Social Justice Fund NW is proud to announce the grant awards for the Leaderfull Movements Giving Project that wrapped up in December.

The Leaderfull Movements project was designed to support organizations that prioritize leadership development as a key part of their overall organizing strategy. This project was unique in that we embarked on a proof of concept structure, creating an all-virtual Giving Project, with much of the content spent diving deeper into the issue area, using webinar chats with movement leaders from across the country.

The project was small, but featured talented alumni. Giving Project Member Tracy Stewart noted, “This is my third time participating with a giving project with Social Justice Fund. I appreciated the flexibility of this online giving project. Our team did a great job of integrating in-person and Zoom meetings and utilizing Google docs and email to distribute our labor and communicate with each other. It was also fantastic to meet with the potential grantees via Zoom, which allowed more folks to participate in the site visits.”

Project member Barb Culp was also up to the challenge. “I’m a people person so this new approach of meeting on the phone and video was challenging. However, I was overwhelmed by the quality of the applications and the leaders who spoke with us on the site visits. I always came away wanting these new, young leaders to be on my board of directors. They made me hopeful on so many levels– their courage is an inspiration”, said Culp.

This Giving Project featured four amazing folks who raised $72,540 from 74 unique donors. With additional major donor gifts and SJF support they were able to make four grants of $30,000 each to the following organizations:

Stonewall Youth – Olympia, WA
All of Stonewall Youth’s work has four interwoven goals: Supporting LGBTQ+ youth to survive and thrive; empowering LGBTQ+ youth to educate communities about needs and experiences; maximizing youth power through centering youth voices and supporting youth leadership via staff positions, board membership, paid fellowships, all aspects of decision-making, and many other opportunities; and providing the training, resources, and support necessary for youth to effectively advocate for themselves and for social justice. Stonewall Youth is based in Olympia and serves a three-county, primarily rural region. The majority of our programs serve youth ages 21 & under and engage approximately 420 youth each year.

La Casa Hogar – Yakima, WA
La Casa Hogar connects and educates Latinx families to transform lives in the Yakima Valley through building relationships within the community, fostering leadership, and promoting self-empowerment. Policy and programming decisions are made collectively among the team and by intentionally engaging adult students in the conversations. Civic engagement strategies are incorporated into every program. Adult students are encouraged to become educators for newly enrolled peers, both to encourage their own growth and to serve as role models. Early learning classes offer the next generation a strong start to further the march toward equity.

U.T.O.P.I.A  (United Territories Of Pacific Islanders’ Alliance), Kent, WA
UTOPIA (United Territories Of Pacific Islanders’ Alliance) works to provide sacred spaces to strengthen the minds and bodies of Queer and Trans Pacific Islanders through survival services, leadership development, community organizing, and cultural stewardship. U.T.O.P.I.A. builds the leadership of transgender teens and adults who transitioning out of the sex industry by organizing to increase equity in laws and healthcare and employment systems.

Momentum Alliance – Portland, OR
Momentum Alliance (MA) is a youth-led nonprofit, whose mission is to inspire young people to realize their power individually and collectively and to support youth most impacted by injustices to be social justice leaders. This includes: 1) Reproductive Justice Youth Advocates 2) Youth Education Advocates & first ever 3) Anti-displacement Cohort. MA will continue to provide meaningful and accessible leadership opportunities for youth of color to be social justice leaders. Youth want more opportunities to support the communities’ survival and to prevent injustices from happening.