"I keep thinking about how in the first few weeks of programming, one of our youth taught me that grass is sweet-tasting, and that’s why the horse was eating it. There is something so important about being connected to a place, especially after what our kids have been through during the pandemic and following the murder of George Floyd."
Kenatia Gilmer, founding Board Member
"I knew Propel had the support we needed when it was time for us to grow,” Bryand said. “This organization isn’t about me; it is about our leaders, and I want us to have the skills and tools we need to grow."
Monica Bryand, founder of Urban Bird Collective
"Eliminating barriers to voting is the minimum; we are working to make sure people with disabilities feel welcome in the voting booth."
Grace Littlefield, founder and executive director of Able to Vote
"We received advice for how to effectively partner with the board and offer support through board development, and as an organization we were able to pivot and be responsive when the pandemic began."
Andrea Myers, Executive Director, Hopewell Music Cooperative North
"I felt like Propel was in it for us, the staff was a safe place to take questions – the staff wanted to help us succeed and that is a good feeling. "
Cathy Heying, founder and executive director of The Lift Garage
"Fiscal sponsorship was a strategic decision we made to grow at the right rate, and to lay the groundwork of a transparent process for budgeting, designing programming, and sharing in governance."
Rachel Austin Bernstein, Founder and Co-Executive Director, Love Labor Project
"Food insecurity is not a physical condition only; it is a psychological condition. It creates a lot of mental issues and consequences, especially in children. Our subscribers are never going to have to doubt that we are going to deliver."
Christopher Brenna, Founder, Revolutionary Earth
"Fiscal sponsorship has provided us with the structure, system and the plan to do this work. You can have the passion for the work, but you need to have a system to sustain it."
Lola Adebara, Founder and CEO, Partnerships for Permanence
"For me, a big plus was I felt like Propel was really a partner with me, and looking not just at our cash needs, but really at how we organize into the future."
Aaron Young, Managing Director, Great River Shakespeare Festival