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Ac h ie ve

president's message

For nearly a century, Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana has been a force for individuals and families seeking a path to stability. Each day, we meet people who are navigating complex barriers and we know that meaningful progress begins when basic needs are met.

For example, without a reliable place to call home, even the smallest steps toward education, employment, health or long-term stability become overwhelming. That’s why housing has become a central theme in our work. Through our programs and partnerships, individuals experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity receive compassionate support, access to services and personalized coaching that helps them rebuild their foundation and reclaim their future.

Our Mission Coaches walk alongside each person, offering encouragement, accountability and connection. They help create a space where individuals can set goals, gain confidence and take real, tangible steps toward independence, whether that means securing housing, earning a credential or finding meaningful employment. When someone’s basic needs are met, their potential can truly take shape.

Your support makes this possible. Because of your generosity, Goodwill can continue meeting people where they are and providing the resources and guidance they need to stabilize, grow and thrive. You help ensure that more of our neighbors have the opportunity to build a safer home, a stronger family and a brighter future.

In this issue of Achieve, you’ll find stories that reflect the heart of our mission stories of resilience, progress and hope.

Thank you for being an essential part of this work.

Gratefully,

Kent A. Kramer President and CEO, Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana, Goodwill of Central Illinois, Goodwill de Puerto Rico President, Goodwill Foundation of Central & Southern Indiana

A New Chapter of Growth

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT: Prolex

Earlier this year, Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana welcomed two organizations into our growing Goodwill family: Goodwill of Central Illinois and Horizon House. These mergers strengthen our ability to meet community needs by aligning missions, combining expertise and expanding access to comprehensive services. Together, we will reach more of our neighbors and families with programs that support education, employment, housing and health. This unified approach allows us to serve more people and build stronger pathways to opportunity across our expanded footprint.

Compacting Solutions

Prolex Compacting Solutions is more than a vendor to Goodwill they are a true partner, combining a commitment to sustainability with meaningful philanthropic support. Since 2021, the company, founded in 2020 by brothers Alex and Ross Pflanzer and their father Randy, has provided waste and recycling management equipment and services to Goodwill. Beyond their services, Prolex has been a consistent sponsor of Goodwill: UNBOXED, contributing $13,000 to advance Goodwill’s mission programs. Partners like Prolex not only support these initiatives but also help drive real impact across the organization.

“Our partnership with Goodwill continues to generate meaningful returns not only for Prolex, but for our team whose hard work makes everything we do possible. The trust Goodwill places in us enables Prolex to continue our mission of reinvesting in our people, processes, and technology building partnerships that go beyond transactions.” – Alex Pflanzer, Prolex Compacting Solutions

Stories of

SU CCESS

Goodwill of Central and Southern Indiana supports over 10,000 people every day. Here are just a few of their stories.

MEET:

Jae Taylor Dim’Mya

Searching for resources and support during her first trimester, Jada “Jae” Stewart came across Goodwill Nurse-Family Partnership® (Goodwill NFP), a program that pairs registered nurses with first-time parents. Experiencing very severe morning sickness (hyperemesis gravidarum), Jae wanted to have another set of eyes to identify what was abnormal and ensure her pregnancy was progressing smoothly.

“What also appealed to me was that the nurse came to me and I didn’t have to travel,” said Jae.

However, after enrolling, Jae found that there were many more ways to benefit from the program beyond having extra support throughout her pregnancy. The Goodwill NFP Mental Health Team offered short-term therapy, which was incredibly useful during Jae’s pregnancy. She was heavily impacted by both pregnancy and postpartum depression and complex post-traumatic stress disorder, but with the help of the mental health team and her nurse, Jae found mental health resources and created a plan for further care.

“Looking forward to seeing my nurse and having someone to just talk to was really helpful,” said Jae.

Additionally, she found a new career through Goodwill NFP. She talked about her desire to become a doula with her nurse, and a community health worker through Goodwill NFP connected her to a scholarship that covered her training in full. Her nurse even wrote a letter of recommendation for the scholarship.

Advocating for Yourself and Your Community

With doula training under her belt, Jae runs her own business as The Triple E (Embrace, Envision and Empower) Doula, offering birth, postpartum, reproductive health, and sibling doula services to low-income parents. She was motivated to help others through their pregnancy because of her experiences advocating for her own health and finds great purpose in doing so.

“I want to do my part,” said Jae. “And if my part is helping people not go through what I went through and find enjoyment in their birth experience, then I feel like I did something right.”

Jae is avid about improving her credentials, education and training level for the benefit of her community. Currently, she’s working to obtain her community health worker certification and adding exercise classes to her business’s offerings. She also has ambitions that go beyond the scope of frontline doula work and into community development.

“I want to be more involved in the community on a larger scale,” said Jae. “I want to help families be able to identify their needs, wants, and have accessibility to them. I want to ask the questions: what's going to better our community and how are we going to do it?”

Looking back on her experience with Goodwill NFP, the biggest takeaway for Jae is her ability to speak up, be honest and advocate for herself.

“Just having a little vulnerability and being open to trusting someone to ask for help or even to have your feelings validated can go a long way,” said Jae. “It really does take a village, and that village is not only blood or friends, but people you meet along the path.”

Adults find second chances & bright futures at The Excel Center

When the COVID-19 pandemic forced the shutdown of public schools, Taylor Martin was only 10 credits away from graduating from high school; however, she struggled with the online learning format and was unable to finish. Now 23 years old, life hasn’t been easy.

“I went down a bad path,” she said. “I was later admitted to Fairbanks [a recovery center] where I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.”

