One of the most important ways to have a large impact in life is by focusing on communities that are ignored and overlooked. These communities are often the ones most in need of help, tools, and services but for a variety of reasons the largest players in most industries chose not to work on serving them. We’ve been so touched by the thousands of members of our community who are working on serving the underserved from tackling food deserts to building empowering solutions for the neurodiverse. Each week, you’ll find us highlighting folks serving underserved communities.

Sheena Katz

The essence of my personal brand is empowerment of underserved communities. This comes to fruition in many forms; (1) On the professional side, my business partner and I are launching Vital Force; a performance-wear brand built to support female strength athletes. (2) On the philanthropic front, I’m on the board of 4S Education Foundation; a non-profit foundation providing mentorship and resources to higher education. (3) On the passion front, I’m currently a co-host of Pilipinx in Wellness; a podcast promoting health and well-ness for the Filipino community.  Read more>>

Rina Shin

The topic suits my story, but I need to clarify – by “underserved”, I am not just referring to minority. Part of me is speaking about an area of design that is seldom spoken of (CMF Design). The other part of me is referring to “emotional design” that we often lack in design education, and usually, designers who have stronger emotional intelligence are not the same designers who are on the stage and under the spotlight. More details to follow: Read more>>

Dustin Grabiner

HK Sensory Gyms serves an underserved community of children with sensory processing issues, autism, and developmental disabilities, as well as the therapists, educators, and families who support them. With sensory challenges on the rise—many traditional therapy spaces aren’t designed to meet these kids’ unique needs. We create custom sensory environments that help children explore and engage with their surroundings in safe, controlled ways. For example, many therapy centers we work with have basic equipment that doesn’t provide the sensory input required. By collaborating with therapists, we designed a gym that included specialized features like swings, climbing structures, and quiet zones, giving children the ability to safely explore and regulate their senses. Read more>>

Laura Shadburne

I became certified in a program called Stable Moments created by Rebecca Britt (LCSW). This program is designed for trained equine specialists, & foster youth in any community around the U.S. This program is intended to provide greater support for foster youth and families through a team of trained volunteer mentors and horses, offering a stronger backbone of community. This demographic of foster youth is extremely underserved as they are technically the State’s responsibility whom is over capacity in number of children in the system. These children rely on faithful homes to help support them, but the ratio of willing homes and expectant children is large. There is also a huge lack of support in counsel and life skills training for both foster youth and foster parents. There are too many working parts in the system of the State, all of which do not communicate with each other. Consistency is the greatest gift families connected to the foster care system can receive. Read more>>

Denise Dobbin

I presently serve as the Executive Pastor of the Redeeming Love Missionary. We recently had a community day. We welcomed new tenants from a new apartment complex built near our church. We had activities for the children, young adults and adults. We are also looking in ways of feeding our community through food pantries, food giveaways, gift cards and other outreach resources. Also, serving the community through health fairs, which include blood drives and health screening Read more>>

Noam Polinger

The Launching Pad isn’t just an investment firm, it’s an ecosystem for GROWTH; a lifeline for the entrepreneurs no one else sees. The ones who’ve been written off, told they’re too small, too risky, or too naive to succeed. I know them well because I was one of them. I’ve walked in their shoes. I’ve been that dreamer with a fire inside and no one to fan the flames, a vision too big for anyone else to believe in. But the truth is, when the world says “no,” that’s when you have to scream “yes” the loudest. Read more>>

Stacy Rau

I am a Realtor®, and I am in my 24th year as a classroom teacher. I teach middle school English to 100% economically disadvantaged, fantastic students. My school is a school that is difficult to recruit and retain teachers. I will say it does take a special person to love working there, which I do. It has its challenges, as do all schools, but I really enjoy it. I teach 6th grade, so I love that I get to see the students for 3 years. Read more>>

Andrew Milne

The underserved community I advocate for are those that are looking to take their hobby and turn it into a business. I am an advocate for micro business start up’s. I think they are unpopular because it is difficult to work shows or 10×10 booth events and put yourself and your work out there trying to build traction.  I started Slam City Market because I realized the combination of my leather crafting talent and obsession with treasure hunting at thrift stores, created the ability to start a business and build inventory. I’m always working toward cool way’s to make, find and sell stuff that I enjoy.  Read more>>

Jeffrey Barg

I began my professional life as a journalist, and worked as a writer and editor for many years, documenting the highs and lows of my hometown Philadelphia. But eventually I grew tired of just writing about the problems of the city I love–I wanted to actually solve some of those problems too. So I got a graduate degree in urban planning and worked for many years doing planning and policy. Eventually I pivoted back toward communications, working largely with nonprofits, and now I serve as director of communications for OIC of America, a national nonprofit that works to build economic justice through workforce development, job training and STEM education. I’ve always connected best with mission-based work: When I can direct my skills toward problems that need solving–and I can’t think of one more important than economic justice–I do my strongest work. Read more>>

Robert Powell

My city St. Louis is a vibrant city that’s often overlooked. We have a community that pulses with untapped potential, especially amongst our youth. STL is a place where dreams of gaming greatness exist, yet many face barriers that keep them from reaching those aspirations. My Foundation recognized this gap and took a bold step by taking the challenge to empower the youth through gaming. We host gaming tournaments, programs, and community events. Our first big tournament was in 2023 at the Whitfield Foundation on the south side of STL. It was a day that not only changed the landscape of gaming in our community but also transformed lives. Read more>>