Light a Single Candle Foundation has the privilege of working with so many wonderful partners in St. Louis. Here are some of our featured projects:
Beyond Housing: Reoccupying of Grocery Store in Pagedale – This funding supported the reoccupying of the grocery store in Pagedale by Field Foods, which provides access to food in an area identified as a food desert.
Boys & Girls Club of Greater St. Louis: Career Readiness – This provided support to the Career Readiness and Workforce Development programs that aim to provide approximately 700 teens with strong programming focused on career exploration, skills development, ACT/SAT test prep, and work-based learning experiences to help cultivate strong futures.
Catholic Charities: Pathways to Progress – This is a third year of support for an intensive, long-term case management program that seeks to build on individual strengths and develop assets leading to self-sufficiency and empowering families in north St. Louis neighborhoods for long-term success.
Connections to Success: Pathways to Success – This supported the Pathways to Success program for 286 beneficiaries in North St. Louis County that provides personal and professional development and assists with job placement, as well as life-skills coaching and goal setting to help break the cycle of poverty for the beneficiaries and their families. In 2022, 50% of participants were already able to gain employment with an average wage of $20.18/hour.
Cornerstone Corporation: Healing-Centered Financial Coaching: “In the Black” Fellows – This supported a pilot program focused on providing financial coaching and education for 25 individuals in the West End neighborhood. Within the first cohorts of “In the Black” Fellows, Cornerstone Corporation is aiming for statistically significant increases in net worth, savings, average income, average retirement fund investment, credit score, and decrease in debt-to-income ratio.
Dream Builders 4 Equity: Home Repair for Seniors – This is a year 2 renewal grant that provided support for the Summer Academy and mentorship programming for 50+ youth where they receive wages, work experience, professional development training, and mentorship, as well as renovations for 5 senior homes in the Hyde Park Community. Dream Builders 4 Equity aims to have 100% of youth participants continue after high school to continued education, trade school and/or employment.
Fathers & Families Support Center: Family Formation – This provided personnel and program support that directly benefited 169 low-income parents who participate in the Family Formation program. In 2022, 169 parents completed the program, with 62 already gaining full time employment!
LifeWise STL: 3 Year Economic Mobility Program (Year 3) – This is the third year of support for the Economic Mobility Programming that provides financial coaching services, match funding and asset building programs for a total of 550 beneficiaries. This program aims to help participants increase savings by at least $400, reduce debt by an average of $250, and increase credit scores by an average of 25 points.
Lift for Life Gym: Educational Programming and Youth and Teen Resource Center – Funding helped to purchase and install a modular classroom and support of the educational programming provided for 450 vulnerable students in St. Louis City.
NPower Missouri: Tech Fundamentals Program – This program provided technical skills training, professional development, social support, job placement, and lifetime access to an active and supportive alumni network for 77 participants in St. Louis, MO. Of the 77 participants in 2022, 37 have already gained full time employment with an average of salary of approximately $40,000.
Rung for Women: Eliminating Barriers to Good Jobs for Women – This programming aims to recruit, train, and employ under resourced women in the St. Louis metro area and find employment opportunities in highly technical jobs. The goal of this program is to provide training and assistance to enter a new career field and increasing income by at least 10%.
St. Louis Community Foundation: The St. Louis Welcome Fund – Light a Single Candle contributed to the St. Louis Welcome Fund that aims to provide support to the resettlement of refugees and asylum seekers in St. Louis.
St. Joseph Housing Initiative: Building Equity Through Homeownership – This supported the acquisition costs for up to two new properties, as well as the ability to purchase an iPhone for data and marketing efforts and to fund a visit to St. Joseph Carpenters Society to learn about their similar programming in New Jersey.
St. Louis Public Schools Foundation: Supporting Innovative School Leadership: Redesigning Seven St. Louis Public Schools – This provided the opportunity for 7 principals across the St. Louis area to take part in the Re-Design Fellowship Program.
The Collective Thread: Advanced On-the-Job Training Program – This funding supported a new on the job training program that aims to train and place 12 individuals into jobs in the sewing manufacturing industry by the end of 2023. The goal of this program is to provide the necessary training to help individuals obtain jobs in the manufacturing industry making $15/ hour or more with benefits.
The SoulFisher Ministries: Education Now to Achieve Later (ENAL) After School Program Year 2 – This is a second year of funding to support the Education Now to Achieve Later After School program that provides afterschool tutoring and enrichment for 260 students who are performing 2-3 grade levels below Grade Level Expectations in 3 elementary schools and 2 middle schools in the Riverview Garden School District.
Unleashing Potential: Strengthening Resilient Families – This is the fourth year of support for the Strengthening Resilient Families Advocate role that LASC helped Unleashing Potential to establish.
Unleashing Potential: The Lion King Educational Experience – This helped support Unleashing Potential’s ability to send 200 beneficiaries to see The Lion King at The Fabulous Fox Theater, along with transportation, dinner, souvenirs, and masks.
Unleashing Potential: Programing Sustainability – Investing in Educators – This funding has helped Unleashing Potential to increase their staff retention through increasing salaries to market wage, creating professional development plans, and providing credentialing opportunities for employees.
WEPOWER: Growing Economic Power North of Delmar with WEPOWER’s Community Wealth Building Initiative – This supported the WEPOWER Accelerator, a comprehensive entrepreneurship development program for 20 Black & Latinx entrepreneurs in St. Louis City, including 1:1 business coaching, mentorship, cohort learning curriculum, in-kind professional services, wellness coaching, and access to capital. WEPOWER is working towards an increase in gross revenue by 10% for each of the businesses and the creation of 8-10 jobs between the 20 businesses within 1 year.
Wyman Center: Camp Wyman Experience Sales Infrastructure Re-Build – This funding provided a thorough business planning process and development of sales infrastructure for Camp Wyman Experiences to create revenue that can fully support the annual operating costs of Camp Wyman and contribute net margin back to Wyman.
Youth and Family Center: Out of School Programming – This funding supported afterschool programming for youth, specifically focused on the improvement of literacy. The goal of this program is to increase reading levels of the participants by at least one grade level.
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