Who Are UpTogether Members?
Our members are parents and caregivers, entrepreneurs, students and community organizers. They are college graduates and homeowners, and Boomers and Millennials. They are all working together to accomplish the goals they have set for themselves, both individually and collectively. They bring the richness of their diverse experiences to the UpTogether Community. They also reflect the reality of financially under-resourced communities across America, with Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) experiencing financial hardship, limited wealth and poverty at a disproportionate rate. We know this is due to systemic racism in the form of discriminatory policies and practices, and not individual behaviors or cultural characteristics.
UpTogether members have the opportunity to build their social network, tell their story to counter stereotypes, share their goals, ask for support and support others, offer their expertise, advocate for their community, and call out policies that negatively impact their lives.
In 20-plus years of service, UpTogether has invested $195 million to more than 200,000 members coast to coast.
Meet Deborah
Deborah raised her three children and stepped in as the primary caregiver for three of her grandchildren. The Tulsa, Oklahoma resident spent most of her adult life working in the non-profit sector. She says sometimes it was tough to pay for basic needs.
“I’ve had to use food stamps in the past and the comments and the looks like, “Why don’t you just get a job?” Even though I was working, I qualified because of my low income. I think the attitudes of people that have money against the people that don’t have so much… they’re just looked down on.”
Deborah used the investment she received from the Tulsa UpTogether Fund to take refresher writing courses. She created her own online publication, Middle-Pause, which amplifies the voices of women who encourage, inspire, and empower each other before, during, and after menopause. She also launched a podcast called STOMP: Stronger Together On Middle-Pause, to expand her reach to more audiences.
“I get comments all the time. A lady told me, ‘I can depend on you to write words that bring light into my day,” Deborah said. “If that’s all I do, that’s worth it, touching one life is worth it.”
Meet Inglish
I am a mother, a leader and a warrior woman who is resourceful, resilient and educated. I am motivated and determined to succeed no matter what obstacles I face. I am a star.
Ok, maybe you haven’t seen me on any of your favorite shows just yet, but it’s coming. In just the past year or so, I have been in four feature-length films, two short films, and I’ve completed a web series and a TV series. Go to YouTube and watch ‘The Boxx’ and you will see me playing Ashley. Yes, I’m telling you — I’m a star!
Too often, I lay awake at night stressing about how I am going to make ends meet for myself and my 12-year-old son, Calvin. Even though I have my degree from Chicago State University, and I run my own business, it is just not enough for a single mother.
