Red String's Jeff Adachi Legacy Project (JALP) was created to honor Jeff who passed away in 2019 at the young age of 59.  Through the JALP program, our hope is that for those of us who loved Jeff and those who may not have had the chance to meet him, can see and feel his spirit in the work that we are doing in the San Francisco Bay Area.

 

Through the JALP, we are working to carry forward Jeff's ideals of creating a fairer, more just society that works not just for the few, but for all. We do this by partnering with local San Francisco Bay Area charities and making an investment in under-served people and communities to enable them to create solutions and changes that work best for them and their own community. Jeff called this approach, "community empowerment" - motivating involvement by giving the people who are most affected by the change they are seeking the power to make it happen.

 

Each of our JALP partner charity members are working on issues Jeff cared most about from stopping the school-to-prison pipeline to youth homelessness, from violence prevention to crisis response services, and from after-school programs to helping kids find their passions, and in the process, saving lives, uplifting livelihoods, and building healthier, safer, and more vibrant communities.

 

To learn more about our JALP, please check out our video, and after seeing our work, I hope you will come to share in our collective passion, purpose, and charity. 

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Legacy Project Current Grant Recipients:

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• Youth Development and Education

  • City Surf (since 2022)

  • Sunset Youth Services (since 2022)

• Community Relations and Advocacy

  • B-Magic (Bayview and Hunters Point) ( since 2020)

  • Mo-Magic (Fillmore and Western Addition) (since 2021)

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The Boys & Girls Clubs of Santa Monica (SMBGC) has been serving the Los Angeles communities since 1944 and has had a significant impact (4000+ kids) and reach across Los Angeles County.  The organization provides programs and services to disadvantaged youth providing opportunities and skills to achieve self-sufficiency.  Programs such as their Healthy Lifestyles program teaching financial literacy among other subjects;  Community Service program,  building a service leadership mindset;  21st Century Learning and Pathways pillar, providing homework help, STEM education and coaching to help students chart a course to higher education and career pathways that align with their passions and talents. Through the years SMBGC has continued to innovate and grow their programs and service offerings to keep kids engaged and develop skills and competencies needed for 21st Century career paths.

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​Red String 2023 Grant and Project:  Sponsors 10-15 participating students in SMBGC College Bound program. SMBGC's College Bound program works with youth to prepare them for higher education and navigate the college admissions process, receiving college preparation assistance, SAT prep, college, and FAFSA application assistance, college entrance and financial aid workshops for parents and  students, tutoring and entrance essay writing support, college tours and field trips to colleges and universities, and overall support, mentoring, and guidance.

 

 

 

City Surf was started because of a teacher’s genuine interest in sharing a lifetime passion with his students.  Built into this passion of surfing was a unique way of connecting with kids outside the traditional classroom, providing an opportunity to kids who rarely had this opportunity and teaching analogous life lessons of resilience, teamwork, addressing fears and challenges.   City Surf also provides a caring community, job skills and leadership training.  As an organization, City Surf is continuously growing its financials, partners, reach and impact.  During COVID, City Surf showed resilience and adaptability in order to continue their programs.

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Red String 2023 Grant and Project:  Jeff always advocated that the way to break the cycle of incarceration was to give at-risk youth hope and a future by providing them with programs, resources, and opportunities to help them discover, learn, and realize their full potential.  Although we see City Surf’s program as a unique way of connecting youth outside the traditional classroom, we realize that youth engendered development begins with the personal pursuit of a self-identified passion or spark.    Red String grant sponsors 12 youths to attend CSP’s 2023 summer program

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Through partnerships with industry and educators, EXP prepares high school students for careers through career exploration activities, industry mentoring, paid summer internships, and college scholarships.  EXP brings industry and schools together to solve problems and overcome obstacles so that students from under-served communities receive access to education, experience and opportunities.

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By helping schools and industry work together, EXP is changing how society prepares students for life and bringing genuine opportunity to every young person they reach.   During the 2019-2020 school year, EXP programs are serving more than 6,400 high school students in 10 Southern California high schools.

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Red String 2023 Update:   Earlier this year, we were informed that EXP CEO, Amy Grat, was planning to step down to pursue other opportunities.  I addition, several key staff members announced their retirements.  EXP's board formed an executive search committee.  Change in leadership can have a significant impact on an organization, both positively and negatively.  Although we remain committed to EXP, our board has decided to hold until their organization restructuring is completed and we get a better sense of its new leadership and the organization’s direction going forward.

