Jeannette Maré, executive director of Ben’s Bells, outside of the new downtown location. Photo by Jamie Manser
Downtown will get a burst of kindness this month as Ben’s Bells opens a new location at 40 W. Broadway Blvd. on January 20.
With three additional kilns and much more office space, the new location will help the Ben’s Bells team continue to fire, paint and distribute bells that encourage kindness. The non-profit will also remain at their original studio space, 816 E. University Blvd.
“We are bursting at the seams and there’s so much demand that we were having to turn people away,” said Jeannette Maré, executive director of Ben’s Bells. “We don’t want to stop anyone from encouraging kindness and we want to satisfy that demand, and the new location will help us to do that.”
As Ben’s Bells continues to grow in production, with volunteers numbering tens of thousands, Maré said expanding was essential and downtown seemed a perfect fit.
“We love downtown,” said Maré. “We love the energy of downtown, we know it’s going to be the place to be in the next couple of years and we’re excited to be a part of it.”
The new location will allow the tens of thousands of Ben’s Bells volunteers the opportunity to assist in other parts of production, Maré said.
It will also provide the space for Ben’s Bells to host events. On January 28, Ben’s Bells and the Fox Theatre will team up for “Girls Kind Night Out.” The evening will touch upon the importance of kindness by screening the film “Finding Kind,” at 5:30 p.m which showcases the effects of bullying on teenage girls.
“It’ll be a night of great girl power,” Maré said. “After the screening [at Fox Theatre], everyone will walk over to Ben’s Bells.”
The new office was furnished in part by Goodmans Interior Structures who selected Maré in a contest to award executive directors of non-profits with a $20,000 office makeover. The office was revealed to Maré for the first time on December 12.
Ben’s Bells began after the unexpected death of Maré’s son Ben to croup, in an effort to remind others to be kind and perpetuate acts of kindness. To date, thousands of Ben’s Bells have been randomly distributed across Arizona and into several other U.S. states.
The opening on Fri, Jan 20 features an open house from 11:30am-1:30pm and a ribbon cutting with music and refreshments from 5:30pm-7pm. To find out more about Ben’s Bells, visit BensBells.org.
