SOCIAL ENTERPRISE
GIFT GUIDE ft i G e h t Give y it n u t r o p of Op
American Made Opportunities
PRESENTED BY
Investing in Employment and Hope
ABOUT REDF Since 1997, REDF has led the pioneering effort to create jobs and employment opportunities for people facing the greatest barriers to work—people with histories of homelessness and incarceration, those struggling with addiction or mental health challenges, and young people disconnected from work or school. REDF believes that the opportunity to work should be available to everyone, everywhere. We know the power jobs can have in transforming lives and strengthening communities. REDF provides funding and expertise to social enterprises: mission-driven businesses focused on hiring and assisting people who are willing and able to work, but have the hardest time getting jobs. By earning and reinvesting revenue, social enterprises are able to provide more people with jobs that build skills enabling them to realize their full potential. Because of this work, 10,000 Californians who would otherwise be shut out of the labor market got jobs, and the 60 social enterprises REDF has supported earned more than $150 million in revenue. Now we are taking what we’ve learned to deepen our impact in California and build a national social enterprise movement, so that tens of thousands more men and women get jobs, keep jobs, advance up the career ladder, and bring their skills and talents to building a more inclusive society. CLICK ON THE IMAGES BELOW TO WATCH VIDEOS ABOUT HOW A JOB CAN TRANSFORM A LIFE. Katelyn’s Story
REDF is Taking Off!
Jobs Can Change Lives
Visit our website to learn more: www.redf.org
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DEAR FRIENDS, As winter comes and temperatures drop, we pull our coats out of the closet, turn up the thermostat at home, and look forward to holiday celebrations with our loved ones. During the holidays we also see far too many people out in the cold, both literally and figuratively. A big part of the problem is that men and women who are willing and able to work face formidable barriers to employment that leave them without the economic opportunities that others enjoy. The 2nd Annual REDF Gift Guide offers all of us a special chance to contribute to creating jobs so that people can bring their skills and talents to work, and come in from the cold this holiday season. The Gift Guide shines a light on the work of social enterprises located all around the country that produce beautiful, hand-made products and create American job opportunities for men and women who would otherwise be excluded from the workforce. These products offer us a better bargain than we can get anywhere else—a "two for one" purchase of a gift that is personally gratifying and, also directly and intentionally improves the lives of individuals, communities, and society at large. So shine a light this holiday season by purchasing gifts like beautifully designed and wrapped beeswax candles from the Homeless Garden Project in Santa Cruz and durable wood cutting boards from Boston HandyWorks in Massachusetts. Support women who are leaving the hardest of circumstances to go to work with the gift of beautiful jewelry from Rebel Nell in Detroit and well-made candles from Bright Endeavors in Chicago. Let another side of your personality out with the best meditation pillows from Infinitely Simple in Denver and cool artwork from Creativity Explored in San Francisco. With a wide variety of other gifts to choose from, shop for good, and get yourself and those you love something nice while you’re at it! Onward, Carla Javits REDF President and CEO @cjavitsredf
Give t he Gif t of… Creating Opportunity
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Empowering Women
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Building Skills
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Give t he Gif t of CREATING OPPORTUNITY
All items available to ship nationwide at www.greyston.com
Greyston Bakery doesn’t hire people to bake brownies—they bake brownies to hire people. Give the delicious gift of Greyston Bakery Brownies and you give the gift of opportunity, self-sufficiency, and success to a hardworking individual. Each holiday gift option was crafted to delight all on your holiday list. Choose all or one of your favorite flavors: Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Chocolate Mint Brownie, Snickerdoodle Blondie, and Brown Sugar Blondie. Make it extra special with delectable hot chocolate and caramel, a chocolate scented candle from our friends at Bright Endeavors, or a Bakers on a Mission t-shirt! Share the brownie love with discount code: REDF for an extra 15% off.
BEELOVE is a social enterprise with a triple bottom line mission. Social: Provide people facing significant barriers to employment— primarily those with histories of criminal convictions—with viable opportunities to establish a work history, learn productive work habits, and become productive members of society. Economic: Contribute to the economic revitalization of the North Lawndale neighborhood through a social enterprise that is sustainable for the long term and generates jobs. Product: Produce and sell highquality honey and honey-based personal care and relaxation products.
Since 1982, GREYSTON, the country’s leading social enterprise, has provided individuals in Southwest Yonkers, NY with employment, skills, and resources to lift them out of poverty. Greyston’s unique combination of Open Hiring at the world famous Greyston Bakery and PathMaking services offers a roadmap to assist individuals and families in visualizing and realizing their paths to self-sufficiency.
All items available to ship nationwide at www.sweetbeginningsllc.com
Beelove extracts honey from their urban apiary in the heart of the North Lawndale community in Chicago. They use their delicious, complex, raw honey to create high-quality skin care products such as lip balm, lotion, scrubs, and body wash. These products create opportunity, are good for the body, and help urban bees thrive.
