Angela Moy and Aileen Maquiraya
LKE Dojo is a Muay Thai martial arts dojo and training program designed to equip women with self-defense training and self-empowerment through women-only safe spaces and holistic classes for training and meditation. Founded by Angela Moy and Aileen Maquiraya, LKE Dojo seeks to disrupt the martial arts world by providing training for Queer people and women, two communities underserved and marginalized in the sector.
Rayce Lamb
Faithonomics is a social impact venture that empowers faith-inspired social impact leaders to bring their bold ideas to life without sacrificing their personal or financial well-being in the process. Founded by Rev. Rayce Lamb, Faithonomics offers financial education and vocational connection to faith-inspired leaders, creators, and entrepreneurs through their Doers Creative digital platform.
Torie Zeiner
With You Co. is a small business launched by pediatric chaplain Torie Zeiner that curates and sells “gathered gifts for life’s ungathered moments,” supporting those who are experiencing grief, loss, or life's transitions, including "coming out" boxes for those celebrating the announcement of their identity to the world. When the right words are hard to find, Torie helps organizations, churches, and community members by delivering curated care packages sending the thoughtful, tactile, and heart warming message of “I’m with you.”
Chris Lawrence
El Barrio Homes is an effort to create affordable housing for religious and social service workers in the neighborhoods where they work and minister in East Harlem, NY. Still in the early stages, the program hopes to provide single rooms and apartments for clergy and volunteer workers in order to build community and engagement in the neighborhood.
Beverly Jenkins
Refuge and Restoration Restoration (R&R) Marketplace is a redevelopment project in the Dellwood community of Ferguson, MO. Repurposing a strip mall that has been abandoned for 20 years, the R&R team are creating an equitable access community hub that will include an early child development center, a bank, co-working space, as well as a church and needed community social service offices. This innovative system-linking holistic hub will help build community and foster economic development.
Heber Brown
Heber Brown, The Black Church Food Security Network
From its beginning in 2015 as a garden planted on church grounds, the Black Church Food Security Network has grown to become a national alliance of more than 200 congregations who work together to co-create Black Food ecosystems and address the root causes of food apartheid. Founded by Dr. Heber Brown, the network organizes Black churches who are uniquely positioned to serve as food hubs and distributors to improve community health. Food is sourced from an expanding group of 125 participating Black farms, including an apple orchard in NY and citrus farms in Florida.
Moy Mendez
Moy Mendez, The Hope Center, Blue Island, Illinois
The Hope Center is a "community center born out of a local church with the mission to empower neighbors to become creators and leaders through programs in agriculture, technology and auto mechanics." Originally a food pantry, Founder and Executive Director Moy Mendez reframed the mission to address food insecurity on a deeper level and to offer neighbors options for work and learning that could instill real hope in the struggling community of Blue Island, IL.
Morgan Villar
Morgan Villar, Dignity Homes, Atlanta, GA
Dignity Homes is a non-profit development firm that builds affordable homes for the housing insecure and will offer housing capped at 30% of family income in the greater Atlanta area. Founded by Morgan Villar, Dignity Homes is committed to developing long-term communities that intervene in the cycle of poverty and create a clear path to homeownership for Americans who have been denied access to the American dream.
Jon Adam Ross
Jon Adam Ross, The Inheritance Theater Project, New York, NY
The Inheritance Theater Project works with communities to build relationships across divides through collaborative theater projects inspired by shared cultural touchstones and spiritual texts. Communities reachout to the Inheritance Theater Project as a way to create conversation and healing around incidents caused bydeep racial, religious, or other cultural divides. Founded by Jon Adam Ross in 2015, the company has created original theater in 15 cities across the US.
Garry Mills
Garry Mills, Shoot Basketballs NOT People, Philadelphia, PA
After too many of his friends and students died of gun violence, Garry Mills’ mission became simple. Shoot Basketballs NOT People" (SBNP) uses basketball as the vehicle to save and change the lives of youth. Through supportive services and resources, educational opportunities and, of course, basketball, SBNP works to decrease violence that perpetuates a cycle in which too many of today’s victims become tomorrow’s criminals.
Jillian Shannon
Jillian Shannon, Neotopia, San Antonio, TX
Neotopia is a postmodern bookstore with a carefully curated selection of books in the realm of progressivetheology, philosophy and culture, along with a community space that offers classes, lectures, book clubs and movie screening and discussion. Founded by Jillian Shannon, the bookstore is designed to be a sanctuary for seekers and skeptics of any or no religion who want to challenge and discuss theological questions often unwelcome in many religious communities.
Victoria Scott-Miller
Victoria Scott-Miller, Liberation Station, Raleigh, NC
Liberation Station is North Carolina’s first Black-owned children’s bookstore. The bookstore specializes in children’s literature by Black creators that focuses on positive Black narratives and characters.
Katie Kenyon
Katie Kenyon, Village Green RVA, Richmond, Virginia
Village Green RVA strives to make healthy food and family support accessible to the underserved community. Focusing on children in care (foster, adoptive, kinship, biological) and their families, single parent, and senior adults, the program will offer healthy and sustainable food while providing supportive life and career programs.