Invest in Others Names Eight Recipients For Its Second-Annual Grants For Change Program

ANDOVER, Mass., June 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Invest in Others Charitable Foundation ("Invest in Others"), a nonprofit dedicated to furthering and amplifying the charitable work of financial professionals and their firms, has awarded $200,000 to eight charities as part of its second-annual Grants for Change program, which provides critical funding to organizations that uplift underserved communities.

From college readiness and STEAM education to internship programs, the eight grant recipients provide life-changing opportunities to diverse constituencies, including Black, Hispanic, Asian American and Indigenous communities, as well as women and girls across the United States, from Oakland, Calif. to New York City. The grant recipients include:

• Change Happens! for Good Life Outcomes (Houston, Tex.)
• Coleman A. Young II Educational Foundation for CAY2 Girls in STEM (Detroit, Mich.)
• EDsnaps for STEAM City of Women Leadership Development (New York City)
• Girls Inspired and Ready to Lead, Inc. for Pathways to Career Leadership Program (Fairfax, Va.)
• Korean American Community Foundation-San Francisco for No Room for Hate (Oakland, Calif.)
• Lake Worth West Resident Planning Group, Inc. for Post-Pandemic Economic Stability for Women of Color (Lake Worth, Fla.)
• Wine to Water for Indigenous Peoples & Nations Program (Navajo Nation)
• Wisconsin Hispanic Scholarship Foundation for Scholarships for Education (Milwaukee, Wis.)

"To create lasting change, we must continue to invest in the most vulnerable among us, devoting resources that will uplift both individuals and entire communities," said Megan McAuley, Executive Director and President of the Invest in Others Charitable Foundation. "We are inspired by the financial industry's commitment to advancing underrepresented communities, from the hundreds of financial advisors and other professionals who submitted applications on behalf of the charities they serve, to our sponsors and financial partners for their support and contributions."

The Claire Friedlander Family Foundation and Fidelity Investments are the lead sponsors of this year's program, which is also supported by Allianz, Ameriprise Financial, Brinker Capital Investments, Cetera Financial Group, Columbia Threadneedle, Delaware Funds, First Republic Private Wealth Management, FS Investments and Griffin Capital.

A diverse panel of judges, made up of previous Invest in Others honorees and financial industry executives, evaluated the applications according to key criteria, including demographic makeup of target communities, anticipated number of people served and expected results.

After the death of his friend and former classmate George Floyd, Crawford Mickey McGill, an Ameriprise financial advisor, became involved with Change Happens! in Houston, Texas. He submitted a grant application for the organization's Good Life Outcomes program, which provides education, guidance and financial literacy to Jack Yates high school students and community residents in this predominately African American, high-poverty neighborhood.

"I decided to spend a lot of my time mentoring youth from my neighborhood to be more financially literate and to think about becoming a financial advisor," McGill said. "I have been able to speak with students from George Floyd's high school about financial literacy, educate them on the importance of going to college and help them connect with mentors."

Joanne Spears, a financial advisor at Merrill Lynch, wanted other young women to have the opportunities she was afforded growing up. An advisor, treasurer, fundraising chair, and member of the Board of Directors for EDsnaps, based in New York City, Spears submitted a grant application for its STEAM City of Women Leadership Development Program, which will allow EDsnaps to provide access to STEAM content courses, workshops and mentoring to female-identifying students, and their families, 97% of which are defined as ESL (English as a Second Language) students.

"Many children, particularly girls, do not have resources or support, whether because of family structure or the communities they live in," Spears said. "Without guidance and opportunities, STEAM education and careers might not even be on their radar. I passionately support EDsnaps' approach of offering hands-on STEAM experiences and career mentoring to encourage our students to imagine more possibilities."

With hate crimes against Asian Americans skyrocketing, Hyun Joo Park, a financial advisor at MassMutual Northern California, hopes to serve as a catalyst for change. Park supports the Korean American Community Foundation on its No Room for Hate program, which is the only foundation on the west coast tackling critical issues of poverty, mental health, domestic violence, low-income and senior issues specifically for the Korean American community.

"Korean American Community Foundation serves the most vulnerable and invisible populations within our Korean American community in the Bay Area," Park said. "It amplifies our collective voices by bringing awareness to the issues we face and by helping our community to be seen and heard."

To learn more about the eight 2021 Grants for Change recipients, visit: investinothers.org/grants.

About the Invest in Others Charitable Foundation
The inspiration for the Invest in Others Charitable Foundation came directly from the financial advisors who invest in others by giving back to their communities with overwhelming generosity and dedication. Since its founding in 2006, Invest in Others has amplified these efforts by providing a platform for advisors and other financial professionals to increase awareness, visibility, and funding to their favorite nonprofits. Over the past 15 years, IiO has given more than $3 million to 300+ charities across a variety of causes, including health and wellness, education and youth programs, arts and culture, hunger and poverty prevention, military and veterans and more. For more information, visit investinothers.org or follow Invest in Others on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

Media Contact:
Kaileen Cote, Associate Director of Marketing
Invest in Others Charitable Foundation
[email protected] | 781.304.4812

SOURCE Invest in Others Charitable Foundation