We were lucky to catch up with Susan Ramirez recently and have shared our conversation below.
Susan, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Risk taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.
In 2015, I took one of the biggest risks of my life – I quit my successful, eight-year career in Corporate America to pursue Austin Angels, the nonprofit organization I founded, full time. This was a huge leap out of my comfort zone, but it was a risk I knew I had to take. When I founded Austin Angels in 2010, I couldn’t have imagined how the organization would grow. In fact, I would have laughed if you told me that almost 15 years later I’d be running a national nonprofit. But, here we are – and I wouldn’t have it any other way. What was one of the biggest risks of my life has turned into one of my greatest honors.
In 2009, a group of friends and I decided that we were going to begin volunteering together on a monthly basis in the new year. It was right around the holidays, and we were setting intentions for the year ahead. I hadn’t volunteered in any capacity prior, but I felt a nudge on my heart to pursue this. And with that, we began hosting monthly service projects in 2010. After being connected to an attorney who wanted to make a donation to us in support of one of our projects, we were encouraged to file for a 501(c)3 so that we could accept donations. Choosing our organization’s name proved to be more difficult than I thought, but after going through a few options we landed on our legal name of “Transformations by Austin Angels”, dba Austin Angels — and that was just the beginning!
A few years into our volunteering journey, we chose to turn our focus to the foster care community. After attending a conference on adoption and foster care, my life was completely changed when I learned about the devastating statistics that surround the child welfare system. I knew that we had to do better, and I felt a deep desire to do more – and so in 2013, I piloted what is now known as our Love Box® program. I began walking alongside a single foster mom who had six teenage boys in her home – yes, six! I’d show up each month, bringing a box full of household supplies, snacks, activities, and more – soon to be named “Love Box”. I began to develop meaningful relationships with this incredible mom and her boys, helping with things like household needs and homework, and cheering the boys on at games. With time and consistency, transformation began to take place – not only in their lives, but in mine too. I started to envision what this kind of intentional, wrap-around support could do for all children and youth experiencing foster care across Central Texas, and this is ultimately what led me to take the leap of quitting my job in home sales in 2015.
I spent the next two years going all in on Austin Angels. We experienced incredible growth, and in 2017, the first chapter outside of Austin launched in Amarillo. Today, Austin Angels has expanded to a national network of 19 chapters across 14 states – National Angels. Together, we’re walking alongside thousands of children, youth, and families experiencing foster care across the nation on a monthly basis. It hasn’t always been easy, but I’m so grateful that I said yes to taking the risk of fully committing to this work almost 10 years ago. You never know what is on the other side of your “yes”, even when it feels like a big risk. It is truly a dream come true for me to do this work, and I will not stop until every child who experiences foster care across in the United States is reached.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I am the Founder and CEO of Austin Angels, a nonprofit organization dedicated to changing the statistics for children, youth, and families experiencing foster care across the United States.
In 2010, I founded Austin Angels alongside a group of close friends. Our monthly service projects soon turned into a vision of what consistent, wrap-around support for every child and youth experiencing foster care could achieve. After walking alongside a single foster mom and then becoming a foster parent myself, we activated the idea through a pilot program in Austin, Texas – the Love Box® program.
We soon realized the program’s potential to transform lives on a national scale, and it evolved into a high impact, results-driven model. The National Angels network has expanded to 19 chapters spanning 14 states. The radical support delivered by each chapter’s Love Box® and Dare to Dream® programs aims to change the statistics plaguing the child welfare system, and positively impact society as a whole. Austin Angels and the National Angels network represent a sustainable solution to one of the country’s toughest social issues.
What makes our programs so unique, and one of the things that I am most proud of, is our customer-first approach and our emphasis on excellence. Our programs are not “one size fits all”, but rather one size fits one. Through regular communication, we seek to understand and support the unique needs of each child and family who we walk alongside. Our programs are radically customized to empower and equip each individual in reaching their fullest potential, and to ultimately change the statistics.
We feel a deep responsibility to serve every child and youth experiencing foster care in our country – and we won’t stop, until every one of them is reached. We’d love for you to join us in this work, and invite you to get involved. Whether joining our Angel Alliance community as a monthly donor or volunteering in our programs, you can create real impact in the lives of children, youth, and families. We believe that not everyone is called to foster, and not everyone is called to adopt, but anyone can play a role and make a difference in a child’s life.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
One of my favorite books is Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara. Hospitality has always been a priority for Austin Angels – in fact, one of our mottos is “Excellence in Everything”. We deeply believe in providing an incredible experience for everyone, from the families we walk alongside, to our donors, volunteers, and staff. We believe that everyone deserves to be treated with respect and dignity, and we aim to practice “unreasonable hospitality” in every aspect of our business. We now have all new hires read this book as part of their onboarding process, and have even had departments host book clubs specific to this book! It has changed our business and enhanced the way we view and embody hospitality, from the way we welcome new team members to how we show up for the families we have the honor of walking alongside.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Resilience is paramount to this work. It can be easy to let mistakes or challenges impede progress, but I constantly try to view these as opportunities rather than setbacks. An example of this is when Austin Angels was expanding into a national network through the launch of regional chapters. Our organization experienced exponential growth in a short period of time from 2018-2020. In our pursuit of changing the way children, youth, and families experience foster care, the National Angels network grew quickly – too quickly. When we first launched chapter applications and expanded into a national network, while we were thoughtful about the process, we weren’t as strategic as we could have been. We saw a great need, and moved at what felt like the speed of light to work towards addressing it. Sometimes, you just don’t know what you don’t know until you are forced to face a challenge head-on. While I see the speed at which we grew as a mistake, I’d do it all over again – and I believe that I am more resilient because of it. I’m grateful for the lessons it has taught me, and for the good things that have come from this experience. Bill Gates says, “Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose.” My mistakes have helped me to gain confidence by not being afraid to take risks, some of which have led to incredible transformation. I believe mistakes are critical to learning and growth, allowing you to see areas of your business that you may not have recognized otherwise and ultimately build resilience.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nationalangels.org
- Instagram: @nationalangels @mrs.susanramirez
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nationalangelsnonprofit
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-ramirez-913b96141 https://www.linkedin.com/company/national-angels
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4LhLTug6cQjkoj5AvXnz3w
Image Credits
Amanda Hoffman Art