Eager for a fresh start, Taylor set a goal to complete her high school education, and in August 2024, she enrolled at The Excel Center®, Goodwill’s tuition-free high school for adults. She was nervous at first and unsure of what to expect, but she instantly felt at home.

“Everyone was welcoming, but what really stood out to me was that all of the staff members knew my name out of all of the students, they remembered me,” Taylor recalled.

In September, shortly after enrolling, Taylor was arrested on charges related to events that occurred before attending The Excel Center. She was embarrassed and worried she’d be kicked out of school.

“No one at The Excel Center judged me though,” Taylor said. “Two of my teachers even offered to go to court and speak on my behalf. When I got out of jail, I was placed on house arrest, but my teachers worked with me to ensure I could continue my schooling.”

The Excel Center in southeast Indianapolis was developed in partnership with the City of Indianapolis and Mayor Hogsett, with funding specifically designated for students like Taylor who have justiceinvolved backgrounds.

In addition to accommodating her unique circumstances, the school assisted Taylor in other meaningful ways. Staff connected her with Second Helpings, where she is currently completing her court-

ordered community service, and referred her to a justice counselor.

“When I completed house arrest, The Excel Center staff celebrated with me,” Taylor said. “That’s when it really sunk in how much they care about me succeeding.”

In February 2025, Taylor graduated with her Indiana Core 40 high school diploma and a Certified Veterinary Assistant credential both earned at The Excel Center, and all at no cost to her.

“I was so excited to walk across the stage to get my diploma,” Taylor recalled. “It felt great.”

Once her community service hours are completed and her charges are dropped through a diversion program, Taylor plans to use her industry-recognized job certification to seek a job in the veterinary field.

“I recommend The Excel Center to anyone who is thinking about returning to high school,” she said.

Teen Mom of Twins

EARNS 21 st CENTURY SCHOLARSHIP

Dim’Mya Norman was going into her freshman year of high school when a family member and graduate of Indianapolis Metropolitan High School encouraged her to enroll.

“I chose Indy Met because it’s a small school, and that’s helpful for me because I’m a hands-on learner and thrive in that type of environment,” Dim’Mya said. “Everybody knows each other here.”

Indianapolis Met is a best-fit school for students experiencing circumstances that may create barriers to education. The school emphasizes helping students enroll in college or pursue a career that offers a living wage after graduation.

Some of the barriers students face include being behind on credits, involvement in child protective services or the criminal justice system, homelessness, or like in Dim’Mya's case pregnancy or parenting.

Dim’Mya was not yet a mother when she enrolled. She participated in volleyball, baseball, and REACH for Nature an after-school program that offers meaningful experiences in the outdoors. Her favorite subject was English.

But in 2023, she learned she was going to be a mother of twins. Soon, her favorite class became the Child Development elective. The class teaches students about the basics of child development. It also brings in volunteers each week to teach parenting lessons and provide supplies such as diapers, wipes, emergency kits, and other essential items.

“They gave us advice and told us things they wished they had known when they were pregnant with their first child,” Dim’Mya said. “They also provided me with items I didn’t even know I needed.”

As a single mother to two-year-old twins, Dim’Mya relies on Young Learners Child Care the school’s free, onsite child care for parenting students while she attends classes.

“The staff at Indy Met were helpful when I learned I was pregnant,” Dim’Mya said. “They referred me to organizations that would help me as a teen mom. My Family Empowerment Coach helped me find virtual colleges I could attend and programs I could do without a college degree.”

In addition to raising her children, Dim’Mya is on track to graduate early as she works to build a stable future for her family. She is also a 21st Century Scholar a program that will cover up to 100% of her college tuition. While she hasn’t yet decided which college to attend, her goal is to become a veterinarian.

“Indy Met is a great school, and I recommend it if you need extra support,” Dim’Mya said.

GOODWILL HOSTS

600+ VOLUNTEERS FOR LILLY’S GLOBAL DAY OF SERVICE

This fall, Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana was buzzing with energy as hundreds of volunteers from Eli Lilly and Company joined us for the annual Lilly Global Day of Service. Across 25 Goodwill locations including our retail stores, outlets, Horizon House and Indianapolis Metropolitan High School more than 600 Lilly volunteers spent the day giving back, learning about Goodwill’s mission and engaging directly with the people we serve.

YOUR SUPPORT IS CHANGING LIVES

Though there could only be one winning team, all teams helped the event surpass its fundraising and attendance goals.

Event attendees mingled, played games and participated in a silent auction.

Red and blue team members took the competition to pop-a-shot, just one of many games played at the event.

Thank you to our 2025 Sponsors!

Thanks to the support of generous sponsors like you, Goodwill: UNBOXED has raised more than $1.4 million since its inception. Your support of this event goes a long way and impacts our most vulnerable neighbors through education, employment, housing and health. Save the date — Goodwill: UNBOXED 2026 will take place on Thursday, September 17, 2026. Stay tuned for more details!

Presenting Sponsors

Title Sponsor

LEGACY CLUB COCKTAIL RECEPTION

This November, we hosted another successful Legacy Club Cocktail Reception in honor of our most generous supporters. Our Legacy Club members heard from Barbara Robinson Memorial Award winner, Adonis Moncrief, as he shared his story of determination and hard work. Your giving and support continues to shape opportunities for those we serve, educate, employ and house, like Adonis.

The Legacy Club is a group of our most generous supporters including the following groups:

• The Dustman Society, who have reached $50,000 in total giving

• The 1635 Society who have made gifts of $1,000 or more to the Annual Fund

• The GW Society who have made a deferred gift to Goodwill.