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Food Shift was founded in 2012 as a project of Earth Island Institute.  Food Shift focuses on rescuing surplus food that would otherwise waste away in landfills and utilize it to fuel their social enterprise kitchen. They address food insecurity and joblessness in their community through a catering program and job training program, which is designed for those facing high barriers to employment including homelessness, unemployment, disability, domestic violence, addiction and incarceration.  Food Shift creates delicious meals for their catering and food donation programs, simultaneously imparting culinary skills and job-training to their kitchen apprentices while preparing and distributing nutritious meals to food insecure communities.  Apprentices earn a livable wage while learning how to work in a professional kitchen, allowing for room to grow before stepping into the next role of their careers.  

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Food Shift is a UAIAI members recommended candidate charity. 

 

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Red String 2022 Grant Project:  This Red String grant funded Food Shift's Social Enterprise Kitchen program which includes both the Culinary Training program and their new PAWsitive Bones program. After two years of supporting Food Shift's COVID response to food insecurity to help low-income and indigent persons, we have shifted our focus from the transactional model of collecting and distributing food to a more sustainable and holistic model. 

 

Although we know that food security for many families continues to be an issue beyond the health pandemic, we like how Food Shift is implementing innovative solutions for better sustainability by up-cycling food waste into training and job opportunities, development and marketing of usable products, and income generation that will build capacity in the community and go beyond just the transactional model of giving food. 

Jazz Angels help underserved youth find their passions through the art of music, and in the process, build their self-esteem, confidence and leadership skills and, promote community involvement.  Since 2006, over 3,000 students have gone through their program with over 90 percent graduating from high school and going onto secondary education.   With the devastating decline of music education in public schools, underprivileged youth rarely have the opportunities to experience the creative process of performing arts.  Jazz Angels creates the opportunity for young people to hear and learn about jazz, encourage them to play an instrument, and provide opportunities for them to perform.  Much more than music lessons in Long Beach, this is a program that provides a rich life experience for a young musician.

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Red String 2023 Grant Project: Grant provides funding for Jazz Angels to update and republish their Improv Workbook which forms the basis for teaching and learning about sheet music, history of various composers, and other important topics in the history of music.  An additional corporate matching grant funded purchase and repair of instruments.

J-Sei provides family activities as well as assisted living for seniors including bilingual staff and culturally sensitive care to help promote independence, safety, and well being.  J-Sei provides a culturally sensitive small assisted living facility for elderly adults and a community center offering educational and wellness classes, cultural events, home delivered and congregate meals, a food pantry, case management, a caregiver registry, and transportation.  Over the years, J-Sei has expanded its services and programs to include families and younger generations.   For many home bound fixed income older adults, the combination of financial, health, and food insecurity makes them especially vulnerable when an unexpected life event occurs. 

 

J-Sei is a UAIAI members recommended candidate charity. 

 

 

Red String 2023 Grant and Project:  With the reopening of its doors, J-SEI is still experiencing lingering issues from over three years of health pandemic restrictions with many of it's elderly patrons still reluctant to venture out and return to in-person activities at their facilities.  Red String grant funded J-SEI to provide a stipend for a full-time summer intern to help build and test alternative transportation methods with J-SEI’s seniors who are not engaging in on-site in-person activities during this post-COVID phase.   In addition to the stipend, the funds will be used to encourage seniors to use the alternative transportation methods (i.e. subsidizing first few rideshares).

Since 2006, Jubilee REACH has worked within the Bellevue, WA community to build community and transform the lives of students and their families,  Partnering with the Bellevue School District Jubilee Reach has strived to create solutions that improve not only the individual child's life, but solutions that strengthen families and the community. In March 2020, Jubilee Reach initiated their Groceries for Families program in response to the emerging food security issues facing families in the Bellevue and surrounding communities due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  At the peak of the pandemic, they coordination with 25 community organizations and hundreds of volunteers providing over 700 families with food, hygiene products, and supplies.   With the vaccine rollout, additional fiscal stimulus, and reopening of businesses, the Groceries for Families program has been able wind down as requests for assistance abated.  Currently, the program is supporting over 250 families.  The program is scheduled to run until at least the end of June.

 

 

Red String 2023 Grant and Project:   With reopening of schools, Jubilee has restarted their Jubilee Reach Center offering before and after school care to students.   Jubilee also continues its Groceries for Families and senior lunch programs as families and elderly still are struggling with higher inflation and  food security.  Red String funded over 600 delivered lunches to homebound seniors and the purchase of supplies for Jubilee's elementary and middle school Book, Game, Art, and Cooking clubs. 

Since 1993, KidWorks has grown into a vibrant community development non-profit that offers to low-income, at-risk youth in Central Santa Ana, one of Orange County’s most challenging neighborhoods, educational support, leadership and character-building programs, and health and fitness activities that begin with preschoolers and follow youth into their college years.  In total, KidWorks operates four centers that have become safe havens in gang-heavy, high-crime and overcrowded residential areas in central Santa Ana. KidWorks serves nearly 800 children, youth and parents weekly and reaches over 4,000 community members annually.

