causes i want to spotlight
Sharing a few causes that have deeply inspired me (in no particular order)—please take the time to check them out and support (titles include links!) Stay tuned for future updates!
Imagine one of your favorite teachers taking a pain point and a passion and— despite having no tech or business background and coming from homelessness— working against all odds to launch a nationally-lauded, mission-driven XR startup... or to deliver a keynote for the Department of Education... or to land gigs as a photographer, videographer, video editor & social media strategist for A-list celebrities..
That's all just a fraction of how amazing Kai Frazier is. Please please please check out her work, share and support!
RVA Street Singers rehearsals and performances are like nothing you've ever experienced before. The amount of raw emotion and unity felt through members' voices has routinely brought tears to the eyes of audiences— there's a reason they've won awards and have been invited to sing around their community.
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RVA Street Singers is a choir for those impacted by homelessness in Richmond, VA and builds community through song. Under the direction of Robin Rio and Cameron Carter I've seen magic with my own eyes—bittersweet celebrations for members getting busy with newly acquired jobs, familial levels of teasing, encouragement, and accountability, and strength in collective vulnerability.
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Please consider checking them out, sharing and supporting!!!!!
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free & Charitable clinics
Free and Charitable Clinics are a crucial component of healthcare safety nets, offering free and/or reduced cost-care for low-income groups. Free clinics complement federally-qualified health centers by expanding the availability of care, especially to patients at or near poverty, and permitting greater time allowances for detailed patient histories. Many times these clinics offer patients their only touch-points before they may have visited the ED, thereby decreasing unnecessary expenses through preventative care and minimizing non-emergency ED appointments.
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These often overworked and underfunded clinics function almost entirely through the collective strength of private-sector donations and volunteers. As a matter of fact, nearly all patient-facing aspects of Free Clinics are run by Volunteers—which as a result often leads to volunteer availability being a limiting factor for patient care (i.e the absence of a dermatologist volunteer very well could leave a corresponding gap in care for many patients).
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As a student, I can think few experiences as rewarding as volunteering at a free clinic to learn about healthcare, under kind, compassionate, and wise volunteer providers. If you've been or known a volunteer provider, you might already know that the gratitude from patients and staff reverberates and leaves you in a good mood with a boost of energy. Even if you're not in healthcare, free clinics are very often grateful to use other talents (i.e Law, I.T., Business, Visual Arts, Graphic Design etc.) Definitely reach out to a local clinic to explore! Finally, donors can be confident that funds would be stretched well to directly impact the health and happiness of many patients.
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Please feel free to explore any of the links below if any of this speaks to you!