People Helping People

Emily Stuhldreher shared insights into getting social enterprises up and running after years of work with GiveBackHack. There’s an entire community of social enterprises in Ohio that connect to GiveBackHack, including previous guests and myself. Emily talked through a lot of what it takes to build and validate the ideas we start with when embarking on the road of social enterprise. Our conversation started with updates on how the initiative is operating. Emily shared the transition of connecting with the community virtually. Last year, GiveBackHack held the event virtually for the first time. Participants were still able to build together and feel a team harmony. I also attended, so we discussed some ideas that we saw at the virtual GiveBackHack. When beginning a social enterprise, understanding the issue as an experience builds a foundation for the idea. Emily reflected on GiveBackHack over the years, noting the most successful ideas have experience or know someone with experience related to the issue.

Lynnette Cook spends this episode discussing the Rootstrike program Hopeless to Fearless. We have a history with the initiative from our previous episode with Rootstrike’s Dave Parker. Through the program, frontline and mid-level professionals can use practical tools and resources to navigate challenging circumstances. We discussed the Nova membership looping informative experts, impact, and policy. Then, we returned to the origin story of Hopeless to Fearless developing into its current state. Lynnette and Dave crossed paths as being part of the local community. The collaborative work really began when Dave participated in the psychology of creativity speaking series hosted by Lynnette at Ohio State University. The speaking series was meant to help students get in touch with the use of creativity in ventures. Lynette explained thoughts on creativity being in the nonprofit space: “Creativity is about new and unique and seeing solutions where nobody's seen that before, and I can't think of a better defin

Callee Ackland discussed how her commitment to a zero-waste lifestyle developed into Bestowed Essentials and Hippie Haven. Interest in sustainable products came to Callee in 2016 after a purchase of hand-made soap. From then on, Callee stayed mindful of the ingredients and sources of the skincare she used in her daily life. She gave herself one year to develop her soap-making business full time, which is now Bestowed Essentials. A sustainable lifestyle was a standard to Callee who grew up in places that gave her a different relationship to sustainability than people growing up in other parts of the country. Once she watched Netflix’s A Plastic Ocean, her approach towards her business and life shifted. We briefly discussed why audiences should be aware of companies and sustainability, such as the marketing tactics trying to transfer responsibility away from larger brands. Consumers have power in how and where they consistently spend their money. Callee brought attention to the fact that everyone can part

Galicia Gordon discussed her work with Leading Learners, and gave her thoughts on how she was able to start building the initiative at 16 years old. Galicia Gordon’s experience with launching and developing Leading Learners became an amazing conversation to kick off this month’s theme of clarity and new possibilities for creating change. The initiative, based in Vancouver, CA, works to connect students with free resources, scholarships, and tools to empower ownership over their education journey. Galicia felt a one-stop platform for students and all freely accessible resources would serve students well during their academic years. She shared about “being able to build bridges for people when you do see a problem.” Deciding what to do after completing high school is a concern for a majority of youth, especially with the current education system. Galicia explained how she found a trend of young people not knowing what they would do to connect their interest to the real world after high school. In fact, sh

Nicole Crone is a role model for using her curiosity to connect with the community and learn what it means to create impact.

Tim Rush spoke about creating a space for conversations through the Third Way Cafe -- a coffee house that helps the community come together for social good, entertainment, discussions, and of course, coffee! Tim mentioned “conversations” as a top priority in the atmosphere at the coffee house. Dialogue becomes more productive in a safe space, especially around social issues. Third Way Cafe is a place where you can order your coffee, and “talk to someone who's not just your barista, but also your friend”, Tim expressed. Conversational meetings are held at the cafe, but events such as poetry nights are also popular. Events give initiatives the chance to raise awareness or raise money for their cause. This is the case for the poetry night, which supports Think Make Live. Think Make Live is a community non-profit opening leadership and civic engagement programs to teens. The initiative raises money for their operations through poetry nights at the cafe. Tim then gave another example that is more focused on

Josh Boone of Cova Cowork shared his experience building support around social enterprises. Cova is a workspace providing tools and resources for entrepreneurship. While working as a freelance lawyer, Josh went on a global trip with a group of 50 others. He started an entrepreneurship mastermind with people who were interested. Oddly, a trend of social good came from out of the mastermind. Those first steps gained momentum, and eventually became the coworking space. Despite how smooth the transition may appear, Josh was candid about the learning process. One of the first lessons he gained was about execution. While reflecting, Josh said: “A lot of people have really great ideas and they can have a lot of energy in the beginning; and even getting down a business model, getting a few, few dollars of funding. But when it comes to taking that idea and making it real, it's hard.”-- Josh Boone Once a space was secured, the real test of execution began. A factor many social enterprises have trouble with is

