Welcome to the 5th Annual Unstoppable Good Drive in memory of Brian Kopperud

Five years ago, on 08/19/2020, we lost an unstoppable force of good in the world when Brian Kopperud's life ended far too soon. Just under a year later, on 08/11/2021, the Unstoppable Good Drive was born when Brian's daughter Erin made an impromptu decision to solicit donations to a local food shelf in honor of his first birthday since his passing. Since then, our family has been honored to coordinate a giving opportunity to benefit a worthy local organization the week of Brian's birthday. Now, in just four years, more than $20,000 has been donated in honor of Brian by his friends, family, and colleagues, by those connected to his loved ones, and even by people who never met him but have still been moved to give.

The collective generosity we've witnessed has brought us (and we hope you) immense joy during a hard month when Brian is even more at the forefront of our minds than usual. By donating this year, you can help us carry on Brian's legacy of being an unstoppable force of good and honor his memory the week of his birthday!

We are excited to announce that the 2025 recipient of this year's donations will be My Very Own Bed, a Minneapolis-based non-profit which provides brand new beds (frame + mattress) and dream kits (bedding, stuffed animals, and books) to children of families who have recently secured stable housing.

In 2012, My Very Own Bed founder Michael Allen lost his father, known as "Boom Boom", a loss our family deeply identifies with (funnily, one of Brian's family nicknames happened to be "Bam Bam"). Shortly thereafter, Michael was working in social services, helping unhoused families secure stable housing, when he observed many children with poor sleeping conditions because basic furnishings like a child's bed were out of reach for their families. Saddened but motivated by what he was observing, in 2014 Michael founded Boom Boom's Beds, as a way to carry on his father's legacy of giving and generosity.

If you're so moved, we would be thrilled to accept any donation you wish to make to the 5th Annual Unstoppable Good Drive this year in Brian's honor/memory, to be directed to My Very Own Bed. If you prefer not to donate via GoFundMe, and would rather donate with cash or check, please reach out to Brian's daughter Erin via phone, email or Facebook. You are also welcome to donate via Venmo (@Erin-Hox; phone number ending in -0750), if you prefer!

If you're unable or prefer not to donate, we completely understand! Instead, we invite you to ask yourself, "What would Brian do?" and find a way to put a little bit of goodness into the world this week. Go out of your way to recognize a colleague or employee's hard work, pay for a stranger's groceries or restaurant tab, help a neighbor with a chore, call or visit a family member who misses you, or surprise a friend with an unexpected card or gift. Thank you for honoring Brian with your acts of unstoppable good this week and all year round!

Please also consider sharing this Drive with someone you love, or someone who loved Brian too.

With endless gratitude for your love, support, and generosity,

The Kopperud Family (Jill, Erin, Joe, Ryan, Jen, & June)

#UnstoppableGood #BigBrianEnergy #BBE #WhatWouldBrianDo #WWBD

The previous recipients of the Unstoppable Good Drive were:

• NorthPoint Health & Wellness Center's Food Shelf in North Minneapolis (2021)

• Dakota Woodlands Shelter for women & children experiencing housing insecurity in Dakota County (2022)

• COMPAS - an arts education non-profit working to unleash creativity across Minnesota by improving access to arts education in local schools and communities across the state (2023)

• The Lift Garage – a Minneapolis-based non-profit which seeks to lift people out of poverty by offering quality, affordable auto repair to those who meet the 150% Federal Poverty Guideline (2024)