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As one of the new chapters in 2022, Debbie Smith, Assistant Director of Circles of Allen County in Fort Wayne, IN, is excited to share that they not only have grown their chapter staff, they have also seen some inspiring results with the Circles model.  Starting with the new staff, Debbie shares, “We are so excited to tell you about our new folks. As you can see, we are keeping the GAL POWER going!” Megan Horsley is Circles of Allen County’s new Program Director. An experienced educator, Megan holds a Master’s Degree in Special Education and a Master of Arts Certification in applied Educational Neuroscience (focused on long-term effects of childhood trauma).  Kayla Justice, a former Circle Leader with Allen County, joins the staff as a Marketing Assistant. Debbie describes Kayla as “extremely social media savvy” and “a true asset to our team in helping to get the word out to our community about the benefits of being a part of Circles of Allen County.” Kayla’s husband will join the chapter’s second cohort of Circle Leaders in October. Emily Burns will facilitate Circles of Allen County’s teen program. She will graduate from St. Francis University with a degree in social work in December and is currently a small-group leader for teen girls at her church. “She can speak teen language!” Debbie says. She adds that Emily, a former intern at Inasmuch Ministry, has impressed chapter leadership with her “compassion and work ethic.” With new specialists in place, Debbie plans to reduce her weekly hours—a nod to the tireless contributions many chapter staff make in order to keep their local teams afloat. Debbie can now shift her focus to bookkeeping and financial reporting for federal grants Circles Allen County has secured through the City of Fort Wayne and the State of Indiana. She will also collaborate with Chapter Director Mary Ann Ming to vision new solutions to multiple poverty issues in their community. In fact, “Mary Ann continues to be sought after for her advice on poverty alleviation from all corners of Fort Wayne and for procuring funds for Circles,” Debbie writes. “Just yesterday we received a second check from an endowment fund from a church. This was HUGE because she was told last year, when given the first check, that they do not give a donation to the same agency twice. However, they were so impressed by Kayla sharing her Circles story when we went to a special church service earlier this year. The gift we received [will go towards] administrative expenses and scholarships for our Circle Leaders to further their education. We are so excited about this gift! “As if what I have shared already isn’t BIG enough,” she continues, Circles Allen County hosted a celebration dinner for Cheryl, a graduating Circle Leader. She crossed the 200% FPL after increasing her prior salary by 75%, has found more stable housing, and has totally changed her outlook on life.  Debbie says that, though her Allies knew Cheryl prior to joining Circles, “they cannot believe the change in her after just ten months being in the program. Cheryl is over 60 years old and took on three part time jobs to get herself on her feet. She even paid back the benevolent agencies that lent her money to get settled in a new apartment. She has reached her goal of having over $1,000 in an emergency fund and hopes to grow that by the end of the year.” In keeping with the chapter’s upward momentum, their upcoming Coho rt #2’s Te en Program will use the newly released Teen Curriculum.   “We couldn’t have been so successful without the help of all of you at Circles USA,” Debbie says, “and the advice given during our peer Zoom meetings and our support calls with you one-on-one. Thank you for all you do running this great organization!” ————— To learn more about Circles of Allen County, visit www.circlesofallencounty.org or contact debbie@circlesofallencounty.org . To watch our suite of short videos featuring real Circle Leaders and chapters building community to end poverty, check out our YouTube channel or visit our website .

In preparation for our 2023 Leadership Conference at St. Luke’s in Orlando, FL, we’re introducing you to our conference keynote speakers. Day 1 will feature mini-keynote addresses from Circle Leaders, as we deepen our understanding of the lived experience of poverty. Read more here to see our Call for Speakers.  On day 2 of the event, we shift our focus from Deepening to Expanding . Whether we extend our practice to include new people, broaden the scope of our work transforming poverty, or launch new initiatives with innovative community partners, Expanding is key to growing CUSA’s impact in 2023 and beyond. To lead us in our work of expanding CUSA’s impact, board member and partner Christy Vines will deliver a keynote titled “Taking a Big View: Disrupting the Systems of Poverty with Empathy.” Christy, a featured presenter at our 2021 Virtual Leadership Conference, is the founder and president of Ideos Institute , a global leader in the research and understanding of empathic intelligence and its application to human relationships, social cohesion, and cultural change. In 2015, she left the field of religious conflict and extremism to find answers to the disconnections, biases, and misperceptions that often underlie conflict in the first place. Ideos is the founder and lead organization of the National Day of Dialogue , where CUSA has served as a coalition partner since 2022. In addition to leading Ideos, Christy is a published writer and speaker, and the executive producer of the 2022 documentary film, Dialogue Lab: America , a moving take on the current state of division and polarization in the U.S.  Experience Christy’s inspiring message Wednesday morning, Oct. 18, day 2 of CUSA’s 2023 Leadership Conference!  Register for the conference or learn more about empathy and the Ideos-Circles USA partnership on our blog .