Steve Votaw from Furniture Bank of Central Ohio discussed the depth in their mission to “turn empty houses into homes of hope”. A phrase of “empty houses” referring to the barren conditions of a household pushing through poverty. A lack of material resources, such as furniture and appliances, can eat away at the warmth of a home. Furniture Bank of Central Ohio noticed the resources are available, yet oftentimes wasted by fortunate families wishing to trash items. At the core, the initiative is redirecting items from becoming waste to finding renewed purpose in a new home. Each tale has its own twist. Origins for this initiative start with being a nonprofit. Steve talked through how the service and businesses model was not sustainable solely through philanthropic giving. The team decided to bring social enterprise into their nonprofit. In fact, there was urgency for a pivot. A partner who regularly gave the initiative $1 million could no longer support at that capacity. With no time to spare, the team was p

Trigger Warning: Content in this episode involves conversations on human trafficking and trauma-based family dynamics. Lasheyl Stroud brought her expertise and authentic understating to share the work being done in and around the juvenile court system. At the time of recording, Lasheyl is growing past her role as Lead Magistrate, and running for judge of the Franklin County Court. She prepped the discussion by first explaining the difference between a judge and a magistrate. Lasheyl handled cases in Domestic Relations and Juvenile Court, which typically involve family-based issues. She also handled cases in Empowerment Court, where cases relate to human trafficking. Going across the state, and working with a sense of urgency, Lasheyl participated in every part of the court. The urgency comes not from a lack of time, but is sustained by clarity and passion. In her experience, she represented parents and children. From full time commitments at the Attorney General’s Office to volunteering as a Guardian Ad

Susan Post introduced Aspire, the Columbus-cultivated award ceremony honoring social entrepreneurs. The annual award show began in 2013, and continues to celebrate social enterprise in Columbus today. Similar to many events in 2020, Aspire will be held virtually. Now the event has a larger capacity for more people to share this celebratory experience sponsored by Social Ventures. Three awards exist, which include Social Enterprise of the Year, Emerging Social Enterprise of the Year, and Nonprofit Sustainability. To give context to the awards, Susan gave examples of previous winners which included Freedom A La Cart, Honest Jobs, and Clean Turn. For this year, the award show has two awards: Social Enterprise of the Year award and the new Social Enterprise Coronavirus Pivot. Susan explained the importance of paying attention to recognizing the “social enterprises that were faced with huge challenges in their operational models because of the situation and found really great ways to pivot and find new ways to

Purnota Dutta Bahl of Cuddles Foundation provides nutrition to children undergoing cancer treatment. Being based in India, Purnota explained the barriers of cancer treatment for children within the country. Malnourishment is one of those barriers slimming the odds of proper treatment. Malnourished children can experience disruptive side effects during chemotherapy, and drop out of treatment. The organization believes “every child deserves a chance at cure”, and is determined to protect the probability of recovery. Cuddles Foundation does not focus solely on giving food to children. Purnota explained the initiative educated parents/ guardians, wrote nutrition prescriptions, sent nutritional baskets worth one month of nutrition, and educated nutritionists across the country in the science of pediatric oncology nutrition. Everything is done to ensure a better condition for undergoing cancer treatment. From the start, the initiative was intentional in purpose, and “let’s see how this goes” in actions. She h

Beth Gifford, President & CEO of Columbus Works, described the initiative perfectly, saying Columbus Works is a “nonprofit organization providing job readiness training and longterm wraparound support for any individual in central Ohio who desires to move out of poverty through full-time employment.” During COVID-19, assistance in employment matters is extremely relevant. Beth explained the pivoting challenges and adapting to the new atmosphere once stay-at-home orders began. For example, their coaching switching from physical locations to virtual sessions unknowingly led to other issues being exposed. A major one being their members did not have access to WiFi or access to a stable learning environment. Each new pivot became a defining moment to the decisions faced. Beth expressed the scenarios of chronically unemployed members, parent members with children, and the tough decisions where Columbus Works tried to provide guidance. People who make progress to come out of poverty are the most fragile and are

George “Ski” Zarebski and Lolo Smith of Urban Accelerator X came to help everyone get on track around building up entrepreneurship. Urban Accelerator X works as an urban entrepreneur support organization much like their name would suggest. Usually, the initiative interacts with smaller businesses that are 5 years or younger in their business journey. The duo points out that they work with all levels of business, but the level closer to the ideation stage of business is where they currently have the most organic connection. To increase impact, they honor support for poc-owned and women-owned businesses against added barriers these entrepreneurs face. They also deliberately made their entrepreneur center accessible to the inner city. Clearly, Urban Accelerator X is adamant about supporting and expanding horizons of people growing through entrepreneurship. Ski and LoLo explain the three huge barriers in business: management, money, and markets. Lolo specifically addressed the additional factors of emotional t