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Give t he Gif t of CREATING OPPORTUNITY
All items available to ship nationwide at www.villagecookieshoppe.com
The award winning The Village Cookie Shoppe offers delicious cookie flavors such as Chocolate Chip, Cranberry White Chocolate, and Oatmeal Raisin as well as Dark Chocolate Brownies. Cookies are shipped the same day they are baked and use only natural ingredients without preservatives. Makes a great gift for friends, family, and clients.
HOMEBOY INDUSTRIES provides hope, training, and support to formerly gang-involved and previously incarcerated men and women, allowing them to redirect their lives and become contributing members of the community. For over 25 years, Homeboy Industries has been transforming the lives of formerly gang-involved and previously incarcerated individuals by imagining an inclusive circle of compassion, kinship, and mutuality where there is no “us and them,” just “us.”
THE VILLAGE COOKIE SHOPPE is a pretty extraordinary place. We’re owned and operated by Mental Health America of Los Angeles. MHA uses the Village Cookie Shoppe's revenue to help homeless adults and young people with disabilities get an education, a job, and a place to call home. We guess you could say we’re not your cookie cutter kind of shop.
All items available to ship nationwide at www.homeboyfoods.com and www.homeboyindustries.org/shop-homeboy
Homeboy Industries was the vanguard of the social enterprise movement. Their numerous social enterprises offer diverse branded products such as apparel, stylish bags, and useful office and home goods. Homeboy Foods offers delicious pastries, cakes, cookies, granola, and holiday gift packages. Or give “Tattoos on the Heart” by founder Father Greg Boyle, a collection of stories from Homeboy that will bring tears of sorrow and joy.
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Give t he Gif t of CREATING OPPORTUNITY
All items available to ship nationwide at www.homelessgardenproject.org
Homeless Garden Project grows and makes their products with care on their certified organic farm. Their Lavender Gift Box includes a lavender sachet, bath salts, a soy candle, perfume, and lavender mint lip balm. Or enjoy their Sample Box with hand-dipped beeswax candles decorated with dried flowers, lavender shortbread mix, and garden herb salt. Producing these items gives their employees valuable work experience and a sanctuary within the healing environment of an organic farm.
BOSTON HANDYWORKS is a social enterprise of Pine Street Inn, a Boston nonprofit organization whose mission is to end homelessness. At HandyWorks, we provide on-the-job training and transitional employment opportunities to individuals who have experienced homelessness and been estranged from the workforce. Trainees in our program engage in meaningful work as they move toward their goal of economic self-sufficiency.
The HOMELESS GARDEN PROJECT provides job training, transitional employment, and support services to people who are homeless. HGP’s vibrant education and volunteer program for the broad community blends formal, experiential, and service learning. The programs take place on our three-acre organic farm and related enterprises.
All items available to ship nationwide at www.bostonhandyworks.com
The woodworking experience is similar to the evolution of the clients at Boston HandyWorks. While they transform pieces of raw wood into beautiful, unique, top-quality cutting boards, they have the opportunity to acquire the skills and confidence to go from unemployed and homeless to employed graduates by the end of the program. The cutting boards are strong and durable in various sizes made of North American Maple and Cherry wood. All cutting boards are handcrafted in Boston with 100% of the proceeds from sales supporting job training.
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Give t he Gif t of CREATING OPPORTUNITY
The MILE HIGH WORKSHOP exists to meet needs in the lives of men and women who are disconnected from work and, by extension, dignity and purpose. The WorkShop specializes in woodworking, sewing, laser etching, assembly, and second chances. They create and support employment and job training opportunities for those facing barriers to work through the manufacturing and production of handmade goods.
All items available to ship nationwide at www.milehighworkshop.org/shop
The Mile High WorkShop specializes in woodworking, sewing, laser etching, assembly, and second chances. Coasters from Rocky Mountain Blue Stain “Beetle-Kill” Pine and laser etched tumblers are some of our most popular items. Contact us for larger custom orders.
Give t he Gif t of EMPOWERING WOMEN
All items available to ship nationwide at www.bamessentials.com
BAM Essentials creates high-quality, natural, and organic personal care products that are Good for Your Body, and Good for Everybody. BAM Essentials products include Lavender Deodorant, Geranium Cypress Facial Cleanser, Lavender Moisturizing Cream, and Grapefruit Sugar Scrub. Use code REDFBAM15 for 15% off your entire purchase through December 31, 2015!
The BAM ESSENTIALS mission is to create high-quality, natural, and organic personal care products by training young women with the work and life skills to succeed. Women 16–24 years old are trained in financial literacy, career exploration, job readiness, and mindfulness skills, while creating organic personal care products and learning small business operations.
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Give t he Gif t of EMPOWERING WOMEN
BRIGHT ENDEAVORS is a social enterprise that provides transformative workforce tools to young moms in Chicago who gain job skills by manufacturing and selling soy candles. Participating young moms take big first steps on their career paths by learning professional skills, making progress toward their financial goals, and transitioning into permanent jobs.