As Circles USA continues to expand, the national office is grateful to add more infrastructure and reach to our system of chapter support. To that end, regional coaches support the West, the Midwest, the South, and the Mid-Atlantic Region. Working across geographic, economic, and political boundaries, each regional coach hosts monthly regional community of practice calls for mutual support and collaboration, coaches their regional chapters on a regular basis, and advises new chapters in their early design phase before launch. They also support regional collaborations to expand local Big View efforts so as to have a greater impact on systemic change and inform the national office of regional trends and needs. This blog series introduces you to Circles USA’s Regional Coaches: who they are, where they come from, and how their leadership helps realize CUSA’s vision of communities in which everyone has enough money, meaning, and friends to thrive. ++++ This month, Circles USA bids farewell to Jeff Tuscano and Karen Todd as Regional Coaches for the West. Karen (who has decided to transition back into retirement) and Jeff (who has taken on a new leadership role with their lead organization, Switchpoint Center) have shown tremendous dedication in their Regional Coach roles and in their home chapter of Circles St. George. We congratulate Karen and Jeff on their exciting new adventures. They will be greatly missed! On that note, we’re pleased to (re-)introduce a familiar face: Michelle Crawford, Executive Director of Circles Salt Lake. MY NAME IS … Michelle Crawford. I now coach the Western Region of Circles USA, which includes chapters in Utah, California and Nebraska. Our chapters vary from rural to urban, large to small, but all are having an impact with Circles. I accepted the role as a CUSA regional coach in July of 2023. My journey with Circles began in 2017 when I joined the Circles Salt Lake chapter as a volunteer on a resource team. As our chapter was just launching, I took on additional volunteer roles in Children’s Programming, event planning, and eventually as an Ally. Later, I joined our Board of Directors; then, early in 2022, I made the leap from corporate to nonprofit and accepted the position of Executive Director for Circles Salt Lake.  MY IMPORTANT LIFE EXPERIENCES, JOURNEYS, CHALLENGES AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS INCLUDE… Being raised by a single, immigrant mother in a household of five children, I have experienced poverty and understand the importance of community support. As a young adult I, too, became a single mother. Following my mother’s example, I worked hard to provide for my little family and was very fortunate to land a role with a husband-and-wife team of entrepreneurs who mentored me in business and in life. I left a toxic and abusive relationship to keep myself and my children safe and healthy, and I know how fortunate I was to work with company owners who were compassionate and understanding and who knew the value of investing in me. I was the first hired employee of their mortgage business and dedicated 17 years to their company. They saw my passion for lifting others and asked me to manage our community engagement efforts. This eventually led me to consider a move into nonprofit leadership—the opening of the Executive Director position at Circles Salt Lake was serendipitous! I received the Community Builder of the Year Award by NeighborWorks Salt Lake while serving at the mortgage company and leading our volunteer efforts. Since becoming Executive Director at Circles Salt Lake, I’ve joined the board of two major nonprofit organizations in the poverty alleviation space: Utah Community Action and United Way of Salt Lake/Utah’s Promise. Our chapter has been recognized as the Best Nonprofit in Salt Lake (2022), the 2023 Community Partner of the Year by United Way and Promise South Salt Lake, and the “Small But Mighty” award winner from Square Financial.  [Here, Michelle notes: “I solicited input during our regional meeting recently, so the following responses truly represent some of the many voices in our region…not just my views. I’m just getting to know our region, so I’d love input from more Western chapter members!”] SOMETHING SPECIAL YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT OUR REGION IS… We are very proud to be a part of incredibly passionate, engaged staff teams in our region who possess tremendous awareness of the needs of our community and a dedication to our mission. A MAJOR CHALLENGE WE FACE IN ALLEVIATING POVERTY IN OUR REGION IS… Because we collectively serve a majority of single mothers in our region, we are also challenged by issues such as wage gap, domestic violence trauma and depression, and lack of employer awareness of supporting single mothers with flexibility at work and sufficient services. Family sizes are larger here, so reaching 200% for these families is nearly out-of-reach in today’s economy. RECENTLY, OUR REGION HAS ACCOMPLISHED… Great things! Half of our chapters were recently awarded TANF grants for three-year funding. In Utah, we are expanding into Wasatch County. We’re also experiencing great success with piloting new and different ventures such as a summer cohort, Circles Fast Forward, and partnering with Teen Resource Centers in our school districts. ONE THING WE WANT POTENTIAL CIRCLES PARTICIPANTS TO KNOW IS… Circles is focused on poverty alleviation: putting in the work to go beyond just “managing” a situation of poverty. True impact happens slowly and our success is the result of education, the power of building relationships, and a commitment by everyone in our networks. To find a local chapter or learn how Circles USA can make a difference in your community, visit https://www.circlesusa.org .  Read Parts One , Two , Three , and Four of our Meet Circles USA’s Regional Coaches series.

