Starbucks Alumni Spotlight: the Impact of Neighborhood Grants

It all starts with coffee.

Since 2019, The Starbucks Foundation has awarded more than 10,000 Neighborhood Grants equaling more than $15 million to nonprofits nominated by partners- investing in local grassroots organizations to uplift communities throughout the U.S. and Canada.

Starbucks understands that the commitment to uplifting our communities goes beyond the days of wearing a green apron. A core value while you are a partner, making community impact continues for thousands of Starbucks alumni.??

Over the past year, The Starbucks Foundation has awarded 233 neighborhood grants in 143 cities, totaling $254,000 to nonprofits nominated by alumni.

This ongoing commitment to improve communities through alumni nominated Neighborhood Grant recipients ?is having a huge impact. Just ask Lesley Fratto, a former store manager, and 10-year partner, from Connecticut.?

“When I was a store partner, community connections often began with local nonprofits needing some coffee,”

she explains. Fortunately for Lesley, she, her former team, and neighboring store partners, it easy to “say yes” to local nonprofit organizations requesting coffee.

She understands the power and impact of bringing local partners together. Lesley and her neighboring stores were close to Sandy Hook Elementary School when the shooting occurred December 2012. “At the time, Zeta Smith was our regional vice president, and she did an amazing job bringing all our traumatized partners together, offering grief counseling, giving support, and making personal calls.”

Now, Lesley is the Events & Partnership Program Manager for Girls Educational and Mentoring Services, (GEMS) in Harlem, New York.

GEMS works with 100-300 women, aged 12-29 years-old, who have survived commercial sexual exploitation or human trafficking. They offer these young women much needed counseling, education, housing, financial readiness, and so much more.

“A grant like this offers us the freedom to get the things we can’t procure as donations from companies. Right now, that’s hair care for women of color. It may seem like a small thing, but it offers essential hygiene and little dignity to our clients,” Lesley shares.

Deidre Clark, a six-year partner and former store manager, including the local community store, from Birmingham, Alabama, also benefitted from being able to nominate a Neighborhood Grant as an alum.

During college, Deidre had a personal awakening studying African American Studies at University of Alabama, not far from the infamous steps where Vivien Malone and James Hood were photographed after the federal district ordered the college to admit African American students in 1963.

?Her church helped mold Deidre’s commitment to community service and putting humanity first. Working at Starbucks community store fulfilled her passion to connect with, and empower, her community.?

Then suddenly, after 10 years together and raising two young boys, Deidre’s partner died, changing their lives forever. With Deidre’s eldest needing more time with her, she was forced to leave Starbucks.

“After my partner died, I just needed to put my hands in the dirt.

And the founders of Fountain Heights Farms offered me just that. They knew I was a grieving human that found getting my hands and feet in the dirt incredibly therapeutic and soothing. They made the much-needed space for me in my early days of grief.

Eventually, my whole family loved being at the farm, connecting with our community, hands in the dirt, supplementing our groceries by growing lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers. The lettuce grew great, and the tomatoes were awesome. The cucumbers, well, they never grew,” she admits.

Now, Deidre is helping non-profit leaders thrive as the Director of Membership & Community Engagement at the Alabama Association of Nonprofits.

The Neighborhood Grant Fountain Heights Farms received through Deidre’s nomination will help their organization continue to provide space to grieve and fresh veggies to its community.

You can learn more about how The Starbucks Foundation is strengthening communities through Neighborhood Grants here.

Have an alumni community impact story? Tell us about it in the comments.