Our visionary and engaging partners talk about their drive and impact in Good People Talk, the monthly podcast of The Good People Fund. It’s all about good people doing good in the world with creativity and hard work … and talking about it!
Find a new episode of Good People Talk here each month, or subscribe on SoundCloud. We’d love to hear your comments or suggestions too. So be in touch!
Episode 25: In Inner City Baltimore, Empowering Street-Connected Youth
A healthy snack business? A clothing line? A pop-up restaurant? For street-connected youth in inner city Baltimore, social enterprise projects — and community service jobs — break the cycle of poverty, develop skills for positive futures, and transform a community. Driving this impact is The Food Project of UEmpower of Maryland, a Good People Fund grantee. Michelle Suazo, Co-Founder of UEmpower of Maryland and Executive Director of The Food Project, describes it all to Naomi Eisenberger, GPF Executive Director.
Episode 24: In Israel, Uplifting the Lives and Futures of Asylum Seekers
There are an estimated 30,000 asylum seekers in Israel today … men, women and children, mostly from Africa, who’ve risked their lives to escape adverse conditions and now await legal status in Israel or elsewhere — anywhere that will welcome them. But for now, they live in substandard conditions, invisible to many Israelis while the government threatens deportation. Rabbi Levi Lauer, Founding Executive Director of Atzum, and Julie Fisher, Founder and Director of the Consortium for Israel and the Asylum Seekers, speak with GPF Executive Director Naomi Eisenberger about the plight of this population and what they are doing to change the reality.
Episode 23: Mentoring Youth at Risk and Building Positive Futures
For youth at risk – specifically teens and young adults with past or current contact with the child welfare or juvenile justice systems – having a mentor can be a tipping point toward positive self-worth and a promising future. That’s what Connections Mentor – a Good People Fund grantee – makes possible in NYC and Westchester County to the north, pairing volunteer mentors with youth needing positive role models. Connections Mentor Founder Paul Muratore speaks with GPF Executive Director Naomi Eisenberger about making a difference in lives and communities.
Episode 22: Giving Jewish Teenage Girls Their Voice
Flip through the online pages of jGirls Magazine for a deep dive into compelling issues – from self-identity to social pressures to protest – created by self-identifying Jewish girls aged 13 to 19. jGirls – a Good People Fund grantee – is the brainchild of Elizabeth Mandel, a New York-based documentarian, writer, and community activist who created the multi-media platform to elevate and empower critical voices, often marginalized. She speaks about her vision and impact, and the challenges of being a social entrepreneur during challenging times.
Episode 21: Uplifting Lives in India’s Urban Slums and Rural Villages
Jacob Sztokman was on a business trip to Mumbai when he came across abject need and horrendous conditions in the city’s slums. The exposure shook him up to a point of no return. He gave up his career in high-tech to establish Gabriel Project Mumbai – a Good People Fund grantee – to improve lives for individuals and families in India’s challenged urban areas and outlying villages.
Episode 20: Workout Time! Building Confidence and Strength for Individuals with Special Needs
There’s a fitness club in Maryland that stands apart from your usual corner gym. At SPIRIT Club, individuals with physical and developmental disabilities are lifting weights, doing aerobics, and working with personal trainers in an environment that prizes diversity, respect and inclusion. SPIRIT (Social-Physical-Interactive-Respectful-Integrated-Teamwork) Club Founder Jared Ciner talks about how his work as a fitness instructor and with individuals with special needs coalesced into SPIRIT Club and the ancillary SPIRIT Club Foundation – a Good People Fund grantee – to ensure that physical health and socialization be accessible to all.
Episode 19: Good People, Helping Aspiring Americans Succeed
The Good People Fund in partnership with its grantees, helps to improve the lives and trajectories of Aspiring Americans – refugees, victims of human trafficking, and others – seeking safety, community, and opportunity despite enormous challenges. In this episode, Good People Fund Executive Director Naomi Eisenberger speaks with four change makers in this realm, who describe their unique experiences, observations, and approaches to uplifting newcomers seeking better lives for themselves and their families. Our guests: Kristen Bloom, Founder and Executive Director of Refugee Assistance Alliance in Coral Gables, FL; Sloane Davidson, Founder and CEO of Hello Neighbor in Pittsburgh, PA; Kari Miller, Founder and Executive Director of International Neighbors in Charlottesville, VA; and Dr. Eva Moya, Associate Professor, Dept. of Social Work, The University of Texas at El Paso.
Grantee Program(s) Featured in This Episode:
International Neighbors
Refugee Assistance Alliance
Episode 18: Live from Detroit! Good People Empowering Youth at Risk
The Good People Fund visits with three of our change makers in Detroit. Each draws on intense personal journeys as they work to uplift and give hope to youth at risk – in a city once written off, but now benefiting from the creative visions of social entrepreneurs. Join Good People Fund Executive Director Naomi Eisenberger as she speaks with Sherelle Hogan, Founder of Pure Heart Foundation, David Silver, Founder of Detroit Horse Power, and Courtney Smith, Founder of Detroit Phoenix Center.
Grantee Program(s) Featured in This Episode:
Detroit Phoenix Center
Pure Heart Foundation
Episode 17: Changing Food Stories to Uplift Families and Communities
Walk through the inner city and other challenged areas and you’ll see a different food landscape than across town: fewer grocery stores, more fast-food places, and unhealthy choices. FEAST (Food – Education – Access – Support – Together), an LA-based organization supported by The Good People Fund, is changing that reality. FEAST Executive Director Dana Rizer describes how.
Episode 16: Crowd-funding to Help Israelis Facing Hardship
Ten Gav (Hebrew, “covering someone’s back”) uses a crowd-funding model and web platform to match donors with Israeli individuals and families facing hardship. Ten Gav is a Good People Fund grantee and its two founders, Naomi Brounstein and Vivi Mann, describe how technology and human connection can uplift lives and promote the Jewish practice of tzedakah.