Having trouble viewing the letter? View the PDF here: CirclesUSA Welcome Letter – Jerry L. Demings

In preparation for our 2023 Leadership Conference at St. Luke’s in Orlando, FL, we’re introducing you to our conference keynote speakers. On day 3 of the event, we’ll shift our focus to BEYOND Deepening and Expanding . Together we’ll explore how to see beyond our own communities. We’ll ask, “What is the larger picture here?” and “How do we innovate and evolve into the next iteration of CUSA’s work building community to end poverty?”  Our keynote speaker on the Beyond theme is Mark Brewer, President/CEO of Central Florida Foundation (CFF) . CFF stewards philanthropic dollars on behalf of individuals, families, and nonprofits by partnering with people who are determined to make a difference in their community. It fosters collaboration, fuels ideas, and spearheads the innovation that will transform the Southeast region for good.  Nominated by Lynette Fields (executive director of Poverty Solutions Group) and Addie Hartnett (regional coach for Circles Central Florida), Mark Brewer is inspiring nonprofit groups and philanthropists to work together to address key issues for communities in need. Lynette shares: “Mark is an unwavering and unapologetic champion and supporter of nonprofit organizations. He truly believes our country needs the nonprofit sector to do some of the hardest and most critical work in our communities, and that nonprofits should be recognized as major players for change. He’s on top of emerging best practices, and the Central Florida Foundation has led our community in expanding nonprofit leadership to include more diverse and representative voices. ” Mark’s keynote will address the state of philanthropy today, including the top five trends for giving and how Circles chapters can connect more powerfully with foundations and institutional givers. Following this keynote, Mark will also offer a breakout session on the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals and how these global concepts can power up our work at Circles. Mark writes about this breakout session: “This briefing on the importance of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals will clarify how to use some or all of them to empower our collective work, fundraising, and measurement of our outcomes. Learn how the world collaborates around using the SDGs to inspire, measure progress, and localize the work in these crucial areas. We’ll explore how Circles USA may leverage resources and collective work across more SDGs. By taking academics out of working with the SDGs, we’ll discuss how to use them and collaborations that can happen when using them as a horizon rather than traditional goals.” More About Mark Brewer Mark is a well-known national speaker on the independent sector, philanthropy’s role in America, venture philanthropy strategies, and the independent sector’s public policy role. In his leadership role at the Central Florida Foundation, Mark frequently advises private and corporate foundation grant makers across the region and plays a public policy advisory role on strategy and advisory boards around the state of Florida. Mark’s service focus is on organizations that grow philanthropy or play strategic grant-making and public policy roles. At the national level, Mark has chaired strategy initiatives and think tanks. At the state level, he has served as Chair of the Florida Philanthropic Network, a statewide association of grantmakers working to strengthen philanthropy through research, education, and public policy; and as  Chair of the Community Foundations of Florida, the statewide association of community foundations. In the Central Florida region, Mark serves on the Orlando Economic Partnership board, a public-private partnership working to create quality jobs, economic growth, broad-based prosperity, and a sustainable quality of life for the region; and as Chair of the College of Community Innovation and Education (CCIE) Dean’s Advisory Council at UCF. He is also a Foundation for Orlando’s Future board member. Most recently, Mark was named one of Orlando Business Journal’s CEOs of the year for 2021 and identified as one of Orlando Business Journal’s 2021 Power Players.  Learn more about the Central Florida Foundation and the state of philanthropy in 2023 in Florida .  Register for the conference or learn more about cross-sector collaborations to end poverty on our blog at www.circlesusa.org .

