The Mustard Seed
The Mustard Seed of Central Florida was established in 1984 at a time when homelessness was just beginning to emerge as a community-wide epidemic. It grew from the personal commitment of the founder, Carol Kane, who saw all homeless individuals, regardless of race, creed, or social status, simply as God’s children in need of assistance. This non-profit, charitable organization is the result of Carol’s faith. It started out of her garage and became an official 501c3 organization in 1988.
The Mustard Seed is the only furniture and clothing bank in Central Florida. The Mustard Seed collects donations of furniture, appliances, household items, linens, dishes, toys, home decor and anything that makes a house a comfortable home. The Mustard Seed will furnish an entire home for economically qualifying families and individuals.
The Mustard Seed is a critical resource in establishing a stable home environment. It serves individuals transitioning out of homelessness and drug rehab recovery and also those suffering from domestic abuse, medical hardships, natural disasters and economic challenges.
Our Facility
The Mustard Seed’s 20,000 square-foot warehouse was built in 1999 entirely by the hearts, hands, and generosity of its caring community partners. The Mustard Seed is so grateful for their kindness and generosity.
In the fall of 2005, the Edyth Bush Charitable Foundation gifted The Mustard Seed with a wonderful sign for the warehouse to make it more visible from Keller Road and Kennedy Boulevard.
The Mustard Seed assists more than 3,000 people annually. About 97 percent of those served are economically disadvantaged, according to the Federal Poverty Index. The other 3 percent are disaster victims whose circumstances left them without financial resources to create stable futures.
The Mustard Seed has accomplished much in its more than 30 years of service!
With the addition of an entire Recycling Department, The Mustard Seed uses and re-uses every item donated. The Mustard Seed is able to recycle the unusable items through their individual parts: metals, cardboard, sheet plastics, fabric, foam and wood.
Since 2011, The Mustard Seed’s Recycling Department deconstructed more than 160,000 mattresses and sold their components, diverting nearly 4 million cubic feet of waste from the landfill while protecting the environment. The Mustard Seed’s recycling efforts generate income to help fund the furniture and clothing programs.
After more than 30 years of service, The Mustard Seed is still growing and evolving into a non-profit for the future, one that is self-sustaining and able to adapt to the growing needs in the community.