 

 

 

Red String 2023 Grant Project:  Providing students the right tools is the first step to achieving academic success.  For the third consecutive year, we are proud to be supporting the students attending KidWork’s College Success Initiative.  This year,all 25  CSI  2023 graduates have been accepted and are planning to attend college.  To better help them prepare their transition to college, Red String will provide each graduate with a $100 gift card that will allow them to purchase any books, supplies and materials they will need to succeed.

Long Beach Day Nursery (LBDN) has been providing high quality early care and education (6 months to Pre-K) to the Long Beach community since 1912.  LBDN's high-quality programming includes nationally accredited child care centers (the only accredited centers in the city of Long Beach open to the public), early literacy programming, early math, and science education, nutrition and healthy connections programs, physical education, parent engagement, and training, early intervention, Stepping Stones to Success Scholarships, low teacher-child ratios, and continuity of care practices that keep children with the same teacher for up to 3 years of schooling.  Long Beach Day Nursery serves approximately 325 children each year, and over 60% of the children served come from low-income families.

 

 

Red String 2022 Grant Project:  We are excited to include LBDN as one of our newest partners. Early childhood development is a key component to fostering this later life success, and a large part of this is introducing children to the love of reading.  Red String grant provides funds to purchase over 300 children’s books to help revitalize, expand, and diversify  LBDN’s Lending Library's offerings and services.

In 2023, Mo’Magic (Mobilization for Adolescent Growth In Our Communities) is the sister organization to B’Magic merged to create the Magic Programs.  Magic has its roots in the San Francisco Public Defenders Office and maintains their original missions as a community convener and connector to keep young people in the Bayview and Fillmore communities from entering the criminal system.  Combining both organizations will not only put the Magic program under single leadership that will create greater synergies and strategic direction, but also improve organizational efficiencies and effectiveness. 

 

Red String 2023 Grant and Project:  Since the Magic Programs inception, ensuring students start the school year with the essential supplies to be successful continues to be a key tenet.  This year, Red String expanded its commitment to the MAGIC programs by becoming a corporate sponsor of the Magic Program's signature Backpack Giveaway event providing over 4,000 students from low-income families in the Bayview Hunters Point and Fillmore Districts of San Francisco with backpacks and school supplies. 

Since 2002, NWEA has focused on re-engaging out-of-school young people ages 16-29, who have encountered significant barriers to completing their high school or college education, by,  

 

• Providing personal attention, mentorship, technical assistance, and moral support to low-income young people navigating post-secondary education.

• Connecting low-income young people with information and resources, and support them in creating an individualized plan to meet their higher education goals.

• Advocating for and with low-income young people, and empower them to develop their own voices as they pursue their higher education.

• Providing financial resources that help low-income young people access higher education and meet their basic needs while in school.

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Red String 2023 Grant Project:   We recognize that ensuring students have the right resources and supplies is critical for achieving success in their learning and academics.  For the third consecutive year, Red String provided funding for NWEA to purchase laptops and supplies to help ensure that their college bound students are equipped with the right tools and resources to succeed in their first year of college.

The Tomodachi Bento Project is a all-volunteer secular program run under the Orange County Buddhist Church that delivers hot, culturally sensitive meals to home bound elderly adults in Orange County and surrounding communities.  During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, TBP experienced a 2x increase in participants, from 40 to about 85 home-bound seniors.   Currently, TBP continues to deliver meals to about 70 home bound elderly persons.  For many of these elderly persons, TBP not only provides their elderly participants a delicious meal but also a friendly visitor checking in and making sure they're okay.

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​​​​​​​Red String 2023 Grant and Project:   We are happy to continue our sponsorship of Tomodachi Bento Project's Grandparent's Day, a national holiday celebrated in September.  The TBP at OCBC aims to provide meals to older adults. One of the benefits for its participants is that the seniors in the community are home-bound and can’t get around. It’s important to their safety and wellness that they have access to food and an opportunity to have regularly friendly "check-ins".  

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Rainier Scholars was founded in 2000 on the belief that all students deserve an equal opportunity to excel academically and become thriving community and workplace leaders.  They support students that are most underrepresented on college campuses, many of which come from low income households where the student will be the first in the family to achieve a college degree, changing the trajectory of families and future generations.  The life-changing journey starts in 5th grade and continues to college graduation, with the help of many partners to provide assistance & opportunities, academic counseling, career exploration, mentoring, internships, and comprehensive family support.  Rainier Scholars is focused on advancing equity in education with a proven model for student success.