At the heart of every great Circles USA gathering, you’ll find members breaking bread together. CUSA communities share food to celebrate our accomplishments, remind one another of life’s simplest pleasures, and renew our strength for the ongoing challenge of ending poverty. The community surrounding St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Orlando, FL—the site of our 2023 Leadership Conference—boasts a bevy of restaurants, food trucks, and caterers serving up delicious Florida cuisine with soulful twists. Lynette Fields, Director of Poverty Solutions Group (PSG), the lead organization for Circles Central Florida, shared: “Both PSG and St. Luke’s have a commitment to support locally owned businesses representing the diversity of our region. All of the food vendors for the conference have a great story to tell, and all have a direct connection to Circles or embody our community transformation work.” Here’s a sneak peek of the fabulous food service providers who each have a special connection with Circles. We’re thrilled to support such high integrity, local vendors throughout our 2023 Leadership Conference! Welcome Reception: Pammie’s Sammies Pam Thomas, Owner “Feed the soul, craft with love, serve from the heart!” Pammie’s Sammies, located in historic downtown Winter Garden, offers unexpected flavors in a familiar, friendly, and GROOVY shop where everyone feels like family. According to www.pammiessammies.com, “Our goal is to create unique experiences so every time you visit, you’ll find something new and different.” Pammie’s Sammies is a go-to favorite for Circles Special Events. “Pam has even closed early and let our Circles West Orange group use the restaurant for our Weekly Meeting when our regular spot is not available,” one staffer reports. “Additionally, we are so very excited to claim Pammie’s Sammies as an Employer Partner since two Circle Leaders have been brought on her staff team this year.” Tuesday Lunch: Natez Catering Company Nate Monroe, Owner Natez Catering Company and Poverty Solutions Group both had their start in the community of East Winter Garden, where Nate Monroe established Natez Catering Company in 2015. What started out as a side job quickly grew into something much larger: one of Orlando’s most renowned caterers. At the time of establishment, Nate was still working as Culinary Buyer for SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment. However, Natez Catering Company began to grow so rapidly, it enabled Nate to retire after 30 years at SeaWorld so he could go full time with his own company. Recently, he took his business a step higher by purchasing a food truck: Natez Blazing BBQ and More. Lynette recalled, “Shortly after Natez Catering launched beyond a weekend gig, they were regularly in the rotation of Circles West Orange weekly meals. When possible, they even donated meals to Circles. It was part of our commitment to support local Black-owned businesses along with getting individuals and organizations to donate meals. Eventually, they became one of St. Luke’s approved caterers.” Tuesday Weekly Meeting: Steve Smith and Luky Nova Steve Smith and Luky Nova, Owners Steve and Luky, both former Circles Allies and food service professionals, share their cooking skills in many ways to serve the community through St. Luke’s and Circles. “My wife and I have been very active in many charitable facets of St Luke’s,” said Steve, “including Coalition for the Homeless, Habitat for Humanity, as well as various mission trips. Finding Circles was extremely rewarding. The most obvious reward was seeing positive impacts to the community almost weekly. Being involved with gleaning the farm fields through Society of St. Andrew led us to help deliver various foods to a wide variety of organizations in need. Cooking over 800 meals a week during Covid was exceptionally impactful. We are overly blessed to have been given all these wonderful opportunities to serve alongside so many awesome organizations.” Wednesday and Thursday Lunch: House Blend Cafe Jonathan Daigle, Manager House Blend Cafe has a mission to serve the community at the heart of what they do, so it’s no surprise that this cozy cafe has been a popular meeting place for Poverty Solutions Group. According to their website, “House Blend Cafe was created to connect with people and see community happen in our neighborhood. We have committed 100% of our net profits to be donated to world change projects. As opposed to simply writing a check and moving on, we engage our community to meet needs and create true relational connection. Our non-profit – Do Good Farm – exists to end world hunger and malnutrition through sustainable farming methods. It is just one of the ways we utilize House Blend Cafe to engage the finances and community needed to change the world!”

Having trouble viewing the letter? View the PDF here: 2023 National Coach Job Description

In 2020, Circles USA chapters from coast-to-coast led a non-partisan push to grow civic engagement by getting people to the polls. Our Get-Out-The-Vote (GOTV) Challenge invited participants to help register friends, educate others about early and mail-in voting options, dedicate weekly virtual meetings to reviewing a sample ballot, and more. The GOTV campaign inspired chapters to get involved in the election to build momentum for systemic change. We organized numerous instructional webinars on topics including civic engagement 101, how to host a virtual forum with candidates for public office, how to facilitate voter education about local elections, the importance of the census, and how to promote voter turnout. A record number of chapters participated in CUSA’s 2020 GOTV challenge. This primary election year, we caught up with Circles Coach Bonita Thomas of Circles West Orange, FL, and with Annette Brown ‘s Ally, Sandi Wallace. The women discussed the “organized chaos” many of us encounter at local polling locations—and how the civic education they gained working as Poll Clerk and Deputy with Orange County’s Adopt-a-Precinct (AAP) program helps them assert their voting rights. Adopt-a-Precinct 101: What Do They Do For Communities? Founded in 1998 with a mission to “ensure the integrity of the electoral process, enhance public confidence, and encourage citizen participation,” the AAP program is “a community partnership [which] allows organizations to serve their community [and] fundraise.”  