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The Good People Fund

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Intern

    From Refugee to Leader: Bahati’s Journey with International Neighbors

    Good People Fund grantee International Neighbors (IN), founded by Kari Miller, shared a recent story about a beneficiary whose life was changed by their timely support. Read below to learn about Bahati who was helped as a new American and is now a donor and supporter of IN’s important work supporting new community members in Charlottesville:
    At 23 years old, Bahati Majuto fled the Democratic Republic of the Congo after the 1996 war left many of his family members slaughtered, and his town annihilated. Bahati was separated from his wife and son in the process. 
     
    A refugee camp in Burundi was Bahati’s “home” for five years, until he reunited with his family in South Africa. Bahati, a renowned tailor for many of Africa’s elite, attempted to continue his career by working out of a shipping-container-turned-tailor-shop that he created. His business was attacked and the makeshift building was destroyed twice in three years. Finally, in 2013, 16 years after first applying for refugee status with the UNHCR, the Majuto family was resettled in Charlottesville, Virginia.
     
    His first years in the United States were not without challenges. When International Neighbors connected with the Majuto family, they were struggling with meaningful employment, isolation, and healthcare access. We were able to coordinate a vehicle donation, help them understand bills and medical care in the U.S., and assist with home improvements including having a dangerous dead tree removed in their backyard where a now-thriving garden grows.
     
    Bahati is now a homeowner and a naturalized citizen. He continues to work multiple jobs to provide for his family of seven, and sends money to his surviving relatives in Africa. His oldest son graduated from William & Mary in 2021 and is studying for his Master’s at Yale University.
     
    Bahati has moved from client to volunteer and donor at International Neighbors. He has connected 23 families with our services, given countless rides to refugees in his IN-donated vehicle, and made gifts to our Annual Fund.
     
    “I know firsthand what International Neighbors does for newcomers, and it is God’s work,” says Bahati.

    Reflecting on GPF’s Transformative Support

    Rekindle, Cleveland

    Matt Fieldman, co-founder of Rekindle, an organization that supports bridge-building between Black and Jewish community leaders, shared a reflection about meeting Naomi several years ago when the organization was struggling to find its footing. He noted that the Good People Fund offered the “first real vote of confidence and meaningful support we had ever received.” That early belief helped launch a period of rapid growth, allowing them to reach far more fellows. They are now operating in 20 cities around the country. (A Good People Talk! podcast episode on Rekindle will be releasing soon.)

     

    https://www.goodpeoplefund.org/program/rekindle/

    Witness to Mass Incarceration, NYC

    Evie Litwok, the founder of Witness to Mass Incarceration, recently reminded the team that The Good People Fund made her “very first donation.” This was a pivotal moment that helped launch her work supporting formerly incarcerated individuals. What began as a Suitcase Project to provide essential supplies for people to restart their lives has since evolved into a multi-pronged organization offering advocacy, vocational training, networking, and documenting stories that would have otherwise remained invisible.

     

    https://www.goodpeoplefund.org/program/witness-to-mass-incarceration/

    A Courageous Voice, Detroit

    Amy Ever, Founder of A Courageous Voice and her board chair, Lexie Schwarze, shared that over the past nine months, they have “completely re-energized their board, increased their revenue, and brought their organization back from the brink of closure to stability and strength.” They credit the mentoring, workshops, and tools provided by the Good People Fund as instrumental in this turnaround. Additionally, the matching grant Good People Fund offered them last year sparked significant fundraising momentum for them. Today, the organization is teaching hundreds of children how to stay safe from harm, both online and offline.

     

    Choosing Connection in a Divided Time

    What does it take to build a bridge between communities?
    For Good People Fund grantee Rabbi Elhanan Miller, founder of People of the Book, it starts with language. Through videos, podcasts, and educational content that are all in Arabic, he is teaching the Arab-speaking world about Jewish culture, religion, and history. He was recently featured in a beautiful short video about his powerful work. In a time of deep division, he’s choosing to build bridges of connection and we are proud to support him.
    Watch the video here: https://youtube.com/shorts/jr6ig7SuLt0?feature=share

    First GPF Community of Practice is a Success!

    Good People Fund grantee Erin Stieglitz, founder of Bagel Rescue, recently shared what it has been like to be part of our first GPF Community of Practice. Led by volunteer facilitator Beth Gansky, this cohort brought grantees together for connection, support, and shared learning. As we prepare to launch our second Community of Practice, Erin wanted other grantees to know what they might gain from participating.
    Her story speaks for itself:
    https://youtube.com/shorts/uo-ldhekWkA?feature=share

    Hearing the Impact: A Rekindle Fellow Reflects

    It’s powerful when we have the opportunity to hear directly from people who are on the receiving end of our grantees’ good work. Below is a note from Jess Gill, a participant in a recent Rekindle cohort, sharing her experience. Founders Charmaine Rice and Matt Fieldman created Rekindle in Cleveland to bring Black and Jewish leaders together for meaningful dialogue and action. What started locally has now expanded to 13 cities nationwide, with over 150 fellows working to rekindle the historic alliance between their communities and accelerate social justice efforts.
     
    From Jess:

    “October 7 changed a lot of things for me. For one, it made clear how pervasive antisemitism really is—and brought to the fore how my ancestors must have felt experiencing pogroms, uprisings against Jews, and the Holocaust. There’s a reason they sought a better future for their children.

    But it also showed me how allyship is fragile. That some people are unable to hold two things as truth simultaneously. And without cultivation, without walking in one another’s shoes or listening to one another’s experiences, we aren’t doing each other any good.

    Add in some political WTFery and that’s when things really started spinning. So when I saw a flyer shared by my friend, Erica L. Reaves —and then promoted by Dr. Chrissy M. Thornton, it was like oh yes. This is what I’ve been looking for.

    That thing was Rekindle. Rekindle aims to reignite the Black and Jewish alliances evidenced in the Civil Rights era but in a new context—one that addresses today’s challenges on top of the structural racism and white supremacy that continues to permeate American culture.

    My Rekindle experience brought together academic texts, historical context, musings on race, religion, culture, and so much more. It brought together a cohort of peers who were genuinely interested in building bridges and learning about one another so we can uplift each other and our respective communities. And it was facilitated by two gems of humans who knew when to pause the conversation and when to let it go—Kathleen St.Villier Hill and Susanna Garfein.

    Every single person was generous with their spirit and their time. For each connection I made, I learned more about a different existence, a different challenge, a different accomplishment. And I’m still learning!

    Because though the ten-week cohort may have ended, the intent of the program has not. We have plans to connect for the “Black & Jewish America: an Interwoven History” docuseries. More intercultural exchanges and coffee dates are on the horizon. And I fully anticipate taking advantage of several babysitting offers.

    I have a notebook full of potent comments and a workbook full of critical readings with neon yellow highlights. One of them was from Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” which references moving with a sense of cosmic energy.

    Signing up to do Rekindle in the busiest season of work, with a husband often traveling for work and an all-hands-on-deck toddler may not have been the best timing. But I have to think there was some kind of cosmic energy at play, bringing us all together.

    Together, we can lean into what allyship means—friendship, respect, difficult conversations, accountability, and meaningful change. Together, we can cultivate the relationships sparked by Rekindle. Together, we can do more than we can alone.

    And that’s the spirit I’m entering 2026 with.”