West 7th Street. Over the prior decades, Listening House was in church basements around the city.
The Securian Financial Foundation was a big supporter, awarding a grant to the capital campaign in 2022. Using those funds, along with other grants and individual donations, Listening House was able to buy and remodel the space and are now working on phase two, which includes a separate building offering space for rest, showers, laundry, donations and a courtyard.
“Securian Financial and Listening House have built a strong, multi-faceted partnership, from foundation grant making to event sponsorships and multiple employee groups volunteering to help Listening House clients,” explained Kate. “Securian employees, including Stephanie, also support Listening House by requesting matching gifts and volunteer grants back to the organization. It’s a wonderful partnership.”
Giving and gaining skills
Through her work experience in operations and management, Stephanie is helping the Listening House team and board formalize and mature their operating practices and determine what they need for the future.
“It’s been amazing to see and be part of the resilience, nimbleness and tenacity of this small team,” she said. In turn, she has gained a deeper understanding of the community, and the impact people can have.
“I love to make a difference. What we do shows how a small impact can make a big ripple,” Stephanie said. “I’m proud of all the ways we help. We call it ‘radical hospitality,’ which starts by saying yes and listening. It is not easy, by any means. This space is ground zero for many people.”
Advice for others: Jump in and get involved
For those considering volunteering, “Don’t wait. Jump in!” she advises. “It’s like a job application; you don’t need to check off everything on the skills-needed list. Every one of us has so many talents, and there are so many needs.”
Stephanie’s two children, age 11 and nine, even do their part to help. They have packed survival bags, hosted a sock drive at school, and annually make Swedish meatballs through church and use part of their savings to buy them for Listening House guests as a Thanksgiving treat. Stephanie couldn’t be prouder.