Participating organizations “adopt” a precinct, or several precincts, during an election by providing the people to staff the polling place for that precinct. The Supervisor of Elections then writes a check to the organization, rather than paying the individual workers. …The AAP program funnels tax dollars through their office to AAP groups and back into the community in the form of scholarships, school programs, church, civic, and community outreach programs, and more…On average, an organization can earn up to $2,125 per adopted precinct, per election…. In 2022, over $336,735 was paid out to Adopt-A-Precinct groups over the three countywide elections.” [Source: Orange County Board of Elections ]  Knowledge Is Power for Voters Bonita, a Circle Leader graduate, now staff of Circles West Orange, and mother of five, served as the Adopt-a-Precinct Poll Deputy and described the polling experience at Orange County locations as tough to navigate in more than one way. “[Orange County] has been doing a lot of rezoning districts,” she said, “so for whatever election, we have to play ‘is it this one, or is it this one that we go to?’” Bonita described the run around she and her mother experienced even from the poll worker who questioned her as follows. The poll worker asked, “You don’t know where you vote at?” Bonita replied, ’No ma’am, I’m trying to figure out if it’s here. Or do we need to go downtown?” “First she asked for my I.D. I said, ‘I have it here.’ She said, ‘Where’s your voter registration card?’ And I said, ‘Oh, I left that at home.’ She said, ‘Well, why didn’t you bring your voter registration card? You need to always bring your voter registration card when you come to vote!’ “Actually, I don’t need my voter registration card or my ID. When I went through election training, I served as Poll Deputy. So I know that I don’t need either one to vote!’ And she was like, ‘Well, you still should have bought it with you. Okay?’“ The barrier to participation was an immediate red flag to Bonita. “When I went back, the other poll deputy, he says, ‘Everything all right?’”    “That lady,” Bonita informed him, “is in there giving people the wrong information that could deter people from voting.”  “The poll deputy had literally put her hands on the hips,” she recalled. “It was a ‘scolding me’ type of thing. And had that been somebody else who didn’t know [their rights], they would have left and not come back.” Bonita reflected on her family’s generational preparedness for experiencing resistance at the polls: “I kind of knew before, because my grandmother always let us know what we needed to vote. And, if we didn’t have it, ask to vote so you can cast that provisional ballot. They’ll match your signatures, all of that. “The difference for me [now] was, I knew what I was talking about. I was confident in what I was saying. I always knew what my grandmother would tell us, but this time I was 100% certain that I was right. That was an empowering moment for me to be able to say, ‘No…and I can still cast my vote.’” And so she did. Has meeting resistance at the polls changed Bonita’s feelings about returning to her precinct in 2024?  Her reply was firm. “I’m ready to go. At first, I was a little nervous about being the poll deputy, but then I was like, ‘I have the power. I’m standing outside to let folks in.’ It was such a great experience to say hello to the people, to welcome them in, and know that I was the first face that they saw on their journey to cast their ballot.” Clearly, Bonita is ready to support voters to have a positive and encouraging experience. The Big View: Election Access, Adopt-a-Precinct and Circles Annette Brown ‘s Ally, Sandi Wallace, a longtime advocate for voter education, has been instrumental in expanding access in Orange County. Sandi pointed out that voter misinformation is bigger than an incident at just one precinct. “I was talking to the [Orange County] Supervisor of Elections [Bill Cowles] one time,” Sandi shared. “This exact issue about a driver’s license makes him nuts, and he hammers it home all the time: You do not need a driver’s license to vote, you need a photo and signature I.D.! A local radio station will be saying on the radio, ‘Don’t forget to take your driver’s license.’ And he’ll have to call them up—‘Stop telling people they need a driver’s license!’ But people call in [saying], ‘Well, they moved to Florida from Tennessee; and where they lived in Tennessee, they had to use a driver’s license because that was the law there….’ That’s the other thing about elections. Election law is different all over the place.” Sandi discovered Adopt-a-Precinct in 2020, when Lynette Fields (who heads Circles West Orange’s parent organization Poverty Solutions Group ) sought volunteers for their Big View team’s local Get Out the Vote effort. “I’m incredibly passionate about voting,” Sandi told us. “But I was like, ‘What is Get Out the Vote in the middle of a pandemic? Are we going to knock on doors? What does this look like?’ And Lynette said, ‘We’re going to have to be creative. What do you think we can do?’ “I got to thinking about how I feel as a voter and what would be helpful to me. Every time I go to vote, it’s very hard to find information about all the races. Everybody knows who they’re going to vote for, for president and vice president and governor and those sorts of things. But all the other stuff—it’s really hard to find information. So it started as this journey of, ‘How do we help aggregate information, so that our Circles community all [feel] empowered to cast their vote?’ Their voice was just as important as everyone else’s. With a friend of mine, we created a website; and we would just literally just comb the web, local news stations, newspapers. We found all sorts of online panel discussions. “Part of it,” she reflected, “was about feeling empowered. And part of it— particularly in the 2020 time frame—was about understanding the process of how voting works logistically. To feel confident in the process that your vote gets counted, that it’s sealed, that it makes it from point A to point B without there being any nefarious shenanigans happening.  