find your cause

In this episode we interview Father Joshua Peters, Director of Mission and Identity at Christ The King Jesuit College Prep. Christ the King Jesuit College Prep is a Catholic school on Chicago’s West Side and a member of the Cristo Rey Network challenges and inspires its young women and men through the integration of academics, work experience, and extracurricular activities to lead lives of integr...

In this episode we interview Bonnie Sawyer, Executive Director of Herren Project. Herren Project is an organization on a mission to support, inspire, and empower those affected by substance use disorder. Herren Project was started with one person reaching out for help to find the treatment they deserved to recover from addiction. Since that time, Herren Project has assisted 2,823 men and women wit...

In this episode we interview Tony Alvarado-Rivera, Executive Director and Essence-Jade Gatheright, Youth Organizing Fellow at Chicago Freedom School (CFS). CFS is an organization on a mission to create new generations of critical and independent thinking young people who use their unique experiences and power to create a just world. CFS also provides training and education opportunities for youth...

In this episode we interview AJ Vetter, Executive Director at benefit.design. Benefit.design is a need-based design studio focused on connecting nonprofits to their communities by providing unique creative solutions like websites and marketing materials. Want to learn more, donate, or get engaged? Donate: https://www.benefit.design/donate Email: social@benefit.design Website: https://www.benefit.d...

In this episode we speak with Dr. Sylvia Smith, Executive Director of Giant Steps. Giant Steps is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization providing individuals with autism spectrum disorders therapeutic services focused on improving the quality of daily life from early childhood through adulthood. Want to learn more, donate, or get engaged? Donate: http://donate.gsteps.org/ Phone: +1 (630) 864-3800 Em...

In this episode we speak with Deborah Clair, Founder and Executive Director of Camp 1302. Camp 1302 is a summer camp 9 years-running that serves kids ages 5-12 in the southside Chicago neighborhood of Englewood. Summer camps like Camp 1302 provide opportunities for kids to be kids! Want to learn more, donate, or get engaged? A $125 donation covers all camp costs for 2 kids! Phone: +1 (773) 398-934...

A nonprofit lending movement that makes no CENTS In this episode we speak with Paul Hawkinson, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Transform Capital. Transform Capital is a 501c3 non-profit organization on a mission to ignite generational advantage for others on the journey of asset ownership. Want to learn more, donate, or get engaged? Phone: +1 (312) 307-8774 Website: https://tccommunity.org/ F...

“Knowledge is power, but only when paired with action” In this episode we speak with Kay Farlow, Founder of the IMPower Center. IMPower Center is an organization on a mission to promote the financial literacy of youth and adults covering topics like credit, real estate, and investing to help close the racial equity gap through education. IMPower Center is located in South Bend, Indiana and will he...

Hip hop is around the world and if we don't take this back now, it is either going to destroy our community or it is going to save our community because hip hop has always been the tip of the social-political sphere in black and brown communities.” In this episode we speak with Khafre Jay, Executive Director of Hip Hop For Change. Their mission is to use grassroots activism to educate people about...

In this episode we check-in with Latanya Johnson, Founder of Latanya & The Youth of Englewood. We are checking in with her as she just opened a brand new center to further support the kids she serves! This is an organization we interviewed in Episode 15 so check back to that one for a deeper dive into the impact Latanya is having! The Youth of Englewood was established to work with youth ages...

In Chicago, 197,524 children (1 out of every 3) live in low-income or homeless situations. In this episode we interview Shoshana Buchholz-Miller, Executive Director at Cradles to Crayons. Cradles to Crayons is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Chicago, Boston, and Philadelphia on a mission to provide children from birth through age 12, living in homeless or low-income situations, with the es...

In this episode we do a check-in (in a live cooking show format!) with Sebastian White, Founder of The Evolved Network. The Evolved Network is a newer non-profit organization that has come a long way since we interviewed them in Episode 20 so we had to do a check-in! The Evolved Network is on a mission to provide unconditional care through a holistic and therapeutic approach that functions to buil...

“I wanted to do something now” to have a larger impact and support historically disinvested communities in Chicago. In this episode we hear from Walmer Saavedra, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Human Scale. Human Scale is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization on a mission to design and build functional, beautiful, and meaningful public spaces in historically disinvested neighborhoods across Chic...

