The Glendale Communitas Initiative (GCI) is a 3-year organization which partners with individuals and families to create a pathway out of poverty. GCI partners with a variety of social service agencies to educate people on basic financial management and personalized plans for financial sustainability. Despite being a young organization, their programs and services are already well-respected and widely used in Glendale. Like most new organizations, they are less formalized in their operations than in programs. So they asked JRP to help them with board development, strategic planning and website updates. Louise Wannier, veteran JRP volunteer, entrepreneur and management consultant, helped GCI Exec. Dir. Jason Schlatter and Board Chair Todd Leonard take stock of their accomplishments so far and create a longer-term strategy to expand their services and develop the resources needed to sustain their programs, including building the right with the time, talent and treasure necessary to grow this impactful organization. Matt Bragg had the somewhat easier task of updating GCI’s website to be easier for the small staff to keep updated.
If you know someone who is struggling to get out of poverty, we highly recommend GCI’s personalized approach, which has worked with formerly homeless people, the working poor and the many others who struggle to keep up with our expensive region. Many thanks to Louise and Matt, whose volunteer time will help more people move from poverty to sustainable financial management!
Jericho Road Pasadena is a nonprofit capacity-builder; through our pro bono and board match-making services, Pasadena-area nonprofits can achieve more goals and expand the reach of their programs. By matching community talents with community needs, we help nonprofits become more efficient and effective, as well as enrich the lives of volunteers.