Reconnecting Memphis Reconnecting Memphis

A Step Ahead Youth Council ·$3,100

A Step Ahead formed its inaugural Youth Council in 2018, recruiting 19 students from 15 high schools from across the city. The Youth Council brings together a diverse group of young Memphians to discuss public health issues and to serve as community outreach leaders to other teens.

With the GiVE 365 grant, the group spearheaded an A Step Ahead outreach event and helped staff develop a Parent Toolkit. The toolkit is a resource to help parents engage their teens in productive conversations about sexual health.

Safe Families for Children · $9,100

This GiVE 365 grant helped Safe Families facilitate the temporary placement of 31 children whose families were in crisis. To understand the life-changing impact of this program, take a few minutes to read the story of Kashander, a 27-year-old mom who went from living out of a van with her five kids to earning her nursing degree.

"One of my daughters told me she liked princess things...[T]hese are not conversations you have with your kids when...your daily focus is finding a way to eat. These small interactions...showed me how our lives were already changing."

Kaleidoscope Kitchen · $10,000

This grant supported goals around the 3rd Annual Kaleidoscope Food Festival, a celebration of multicultural entrepreneurs operating in Binghampton. Kaleidoscope purchased iPads to use for festival sales, in addition to constructing a mobile kitchen equipped with a grill, stove top, warming station, and food prep table. Both added capacity at the festival and will also be used by Kaleidoscope trainees throughout the year. The festival recorded over 1,500 attendees and earnings from food sales for six participating chefs.

The grant also paid for the Culinary Basics for Food Entrepreneurs curriculum to be translated into Spanish to expand Kaleidoscope's reach in the community. The first cohort in Spanish began in May 2019.

Bridge Builders Interfaith Community Action Program  · $4,800

In partnership with MIFA and other organizations, BRIDGES holds various Interfaith Community Action events, with around 200 students participating. GiVE 365 funded staff time to design the curriculum, train partners, and facilitate the experiences, as well as snacks for participants.

The impact of the program can be summed up by a student: "These events have taught me the importance of not only identifying the different life experiences that our peers have due to race or religion, but also, celebrating them as aspects of our existence that make our communities so unique and diverse." - Madeeha Aziz, Houston High School

Q&A Queer Youth Theatre ·$5,000

Grant funding supported the launch of this theatre troupe, made up of 27 LGBTQ or Allied teens from the Memphis area. The troupe has developed the Meet You There project, an outreach initiative that uses theater to express what life is like as an LGBTQ or Allied teen to churches, businesses, and organizations throughout the city.

The troupe has performed and moderated discussions with five area organizations and plans to meet with several more.

Memphis Music Series · $10,000

GiVE 365's grant helped sponsor 10 local/regional musicians for free shows throughout the Levitt Shell's 10th year. The artists were chosen because their music reflects the diverse tastes, interests, and cultural experiences of surrounding Memphis neighborhoods. Approximately 26,000 people attend these concerts, helping the Shell continue to be a place of shared community.

Global Pathways to Success · $5,000

One Step made a strategic decision to push back the pre-departure programming for its fourth cohort of Youth Global Ambassadors, originally slated for fall 2018, until June 2019. Plans are in place for the cohort to travel abroad in late fall 2019. GiVE 365 funds have been used to purchase training materials and supplies in anticipation of 50 students participating in the Global Pathways to Success program to prepare them for the international travel experience.

Performing the Peace · $10,000

Seven Memphis Police Department officers and seven individuals from Benjamin Hooks Job Corps Center's Rite of Passage program participated in four "Setting the Stage" sessions and five "Building the Ensemble" sessions. These culminated in a public Playback performance in December focused on community-police relations and the stories of the programs' graduates. Pre- and post-program evaluations were conducted to track the impact on participants.