Having laid a foundation with GOTV, Sandi finally connected with Bill Cowles at a work function and asked if he’d speak at Circles. And he said, ‘I’d be happy to, if I can ask something of you: I’d like you to adopt a precinct.’ And I said, ‘What is Adopt-a-Precinct?’ He goes: ‘It’s my legacy.’ “We thought, how cool would it be if we could get our Circles community out there? It’s one thing for the Supervisor of Elections to come tell you how our election process works; but what if you could actually be a part of the process…to be able to say to the people in your circle of influence, ‘Don’t tell me that there’s fraud in the election system. I’m part of the election system. I’ve done it right.’” Sandi and her Big View team were clear that Circles members should be compensated for their work. “We asked the question, ‘If somebody is there as a Circle Leader, or had been a Leader previously, could we pay them?’ And the Supervisor of Elections said, ‘We give you the money. You can do whatever you want!’  And so our model of Adopt-a-Precinct looks a little bit different than other people’s; [our Circle Leaders train] with Allies and the Poverty Solutions Group staff. If you’re an Ally or member of the staff, the money goes in as a fundraiser. But if you’re a Leader coming in, they actually earn pay for that day. “We are building a group of people that really understand the ins and outs [of voting],” Sandi finished, smiling. “All of us have to go through [roughly four to eight hours of] training like any normal paid poll worker does every single election because it’s required by law.”  Voting Freedom: a Legacy of Integrity When asked why election integrity matters right now, Bonita and Sandi both cited beloved elders and community members who have impressed upon them the importance of voting. “The hair is standing up on my arm!” Bonita said. “Every time that I go and cast my ballot and take my children along, it’s about honoring the folks that sacrifice so much more than just their time to go to training, to hold the door open. It’s about all of those folks that were not able to; and to be able to say, ‘Yes, I can run because you walked.’ That’s what it’s about. For me and one of our Circle Leaders, Ms. Charlie May—who is 92-come-on-Lord-I-believe-it years old!—to hear her tell the story of the [Ku Klux] Klan coming down the road and taking folks away. And knowing that she lived through that. And even when she wasn’t able to vote…she was still there . I’d be doing a disservice not to honor that.” Bonita thought for a moment, then added: “As our Supervisor of Elections says, there is no voter fraud in Orange County. That matters. I have a couple of friends that actually do not vote, have never registered because they don’t believe in the system.  “And I say, ‘You can’t be a part of the change if you’re not willing to change your point of view!’ We may not always get who we want or what we want in the election. But to know that I took the time to see if I could be that one person that made the change…I’ll do it every time. Every single time.”

CUSA 2023 Videos Spotlight Cliff Effect and Weekly Meetings Circles USA is proud to announce the release of two dynamic additions to our ever-expanding original video suite . The short films, conceived and co-produced by board member Jennifer Pelling and independent film director Brian Lawes, are the result of the duo’s years-long collaboration making films and videos for nonprofit organizations. Cliff Effect Primer Pelling and Lawes’s animated “explainer” video illuminates the perils of the Cliff Effect, a phenomenon which occurs when a pay raise at work triggers a disproportionate loss of government assistance. It was produced in collaboration with Osmosis Films, a New York City-based creative agency and video production company. “First of all,” Pelling says, “a huge thanks to Christina Williams [executive director of Innovative Poverty Solutions with Circles NWA ] for her detailed feedback and insights. This was a challenging video because it’s aimed at a different audience than the other Circles videos we’ve produced in the past.” Instead of seasoned CUSA members, she explains, “we’re hoping to reach people who have never heard of the Cliff Effect or who may have misconceptions about public assistance–to educate them about a widespread, crippling economic problem that is one of the biggest barriers to ending poverty.” Virtual Tour of a Weekly Meeting The Cliff Effect video follows on the heels of another new release featuring Circles Salt Lake (Salt Lake, UT), which we previewed in a recent feature . Conceived and co-produced by Pelling and directed by Lawes, the short documentary invites prospective chapters on a virtual tour of Circles Salt Lake’s weekly meeting.  Pelling calls working with Circles Salt Lake “the smoothest experience we’ve had filming at a chapter. Everything fell into place and we absolutely loved working with the Circles Salt Lake team! Michelle Crawford, their Chapter Director, is a natural at explaining the Circles model and they have such a beautiful space.” Executive Director Kamatara Johnson added: “Weekly meetings are the heart of Circles USA. They’ve always been our most powerful tool for delivering our transformational services and community-building.” To learn more about the Cliff Effect, visit our website . To read more about the production of the Weekly Meeting video, visit the CUSA blog .

25 Years Strong, 25 States Wide! Join Circles USA executive director Kamatara Johnson as she reflects on a rewarding 2023 leadership conference, looks forward to the next exciting chapter of CUSA, and describes how your continued support will help us deepen and expand our impact building community to end poverty. To support Circles USA, visit our donation page today! To give by check or via phone, contact gena@circlesusa.org or call (505) 225-7991. Click the donate button now to celebrate 25 years of Circles with your monthly gift of $25 or more!

