From the moment seven years ago that Thrive Mahoning Valley started supporting people from Puerto Rico who had been displaced by Hurricanes Maria and Irma, the work Thrive has done has had a primary guiding principle.
Even as the organization expanded its mission, moved into its own office, added staff and built new programs and services, the core tenet has remain unchanged.
“I’ve grown to know that the organizations that have most success in the community are the ones that are collaborating, that are putting their mission out there, that are exploring new ways to work together,” says Thrive’s Executive Director and Co-Founder Chris Colón. “I knew we’d never be able to do this alone. We don’t have the expertise. We haven’t been around very long. The only way to connect to the people who truly need what we offer is to connect with people who do have that knowledge and resources and connections.”
As the need for helping people displaced by the hurricanes waned and the Valley began emerging from the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Colón and fellow co-founder Justin Mondok decided to expand the mission of Thrive Mahoning Valley. That expansion built on the tenets of a national organization Thrive has worked with for years: Welcoming America, who supports communities nationwide in developing frameworks to ensure residents feel safe and welcomed in the places they call home, with a particular focus on immigrants and newcomers.
“Our work since Day One has been to expand that focus to welcoming anybody into our community, whether that’s returning citizens, international students, immigrants, retirees or people who come here because of the cost of living,” Colón says. “Whatever reason someone has to come here, we want to make our community attractive to them.”
And since the start of 2023, Thrive has expanded its services to include efforts like the Newcomers Network, providing free bikes, Sounding Board meetings that give nonprofit workers a chance to network and share their organization’s work, and the Cultural Connections events. It’s also been a key organizer of the Welcoming Week, HolaFest Youngstown and Cinco de Mayo Youngstown cultural celebrations.
The through line of all that work is building a community where everyone is valued and understands who their neighbors are. In a world that’s so often focused on our individual actions and differences are more often emphasized than similarities, building those personal connections is a key part of transforming the Valley, explains Justin Mondok, who now serves as Board President.
“We’ve pushed as a society to a place where people are isolated – through no fault of their own – and that’s hard. It puts people in situations where there’s no support network and they have no one to go to when they need some stability,” he says. “If we can start to … have truthful, heartfelt conversations that build community back, that’s the importance of this work. We have to talk to each other and trust each other. From there, we can talk about what we need and figure out where help can come from.”
Thrive is also part of a local coalition that’s set out to attract more people to call the Mahoning Valley home. The Population and Talent Expansion group, which includes large economic development organizations like the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber and Eastgate Regional Council of Governments and grassroots nonprofits like Thrive, has identified three focus areas to increase the area’s population: retaining people who live here, bringing back people who’ve left the area, and welcoming immigrants.
“It’s in our name – Thrive. How do we uplift and include people who have felt excluded from opportunity and systems? How do we make sure the people here are seen and heard and valued in our community?” says Vicki Vicars, Vice President of Operations. “Positive changes in the Valley are going to uplift everybody. It won’t just be newcomers seeing the impact.”
Such work, notes Community Foundation President Casey Krell, is vital to not only our work but to creating long-term change for all residents of Mahoning and Trumbull Counties.
“Welcoming is a commitment to embracing new neighbors and working alongside one another to create a place where all can thrive and belong. If we work together as a community, we can invite fresh ideas, cultural richness and economic growth that will build a better future for both new and long-time residents of the Mahoning Valley,” she says.
That alignment between the Community Foundation and Thrive Mahoning Valley has led to close work between the organizations, as well as support beyond grant funding. The Bikes For Newcomers program – one of Thrive’s first broad community offerings – grew out of discussions and planning with the Healthy Community Partnership’s Active Transportation action team, for example. In 2023, the Foundation, Thrive and other partners collaborated on the Building A Better Table civic education program. CFMV has taken part in Thrive’s Sounding Board and Newcomers Network meetings and, last summer, leaders from the two organizations traveled to Dallas to take part in Welcoming America’s annual conference.
“It makes it feel like someone’s on our team, cheering us on but also working with us in the community. It’s empowering because there’s the same focus on collaboration,” says Ariana Wyndham, Thrive’s Outreach and Resources Coordinator. “That’s one of the biggest shifts around community efforts that I’ve seen. People are coming together to be The Avengers instead of trying to be Superman. We can all work together and be our own kind of superhero.”
As the Community Foundation expands its work beyond grantmaking, supporting organizations like Thrive – who focus on collaboration, identify unmet needs and respond to the communities they serve – lays a foundation for large-scale community change.
“We want our area to be a place where people are safe, seen, heard and hopeful. It will take all of us coming together to co-create the conditions for this concept to blossom into reality,” says Sarah Lowry, CFMV’s Senior Director of Community Impact. “The Community Foundation is committed to cultivating the soil, so to speak, and supporting organizations like Thrive Mahoning Valley who are planting the seeds of change to make the Mahoning Valley a more welcoming, inclusive, and prosperous region for every resident.”
Pictured: Thrive Mahoning Valley and Community Foundation staff attended the 2024 Welcoming America conference in Dallas.