2022 Social Capitalist Donations: Starting the Year Off Right

I wanted to post an update on the social capital work and the most recent donations I’ve made. A goal of mine was to keep the Prototype community informated on the progress of the work that I am doing as this community has been such an amazing support system for me as I’ve gone through my leadership journey.

Last week, both Macky Bergman and I presented on LIP (leadership in practice) to talk to the LIP community about our selection process for Social Capital. You can check that out here

If you didn’t know, back in December 2020, I was named the 2nd Social Capitalist by the co-CEOs of Next Jump, Charlie Kim, and Meghan Messenger. I have a cool write-up when I received this amazing title if you want to check that out here.  Also, you can see the donations I made in 2021. Here is a link to the donations I made in 2021

Below is who I have decided to support in Q1 of 2022:

Website: www.forgingyouthresilience.org

The Who: Small Organization (team of 4), recently rebranded (Formerly Steve’s Club); impacting thousands of kids throughout the US. Spoke directly to the directors of the organization.

Mission: Forging Youth Resilience (FYR), is a member-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that empowers young people to build physical and mental strength for life by providing access to a network of free community-based fitness programs, mentorship and a summer leadership camp. FYR offers weekly classes at 18 youth programs across the country, with 10 new programs in the pipeline for 2022. FYR works with youth primarily between the ages of 7-18 from under-resourced communities or families who would otherwise not have access to CrossFit or similar coach-led training. Many of the youth we serve are involved with the criminal justice system, or in foster care residential facilities.

Reasoning: FYR is one of the few organizations that support or are directly in CrossFit. The impact that they are making on kids across the country is amazing. To be able to provide kids from any background fitness and community as a resource is exciting to me. It brings a few things that I am passionate about together, CrossFit, giving, and helping the youth. I anticipate FYR to grow exponentially this year, getting their program into many more CrossFit facilities throughout the country.

Website: www.bigfishfoundation.org

The Who: Brian Chantosh, a decorated Veteran with a track record of leadership success.

Mission: to enhance Veteran’s lives by reconnecting them to fundamental principles of service in order to reemphasize accountability towards each other through a shared common purpose in a campaign to improve psychological wellness, effectively manage post traumatic/combat stress, and prevent suicide. The Foundation is built upon 3 Pillars that support setting conditions for the positives in our lives; especially for veterans who are finding themselves absent or confused without the regimented constructs of military service. The reality is that many active service members don’t fully appreciate the hidden value of these simple notions until transition; when they are missing.

Reasoning: After speaking with Brian on the phone while driving home from a Leadership Academy in NYC, I could tell he is the real deal. Not only does he run Big Fish but he also has his own Leadership business that he runs called Crooked Butterfly, where he brings folks together for multiple days to endure grueling physical tasks. He does a lot in the community and is a very accredited veteran as a former US Marine (you can look up his Wikipedia page), being one of the few to receive the Navy Cross. Brian is also heavily involved in the CrossFit community. Big Fish distributes funds to other veteran support non-profits, so the use of funds is very efficient. I’m excited about where this relationship will lead.

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