Help us build strong girls for a stronger St Louis.

Financial Support

LitShop relies on the generous support of our community to be able to provide our girls with high-quality programming. Your financial support means we can purchase the supplies we need, pay our staff and instructors fair wages, and work with vendors and partners to grow LitShop sustainably.

Ways to Donate

Donate Online

  • Securely donate online to LitShop using the following platforms:

  • Looking make a recurring donation? Use your credit/debit card via PayPal and check “Make this a recurring donation”

What does your donation do for us?

$10,000 sponsors an entire 16-week afterschool program for up to 15 builders
$5,000 buys six months worth of lumber for our girl-powered building projects
$1,000 funds one popup building event for up to 20 builders
$500 buys a powerful benchtop machine for our woodshop
$250 buys literacy supplies for one Builder Book Club
$100 buy ten high-interest titles for our lending library
$50 funds personal protective equipment for one afterschool program
$25 stocks our shop bathroom with one month’s worth of period products for our builders
$10 buys snacks for one afterschool building session’s worth of powerful girls

By Check

We love checks! They save us processing fees from online payment processors.

Mail checks (made out to LitShop) to

LitShop
4255 McRee
St Louis, MO 63110


Volunteer

Volunteer Opportunities

LitShop is always ready to partner with individuals and groups who support our mission of empowering girls* through reading, writing, building, and making. Numerous volunteer opportunities exist for all types of people - skilled builders, wordsmiths, detail-oriented administrators, social butterflies, shop organizers, etc.

We’re building an army of volunteers to support our work building strong girls for a stronger St Louis, and soon you’ll be able to manage your volunteering at LitShop via our website!

Interested in volunteering? Complete our volunteer interest form below and a member of the LitShop team will reach out with more information.

If you are looking for opportunities for groups to volunteer at LitShop, please email us and we’ll reach out directly to see how we can work together.

Work With Us

Are you a hands-on maker or builder who wants to pass your skills along to young people? Are you a writer who wants to help young writers build their craft across a variety of genres? Do you want to join an innovative, dynamic community created to inspire and empower girls to build the world they want to live in? Come teach at LitShop!

Our workshop leaders design and implement curriculum with input and feedback from our community of girls and gender-expansive youth ages 10-16.

We need workshop leaders who are:

  • tradespeople (especially carpenters and woodworkers)

  • DIY'ers (especially with skills in carpentry and woodworking)

  • architects and designers

  • makers (especially printmakers)

  • muralists

  • crafters

  • writers (especially poets with experience in spoken word poetry)

Availability

Because we serve kids outside of the regular school day, availability is key. We’re looking for folks with flexible schedules to work 3-5 hours per week (afterschool & summer) or 3-4 hours daily for week-long camps (summer). Workshops are taught by at least two adults.

Afterschool

  • one weekday/week or one afternoon/weekend

  • 2-3 hours (generally between the hours of 3PM-7PM)

  • workshops run 8-16 weeks

Summer

  • one-week camps OR one weekday/week throughout the summer

  • 3-4 hours daily for camps, 2-3 hours daily for weekly workshops.


We are also looking for workshop leaders with daytime availability to help facilitate group workshops for adults on a monthly basis. If you are unsure if you have availability that works with our schedule, just reach out and we can chat!

Interested applicants should have a radical love for kids, a commitment to inclusive and anti-racist practices, and must pass a background check. Must be vaccinated for COVID. Workshop leaders earn $34/contact hour, with an additional paid planning time as needed.

We’re always open to ideas for new workshops. If you’ve got an idea for a reading, writing, building and making workshop, we want to hear about it.

Interested? Fill out our Workshop Leader Interest Form and we’ll be in touch.

In-Kind Support

As LitShop expands, our need for equipment, materials, and supplies grows. LitShop graciously accepts donations of new and gently used tools in working condition, equipment, materials, and supplies.

LitShop reserves the right to refurbish and resell donated tools if we have no current need for a specific item.

Check our Current Needs list below to see specific items we need for our shop.

We also have an Amazon Wishlist for folks wanting to make an easy in-kind donation.

LitShop does not accept book/magazine donations unless they meet the following criteria:

●      Must be published in the last ten years.

●      New or gently-used condition (no mildewed, dusty, stained, or dirty books)

●      Non-religious in nature

●      No encyclopedias, textbooks, workbooks, or Reader’s Digest condensed works.

●      No reference materials unless specific to building, making, or writing style guides

●      No magazines, newspapers, or journals unless specifically solicited by LitShop.