“And it gives us hope that this place is a place of healing.” In this episode we hear from Cordia Pugh, executive director of Hermitage Street Community Gardens (HSCG). HSCG provides education, helping build the community with healthy living in urban agriculture giving old and young alike the chance to get their hands in the soil and enjoy nature in the community. HSCG is a part of her broader 501...

Give me four courts and I’ll clear the streets. In this episode, we speak with Detective Matt Thornton of My Father’s Business (MFB). MFB is a non-profit that welcomes at-risk youth within their community to play basketball and eat. Every Friday night MFB provides a safe and open place to engage in conversations, provide mentorships, and offer different networking opportunities “planting seeds in...

According to a study in 2015, Islam has 1.8 billion adherents, making up about 24.1% of the world population and yet there are still Muslim-American youth living through a racist narrative. In this episode, we speak with Ahmed Flex Omar, Co-Founder and CXO of Muslim American Leadership Alliance (MALA). MALA was founded in 2015 to educate Muslim-American youth on culture, heritage, and identity thr...

Chicago Scholars is an organization seeking to highlight talent regardless of the student’s high school or neighborhood. In this episode we hear how Jeff Beckham, the newly appointed CEO of Chicago Scholars, operates as the largest college access and success program in Chicago serving more than 3,000 Scholars and Alumni each year in their seven-year college access and success mentoring and career...

Asia on Argyle is a diverse and vibrant neighborhood in Chicago’s Uptown that is home to dozens of ethnic restaurants, shops, and hidden treasures. With the recent concerns from the pandemic and a worrying trend of anti-Asian rhetoric, Nuky Pham, Hac Tran and their friends Sany Nguyen, Hoan Huynh, and Trang Truong-Hill felt compelled to start a community initiative in Celebrate Argyle to help shin...

Veteran unemployment rates can be 50% higher than the national average. In this episode we hear from Greg Drobny – Student Outreach Coordinator from Code Platoon. Code Platoon is a non-profit computer code academy geared toward helping veterans and their spouses gain valuable coding skills that they can turn into a career! How can you help? Share – If you know of a veteran/spouse needing training...

In Chicago, 25,000 women are trafficked annually, equaling 2 women every hour, every day. In this episode, we hear Dr. Izabel Olson, Founder of Salt and Light Coalition discuss how her organization is mobilizing individuals and organizations to empower survivors of trafficking to live meaningful and purposeful lives. How to help can you help? Yoga class teachers – Visit website, and volunteer to t...

Helping to provide a community retreat through arts for children in a refugee camp in Bethlehem, Palestine, in this episode we hear from founder Abdelfattah Abusrour of Alrowwad Cultural and Arts Society. Abdelfattah discusses how during the Covid19 pandemic their organization delivered over 11,500 meals to families in need, and provide much needed resources for Theater Programs, Education, and Wo...

Helping to provide Chicago’s underserved communities with access to children’s books. In this episode we hear from Darrin Utynek CEO of Bernie’s Book Bank, as he discusses how you can get involved with helping Chicago families. 1 book for every 300 children in low-income neighborhoods 61% of homes do not have childrens books 2/3 students who cannot read proficiently by the end of the 4th grade wil...

For kids in sports, there is a growing list of expensive equipment, team fees, or lack of access that prevent them from even participating. In this episode we hear from Jason Schmitz (President and Co-Founder) and Jasmine Hodari (Co-Founder and Executive Director) of All Kids Play, an organization that works to insure any kid can enjoy the “fun of sport without worrying about financial roadblocks”...

In 2017, there were 16,588 homeless youth between the ages of 14-24, and now with Covid-19 those numbers could be even higher. In this episode we hear from Fred Niche, Executive Director at Stand Up for Kids and how their volunteers and staff empower homeless and at-risk youth toward lifelong personal growth, and to create in these youth a sincere belief in themselves through open, straightforward...

Not all girls have the same opportunity to play sports, but one organization has been working to change that. In this episode we hear from Beth Tumiel, Programs Director for Girls in the Game discuss how sports can help enable every athlete to find her voice, discover her strength, and lead with confidence now more than ever! Girls in the Game has over 50,000 girls participating in their sports pr...