San Francisco Bay Area social enterprises discover common ground and shared purpose in delivering nutritious meals to wildland firefighters In June 2022, 150 employment social enterprise leaders in the REDF Community gathered for their first in-person retreat in three years. Over the course of a week in Portland, Oregon, social entrepreneurs connected with peers, learned …
It was the first day of my rhetorical writing class. I like to get to class early. I was sitting at one of six tables in the classroom, in the back, with my computer set up, ready to go. Students started to trickle in and find their place. The other tables soon filled up, but …
Jay Pershing is a leader, using his own past to help others rewrite their future. As Program Director at employment social enterprise Weld Works, he knows first-hand the transformational power of a good job and a supportive community. Jay has walked in the shoes of those he hires and will go out of his way, …
“You can be successful and not leave your hometown.” Social entrepreneur Jerelyn Rodriguez credits her resiliency and passion to her community in the Bronx — and has made it her business to give back to the place that shaped her. When Jerelyn entered the REDF Accelerator in 2019, her technology employment social enterprise, The Knowledge …
The local coffee shop. A hot new fitness studio. Your go-to gift shop. Employment social enterprises are powering good in communities each and every day. These businesses were built to hire, train, and support our neighbors entering the workforce after experiences like incarceration or homelessness. They’re the best kept secret to building a more inclusive …
We’re on a mission. To build an economy that works. For everyone. And we know that the way to get there is to back social entrepreneurs making that vision a reality every day in their communities. Entrepreneurs like Carl Phinney. “There has to be something better. There have to be more opportunities. There has to …
By: Pablo Gaxiola, Director of Reintegration Programs at Goodwill of Silicon Valley The full meaning of what we experience as kids doesn’t hit us until later in life. Hardened by the age of 12, I was left to fend for myself and change who I was so I could survive on the street. As a …