LIVES TRANSFORMED

Building a Business | Pam’s Story

An often-overlooked path out of poverty is entrepreneurship. Pam is a single mom in Greenville, South Carolina. She had big goals for her family, yet she struggled to meet them with her income from cleaning houses. Her friends at Circles USA helped her turn her expertise into a successful small business.

We currently have 76 communities involved in Circles USA. In the United States, our presence spans 23 states, 49 counties, and 20 cities with populations of 100,000. There are 16 Circles locations in Ontario, Canada.

Chapter Growth

10 New Chapters

Powder Springs, GA

Montclair, NJ

Cookeville, TN

North Conway, NH

Fort Wayne, IN

Hagerstown, MD

South Haven, MI

Hilton Head, SC

Riverton, WY

Hastings, NE

Participant Demographics

Ethnic Background

INCREASE IN INCOME

2022 Results

We looked at a random sample of results from 885 participants who journeyed from CIrcles registration . . . to completing a 12-week training . . . to completing 18 months of weekly Circles meetings. These participants showed:

62% increase in EMPLOYMENT (including 55% full-time and 7% part-time)

64% increase in EDUCATION (including 21% graduate degrees, 8% four-year degrees, and 35% certifications)

39%

Also by 18 months, participants—on average—achieve these gains: increase in HOME OWNERSHIP

30% increase in reliable TRANSPORTATION

Additionally, participants dramatically expand their support networks. At registration, participants struggled to name an emergency contact. At 18 months, participants could name more than four people to call on for support.