Columbia, Women-Owned, Area Business Impacts Thousands of Families Through Charitable Giving
 Just Between Friends Columbia Receives National Community Service Award

Nichole Clark (left) and Casey Elliott (right) were award the Community Impact Award the Just Between Friends annual conference in Seattle, Washington in January 2022. Flanked left – Shannon Wilburn, JBF CEO. Flanked right – Dianne Davis, JBF President.

Columbia, MO. – Feb 8, 2022 – Giving back to area families to help in challenging times is what drives Nichole Clark and Casey Elliott, owners of the Columbia Just Between Friends (JBF) sales event. These two moms host pop-up sales twice a year where families buy and sell high-quality, new, and gently used children’s and maternity items through these community marketplaces.


These large-scale sales events benefit City of Refuge and Central Missouri Community Action charities who receive in-kind donations each sale. During the fall JBF sale, shoppers participated in a holiday gift drive, enabling 75 local families in need to provide toys and necessities for their children. To benefit the MU Children’s Hospital, Clark and Elliott donated the door proceeds and shopper donations to provide necessities and accommodations to families with children in the hospital.

“We recognize that each person that walks through our venue’s doors has wants and needs, and we strive to meet each need and provide joy to each child and family” say Clark and Elliott. “Thanks to the generosity of our sellers and shoppers, we’ve donated thousands of items to the City of Refuge, along with hundreds of dollars to the Patient Assistance Fund at the MU Children’s Hospital. Last fall shoppers gave generously by purchasing gifts of clothing, toys and supplies for seventy-five children so they might have a happier holiday season. JBF has provided us with a platform and an opportunity to create waves of change in Mid-Missouri—and we are thrilled to be part of this community that also believes in making life a little easier for our neighbors and friends in need.”

Clark and Elliott accepted their award at the Just Between Friends National Conference in Seattle, Washington in January which included a check for them and a matching gift for their charity partners.

An independent team of judges chose JBF Columbia as this year’s Community Impact Award winner due do their ongoing efforts in providing ways for local families to help one another. Clark and Elliott spend time in their off season looking for ways to determine and proactively serve the needs of their community. The judges said, “The generous spirit of giving translates into outreach much bigger than these franchisees could do on their own,” sharing the example of a family who participated in the holiday gift drive as a way to give back, having themselves been on the receiving end of a stranger’s generosity two years ago.

Clark and Elliott said, “That family drives us to want to continue making an impact.” Columbia Just Between Friends is hosting its spring event April 21 through 23 at the Columbia Sports Fieldhouse.

About City of Refuge

City of Refuge is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization created to help refugees recover and regain control of their lives. We help refugees become productive, successful, and contributing members of our community. For more information visit: https://cityofrefugecolumbia.org/

Over the past few years, thousands of women, children, and men from Asia, Africa, and the Middle East have fled conflict and disaster, seeking a place to survive and recover in our community. City of Refuge serves them by helping with immediate needs, building relationships over time, and helping them acclimate to the Mid-Missouri area. For more information visit: https://cityofrefugecolumbia.org/.

About Central Missouri Community Action Agency

Central Missouri Community Action’s mission is to build relationships to empower people, strengthen resilience, and improve quality of life for all members of the community. CMCA is dedicated to eradicating the causes and conditions of poverty. For more information visit: https://cmca.us/.

Nichole Clark (left) and Casey Elliott (right) were award the Community Impact Award the Just Between Friends annual conference in Seattle, Washington in January 2022.