Circle Leaders are at the heart of Circles USA’s work building community to end poverty…so we knew that centering our 2023 Leadership Conference around the voices of those with lived experiences of poverty was critical. CUSA invited three Circle Leaders to share their stories, testimonials, and messages of inspiration in the form of mini-keynote talks, live and in-person, at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Orlando, FL. Building on our 2023 theme of Deepening and Expanding , these Circle Leaders described how the Circles experience has changed their knowledge and perspective of poverty and prosperity; improved their financial and social skills; helped them reach personal goals; and supported them in sharing their unique voices within their chapters and communities.  We are proud to share their stories—electrifying, inspiring, and courageous—with our entire circle of practice today. Tim Rodgers | Circles West Orange, FL “Circles is about overcoming poverty, and although I have not fully accomplished that end financially, I have grown to be far more than who I was when I began my journey.” Carmen Gonzalez | Circles Northwest Arkansas, AR “Before Circles, I didn’t have a lot of faith in humanity. I didn’t believe in community; I didn’t have people I could depend on locally. I joined Circles and met people who genuinely cared and wanted me to succeed in ways that no one has ever wanted for me before. That was life-changing for me and my family.” Annette Brown | Circles West Orange, FL “I hope that my sharing at the Circles conference will help other Circle Leaders to gain courage, to step up and be seen and heard in their most authentic way possible. And to give everyone else in the room a glimpse into my life living in poverty, and out of the same lens, see me today for the woman I have become, no longer living below the poverty guidelines.” Learn more about Circles USA at www.circlesusa.org , or contact Administrative Coordinator Gena Atcher at gena@circlesusa.org for more information. Each year, our Lives Transformed featured Circle Leaders embody this courage and vulnerability by sharing unforgettable testimonials of their Circles journeys. Check out their stories in written form ; or listen to Yakilin , April , Ashon , and Pam recount their experiences in our 2022 suite of videos . SUPPORT CIRCLES USA

Established in 2014, Circles USA Network Awards celebrate the best of what our chapters do out in the world. This year, we received our highest-ever volume of nominations due to the outstanding leadership so many of you demonstrate in your work building community to end poverty. Your excellence has raised the bar; it’s also made choosing standout contributors to the CUSA community of practice both a challenge and a joy for our board members .  Today, we are thrilled to spotlight the winners of our 2023 Network Awards, presented live on day three of the recent Leadership Conference at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Orlando, FL.  Congratulations to all these CUSA Network rock stars! Best Video “Circles NWA: Shaletha’s Story” from  Circles Northwest Arkansas | Fayetteville, AR From its gorgeous production values to its inspiring narrative of Circle Leader Shaletha’s progress in establishing a budget plan to build an emergency fund, this video exemplifies how the medium can highlight chapter accomplishments.  To learn about some of the amazing stories coming out of the first cohort of Circle Leaders and Allies from Circles NWA, or to get involved in Circles, visit Circles NWA’s website at www.circlesnwa.org .  Best Social Media Circles Salt Lake | Salt Lake County, UT “Circles Salt Lake’s social media shows how a chapter can use platforms like Facebook and Instagram to highlight the people and orgs making a difference in your community,” says CUSA executive director Kamatara Johnson. “Their content is balanced and diverse, their events look inviting, and anyone would want to follow a chapter sharing this much new and good information.” Best Data Results Circles Upstate South Carolina | Greenville, SC CUSA Information Systems and Design Manager Courtney Cowan reports that this chapter is “up to date on their Circle Leader progress reports and the general demographic survey. They also have great engagement with their Ally-Staff-Volunteer progress reports with really good feedback. Their data tells a powerful story for their chapter!” Best Newsletter Circles Salt Lake | Salt Lake County, UT Kamatara says of Circles Salt Lake’s newsletter: “As with their social media, Salt Lake is ahead of the curve with great visuals, timely updates on important events and initiatives, clear communication with their community, and lots of feel-good inspiration for their network.” Outstanding Resource Team Volunteer Beth Witten from  Circles Central Florida | Winter Garden, FL Beth Witten has been involved with Circles in Central Florida for 10 years, from the very beginning. She embodies the term Circles Champion! Her roles have included: Hands On Training; Ally; Chapter Coordinator; multiple resource teams; donor; Data and Financial Program Manager; and driver of a multi-year grant, focused on the intersection of domestic violence and poverty, coordinated with Circle Leaders to design a 12-hour course on financial empowerment. Lynette Fields of Florida’s Poverty Solutions Group says, “Beth is a humble and gracious servant leader who has shared countless hours of her time because she believes in the work and outcomes of Circles. She works behind the scenes in a quiet and unassuming way that keeps things moving along. In any given week, you might find her clearing tables, picking up food, driving a Circle Leader’s child to daycare, or designing recruitment graphics. We are so very grateful to have someone who shares her talents and time so selflessly. Thank you, Beth, for being our Circles Champion!” Outstanding Coordinator Emily Gilbertson from Circles Northwest Arkansas | Fayetteville, AR Christina Williams, executive director of Innovative Poverty Solutions, writes: “Emily Gilbertson is a rockstar. She has built a strong volunteer base for the programming at Circles of Northwest Arkansas and cares for them so well. She also is amazing at communicating with our Circle Leaders and Allies. Each group gets a text from her each week to confirm attendance and let them know what to expect for the week.” Emily is a model coordinator, engaging her community in dynamic ways and supporting them every step of the way.  