 

A program analysis from MGS Consulting found that Rainier Scholars participants were 300% more likely to be taking college prep Honors courses than those not in the program,  99% are achieving admission to four-year colleges, and 90% are graduating or on track to graduate in four years. 
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​Red String 2023 Grant and Project:  ​Each year, 5th grade student participants are enrolled into a literature course as part of Rainier Scholars’ Summer Stretch Academy and Academic Enrichment Program (AEP).  Throughout time,  literacy is the single most significant skill to lift people out of poverty,  promote innovation and change, and create an informed and free society.  Knowing how to read opens up our minds to a lifetime of continued learning.  The course introduces students to a wide array of literature that explores youth relevant topics on  self-identity, values, and leadership while improving reading and comprehension skills.  Red String is proud to continue our support of the Summer Stretch Academy, AEP and it's scholars by providing each student from the Tacoma's 2023 cohort the collection of books for the course.

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Sharefest, founded in 2003, works with youth within the Los Angeles Unified School District’s continuation schools, whose students face significant barriers to college and career paths and are at greatest risk of dropout. Sharefest helps equip the students through academic achievement, personal development and community service. Its mission is to empower under-served young people to transform their futures and to become leaders of collaborative community change. To do this, the nonprofit is able to complete service projects and gather resources and volunteers through collaboration between local organizations, the faith community and businesses.

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​Red String 2023 Grant and Project:  ​We understand how important looking and dressing in the right business attire is for first time job applicants, both physically and emotionally, as well as making a good first impression with potential employers.   Students who come from low-income households, of which roughly 70 percent come from traditionally underserved communities,  often don’t have a set of  business attire to wear for an interview or their first day at work.  Red String helped sponsor Sharefest's dress for success event that provides graduating students entering into the workforce professional wardrobe.

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Established in 1967, Sound Generations is a comprehensive 501c3 non-profit organization that serves older adults and adults with disabilities in King County. Sound Generations supports almost 54,000 people annually and is Washington State’s largest provider of comprehensive services for aging adults and their loved ones located in King County.

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At Red String, we believe that our elderly loved ones are an invaluable asset to the community and deserve our utmost respect, care, and love, and that primary family caregivers are too often ill-prepared and unrecognized for the contributions they make, often at the expense of their own health, finances, and well-being.  We like the comprehensive service offerings that Sound Generations provides to both their elderly participants, primary family caregivers, and the broader Seattle community.   

 

Red String 2022 Grant and Project:  Funds the purchase of essentials and specialty items for caregiver gift bags and raffle prizes to be given out as part of Sound Generation’s first Caregiver Appreciation event in November 2022.   The Caregiver Appreciation event will invite and recognize the invaluable contributions of unpaid primary family caregivers who are on the front-line providing compassionate care to a loved one allowing them to age in place with dignity and choice.

Sunset Youth Services provides opportunities and resources to youth involved in the juvenile justice system to improve their lives.  SYS provide at-risk youth with justice services, one-on-one therapy, family support services, creative projects, and workforce development that help them to  build on their experiences, and knowledge and skills that better equip them to thrive in school, at work, in families, and in other social systems.

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​Red String 2023 Grant and Project:  ​Even though California became the first state to eliminate court costs, fees and fines for young offenders in 2018, youth can still be burdened with other non-criminal fines such as for parking tickets or traffic violations.  For youth, failing to make the payments may result in suspension of driver’s licenses limiting their ability to work or attend schools and an inability to expunge or seal records.   In discussions with SYS, we discussed the issues they have had in raising  philanthropic dollars to support their Justice Services program.  We listened.  Red String is providing funds to  help their youth pay off outstanding fees and fines to restore hope and offer their youth a fresh start in life.

Wrap the Kids hires homeless persons and gives them a second chance at making a difference by making handmade quilts to donate to children everywhere, but especially those who are sick or in need.  The organization also gives back to the homeless community by providing free clothing, hygiene kits, food items, blankets and other much-needed support.

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Homelessness in Long Beach has increased by 62% since 2020, according to the results of the city-run 2022 Homeless Point in Time Count.  27 percent of the people experiencing homelessness report family and relationship issues as the reason, 40 percent reported serious mental illness, and 34% reported substance-use issues. LA County’s homeless population increased by just 4.1% compared to 2020.  Continued economic uncertainty will continue to put added pressures on families and individuals making the issue of homelessness even more dire.

 

Red String 2023 Update:  Despite undergoing extensive cancer treatment at the end of last year, Susanna's love for community and helping others compelled her to carry forward with Wrap the Kid's annual Christmas event.  We were proud to help her by sponsoring the event.  But cancer is a formidable enemy and  we were saddened by the news that Susanna would be unable to continue her good work with Wrap the Kids as she continues her battle.   Without a successor to lead the organization, Susanna closed Wrap the Kids at the beginning of this year. 

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