Jennifer Sconyers came to discuss her extensive work in diversity and inclusion, alongside commentary on what lessons she learned. Being the president and founder of Abundance Leadership Consulting, Jennifer continuously worked with numerous companies and observed a lack of diverse talent. Absence of diversity only intensified as the conditions did not allow diverse backgrounds to thrive and be successful. For diversity and inclusion, companies and organizations will benefit from viewing their environment from all sides. Examining both the internal and external relationships of a company reveal culture being upheld in the operations. Jennifer touched on what it looks like for a company where diversity has no longevity and added that the external affairs are important. The relationships with customers, clients, or any part of the external operation can also hold clues to how a company is choosing to interact with diversity. She explained how this can be experienced on different levels of a company, and the

Durell Coleman speaks on DC Design’s work as a social impact strategy and design consulting firm. The firm works on the pressing issues such as the criminal justice system, healthcare, foster care, and education. Through their efforts, DC Design helps organizations nurture relationships with their communities in addition to developing strong strategies and resources. In the end, the firm provides an overall structure to empower the organization and the community. "Our work is powered by the belief that in order to truly create the type of change the communities need, you need to be in community with those communities. You need to be working hand in hand with the people that you want to benefit."-- Durell Coleman Durell discussed DC Design’s multi-stakeholder human-centred design, starting with an example of work done on criminal justice in Santa Clara. The multi-stakeholder approach searches for the different narratives taking place within one scenario. For Santa Clara, Durell explained the choice to sp

In this episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with past guest Omar Elhagmusa and bringing in new guest Paul Bryson. Omar was a past guest when I spoke with his non-profit lending company Illinois Facilities Fund (IFF). Paul is working for the Legal Aid Society (LAS) as a non-profit lawyer. We dive into the benefits of incorporating as a non-profit, and navigate a conversation of whether to start as an LLC or non-profit. Quite often we hear the benefits of starting an LLC, so these two guests together help fill out the story on the other side. Omar explained his work with the largest Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) in the Midwest. He gave more information on similar community finance institutions, such as micro lenders. Paul followed up with his perspective on the strong points and barriers of each side. Paul mainly expressed the initial goal is simply to determine capacity and what ways to move forward. Our conversation evolved into something like a brief consultation. We disc

Marvetta Rutherford discussed with us her take on transportation, food access, ownership, and empowering people. Marvetta gave her observations on the evolution of her hometown, Cleveland, Ohio. Her life experience spans enough eras to remember the Hough riots and Glenville riots during the sixties.

Allen Proctor from SocialVentures balances optimism with an extremely realistic outlook on the development of social enterprises and community relations. He builds the ecosystem of social entrepreneurship. We talked through what is working well for social entrepreneurs and what they need to know. Starting off strong, his first two points revolved around what some of the best social enterprises are doing right now. One part is social media, and the other relates to business models. Lingering on the topic of business models, Allen gave his take on a gap in business awareness within social enterprise. Many people start from a similar viewpoint of the business world, but it is a viewpoint of tattered pieces. Allen explained the scenarios often found in the aftermath. Being aware of your business model and having a sustainable plan becomes crucial in longevity and scaling impact. While speaking through the decisions social enterprises should be aware of, he managed to bring our attention back to an old s

Trudi Lebron is a business coach for social impact-driven entrepreneurs. She also works as a diversity equity and inclusion strategist. She reflects on how she first began her venture into the coaching space. Trudi said school loan payment helped fuel her natural side hustle tendency. She briefly describes what gave the first push of momentum behind her coaching. As one learning point, she notes: “Swim towards the people who are swimming towards you.” From there, it’s all about taking small steps. Interestingly, for Trudi, small steps are more about the questions. She’ll ask herself “How can I replace my electric bill?” rather than only saying “I’m going to save money.” Trudi is specific in finding a bare minimum to move her progress forward. Among the ways she concentrated her dedication, Trudi invested in her progress by hiring a coach. A professional coach was a huge investment at the time; “... it was more than my car payment” Trudi recalls.  While in the coaching program, Trudi needed to

Rebecca Cohen explained how Share My Journey “connects caring people to share knowledge and experience during challenging life circumstances.” She created a way for people who lived through a certain experience to give support to people currently living that experience. Whether the experience deals with family, career, or any of life’s endless enigmas, Share My Journey is filled with insights built from first-hand experience. Rebecca recalled the countless times she had no one in her immediate circle to discuss a problem with. She wanted to speak with someone who navigated the problem before her, and could understand what it’s like to go through similar circumstances. After eight years of sitting on the idea, Rebecca decided to launch Share My Journey after participating in a 48 hour social venture launch camp called Seed Spot.  A lot can be learned from Rebecca’s “just start” process. She would focus on diving into the next simple step, rather than overthinking the next five steps. When first starting,