The Global Good Fund, a Columbia, Md.-based nonprofit that supports social entrepreneurs in more than 25 countries globally, hosted its annual gala on May 2, raising more than $300, 000 for social innovators.
The nonprofit, which was founded in 2012, operates as a virtual organization, serving its fellows remotely through a 12-month leadership program. The Global Good Fund presented its seventh cohort of fellows at its recent gala, which included 10 social entrepreneurs. The fund said in a press release that it has supported 105 fellows with over 18,000 hours of mentoring and coaching, while also providing financial investments.
The gala hosted at the Ritz Carlton in Tysons was packed with an evening of musical performances from The Musicianship’s Washington Youth Choir and pitches from the 2019 cohort of fellows. Among the more than 300 gala attendees, some notable guests include Ollen Douglass, managing director of Motley Fool Ventures, Richard Brown, VP of Philanthropy at American Express, Tamika Tremaglio, Greater Washington managing principal at Deloitte and more.
The more than $300,000 in funds were raised through gala ticket sales, a live auction and a silent auction, a rep of the organization told Technical.ly. The funds will go toward continuing the yearly fellowship program. The Global Good Fund is also providing leadership coaching and executive mentorship to 43 top applicants from the 2019 fellowship program who didn’t make it to the final round.
Here’s the seventh cohort of The Global Good Fund’s fellowship program:
- Eyitayo Ogunmola, founder and CEO of Utiva, a Nigeria-based social enterprise committed to helping college students and recent graduates develop the skills and competencies necessary to transition from school and into the workforce.
- Hitesh Tolani, founder and CEO Virtudent, a U.S.-based provider of mobile dental clinics and tele-dentistry services for employers that makes dental care more easily accessible to all.
- Hyasintha Ntuyeko, founder and CEO of Kasole Secrets Company Ltd., a company that produces and distributes bamboo-made sanitary napkins across Tanzania.
- Kevin Gibbons, cofounder and executive director of Health Access Connect, which links Ugandans in remote areas with healthcare resources through monthly outreach clinics, using micro-financed motorcycle taxis and community cost-sharing.
- Michelle Arevalo-Carpenter, cofounder and CEO of IMPAQTO, an Ecuador-based organization that provides social entrepreneurs in emerging cities in Latin America with community space, facilitates partnerships with local businesses and also serves as a business incubator.
- Neha Arora, founder of Planet Abled, an India-based organization which provides accessible travel solutions and leisure excursions for people with different disabilities.
- Rachel Connors, cofounder and co-owner of Yellow Leaf Hammocks, a Thailand-based social enterprise dedicated to defeating global poverty through sustainable artisan job creation.
- Tonee Ndungu, founder and CIO of Kytabu Inc., a textbook subscription app built to provide low-cost access to digitized versions of all Kenyan textbooks.
- Vaibhav Lodha, cofounder of FTCash: empowers India’s more than 60 million underserved micro-merchants by providing access to digital payments and loans solutions.
- Abbey Wimemo, cofounder of Esusu: a U.S.-based fintech company that helps individuals save, build credit and pave a permanent bridge to financial access and inclusion.
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