Outstanding Coach Joyce Schoepp from  Circles Sauk Prairie | Sauk City, WI  From Sarah and John Ramthun, leaders of Circles 6:8 : “Joyce has been a part of the Leadership of our Circles chapter from its beginning almost 5 years ago. She goes above and beyond [in] her role as Coach. (For one thing, she serves as coach on a volunteer, unpaid basis!) She personally calls Leaders and Allies during the week as needed to check in on them if they are struggling, need a little extra encouragement, someone to listen to, or need a little kick in the pants to stay on top of their goals and commitments. Sometimes these conversations last for hours and are followed up by check-ins and texts until there is resolution. Joyce is at Circles every Monday, does our interviews, and meets with multiple Matched Circles every week. Everyone knows Joyce has their back and yet she will not let us (staff or Leaders/Allies) slack on our commitments. She wants to see EVERYONE succeed, but will not let you off the hook. Joyce is the perfect combination of tender compassion and loving force to be a Circles Coach and Sauk Prairie is lucky to have her!!!” Outstanding Allies Van and Lauren Schwiebert from  Circles Hilton Head Island | Hilton Head Island, SC When Van & Lauren were asked to provide a statement to support a grant the chapter recently applied for, here’s what they said about Circles and their experience: “We long have felt the need to do something to address economic injustice, but we never knew what we, as individuals, could do or how we could make a difference in the lives of others. Having grown up in nuclear families in suburban New York, we really had no specific comprehension of the causes of poverty and the reasons people have such difficulty removing themselves from that condition. The Circles Program has been a real learning experience for us! Since becoming involved in Circles, we are better informed about the causes, effects, and traumas of poverty. Equally important, we have been able to meet, learn to know, and interact with individuals who are attempting to make a difference in their own lives. Because of our backgrounds, we were not sure what skills or knowledge we would bring to the table, but we have come to learn that simply being there to offer encouragement, moral support, and listening ears can have a positive impact. Through Circles, we have learned about others and their struggles, we have been able to empathize with them, and we have become more aware of how challenges can be addressed and overcome. We think we have gained as much as we have given.” Outstanding Ally Sandi Wallace from  Circles West Orange | Orlando, FL  Sandi’s Circle Leader, Annette Brown, had these glowing words to describe her Ally:  “Unlike previous experiences when volunteers would just tell me what I needed to do, Sandi approached the Circles experience with ‘how can I help you? And ‘what do you need from me?’ Our Matched Circle has had some very difficult and risky conversations; Sandi was willing to see things through other people’s lenses, without criticizing or being judgmental. Sandi is totally committed to the role of being an Ally. She will literally stop what she’s doing to support me, even in my darkest moments. When my cat was hit by a car, she rushed to the animal hospital. When my brother was hospitalized, she was by my side. My life, and the way I see myself, have all changed drastically because of Circles and my Allies.” Sandi is a noted champion for voter education and civic engagement. In fall of 2020, 100% of our chapter attendees told us they voted—some for the first time! In 2022, Sandi expanded her efforts and helped our Circles community to Adopt-a-Precinct. This experience provided team building, community visibility, a deeper appreciation and understanding of how our election system works, and was also an outstanding fundraiser. “It’s easy to believe what you hear others say about poverty,” Sandi says. “But it’s something altogether different when you see the realities of generational poverty with your own eyes. Because of Circles, I now have friends who have battled poverty their entire lives, and they are some of the hardest working, most resourceful people I have ever met. Standing on the outside of the problem pointing fingers doesn’t solve anything. But you can be part of the solution if you get involved with an organization like Circles. We need more people who want to be part of the solution.” Outstanding Circle Leader Carly Maine from  Circles in Columbus | Columbus, GA The video Carly shared with us about her time at Circles speaks volumes about her dedication to excellence: Carly’s determination to move from surviving to thriving saw her move, last year, to a large new townhouse. And, as an Ally, Carly has just seen her first Circle Leader graduate. On top of all that, her daughter is now 22 years old, has a decent job, and has broken the cycle of poverty that held their family for so long. Carly is really demonstrating the intergenerational success of Circles! Outstanding Circle Leader Carmen Gonzales from  Circles Northwest Arkansas | Fayetteville, AR You may remember Carmen from her standing-ovation keynote address:  Carmen recently graduated from her first cohort. During her time at Circles, she bought her first home, changed jobs after being at the same place for over 10 years, made huge strides with her budget, and pursued training to be an advocate for disability rights. She is a strong advocate for her daughter, who has autism. She also spoke on the panel for the Cliff Effect event at Circles of NWA.  Carmen hit the 200% goal and has graduated from the program. She is now serving as a Program Facilitator for their second and third cohorts, being a listening ear and supporter for them, and paying it forward for those who were in her shoes.