All items available to ship nationwide from www.brightendeavors.org
Light the way for young moms and their kids with premium soy candles and gift sets made by Bright Endeavors. Bright Endeavors’ candles and bath products are handmade by young moms using eco-friendly soy wax, phthalate-free fragrances, and Fair Trade soaking salts. All participating young moms learn transferable job skills and gain confidence by manufacturing Bright Endeavors products.
WOMEN’S BEAN PROJECT changes women’s lives by providing stepping stones to self-sufficiency through social enterprise. Women’s Bean Project strives to break the cycle of chronic unemployment and poverty by helping women discover their talents and develop skills by offering job readiness training opportunities. With this stepping stone toward success, the women will be able to support themselves and their families and create stronger role models for future generations.
“ Tamra Ryan and Women’s Bean Project are front and center in the fight against poverty and chronic unemployment. These are topics we should all be discussing and social problems we should be trying to solve.”
Since 2007, Bright Endeavors has provided a pathway out of poverty to hundreds of young moms in Chicago through handson job training in a supportive professional environment. Young moms learn to manufacture and sell premium soy candles, elevating themselves above their current circumstances and building strong economic opportunities for their futures.
All items available to ship nationwide at www.womensbeanproject.com
Women’s Bean Project makes handcrafted, limited edition jewelry and gourmet food items. The colorful and charming jewelry is made by hand in Denver. The diverse food offerings include bean soup, chili, cookies, brownies, corn bread, dips, mixes, and salsas and includes a large selection of gluten free items. The production of these items empowers clients with skills that allow women to move on to careers that support them and their families.
— John Hickenlooper, Governor of the State of Colorado
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Give t he Gif t of EMPOWERING WOMEN
To learn more about our products, visit www.thistlefarms.org
Thistle Farms creates natural bath and body products that are as good for the earth as they are for the body. Pamper yourself and your senses with fragrant lotions, bath salts, candles, room sprays, and body balms. Making these products helps women learn skills in manufacturing, packaging, marketing and sales, and administration.
MADE BY DWC is a social enterprise created by the Downtown Women’s Center (DWC) that breaks the cycles of chronic unemployment and homelessness by empowering women to discover talents and develop skills through vocational opportunities. Its products generate economic and social capital to support programs at DWC.
THISTLE FARMS is a social enterprise of women who have survived prostitution, trafficking, poverty, and addiction. The women earn income from making all natural bath and body products. Your purchase helps sustain the wellbeing of residents and graduates of our two-year residential program MAGDALENE as well as many individuals and communities throughout the world. Thistle Farms stands as witness that love is the most powerful force for change in the world.
Buying Thistle Farms products is an act of love. The products are made with the finest ingredients by artisans who nourish and heal their bodies and souls through their work.
To learn more about MADE by DWC, visit www.MADEbyDWC.org
handMADE is MADE by DWC’s line of unique products created locally by homeless and low-income women at the Downtown Women’s Center in Los Angeles’ Skid Row community. MADE by DWC’s one-of-a-kind gifts such as soap, candles, and journals are handmade using recycled and repurposed materials and with a commitment to connecting social profit to environmental sustainability.
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Give t he Gif t of EMPOWERING WOMEN
REBEL NELL creates defiant jewelry with a purpose. Our mission is to employ disadvantaged women in Detroit and educate them on financial management, life wellness, and business to empower them to successfully transition to an independent life.
All items available to ship nationwide at www.rebelnell.com
Rebel Nell turns scrap pieces of layered graffiti into beautiful works of wearable art such as necklaces, rings, and cufflinks. The graffiti, just like Detroit, might look a little rough on the surface, but is made up of beautiful layers—just like the layers of people, ideas, and history that make up the city.
Give t he Gif t of BUILDING SKILLS
Creativity Explored advances the value and diversity of artistic expression. We provide artists with developmental disabilities the means to create, exhibit, and sell their art in our studios, in our gallery, and around the world.
Over the past 32 years, Creativity Explored’s innovative and respected programs, structure, and culture have been recognized as a model in the field of art and disability worldwide.
All items available to ship nationwide at www.creativityexplored.org
Creativity Explored offers unique items from notebooks and apparel to orginal art pieces. Their purchase supports programs that provide people with developmental disabilities the opportunity to express themselves through the creation of art. A key focus of Creativity Explored’s services is to support those individuals with developmental disabilities who wish to become self-employed artists in creating and operating fully viable and profitable businesses.
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Give t he Gif t of BUILDING SKILLS
All items available to ship nationwide at www.heavendropt.org
HEAVENDROPt offers products such as pet bandanas, tri-braid bracelets, necklaces, and eyeglass holders made with strong, authentic, recycled military parachute material. These durable items make a great gift and show your support for the HEAVENDROPt cause.
CASEY’S COOKIES promotes independence and improves the quality of life for developmentally and physically disabled adults through training and employment. We aim to develop a residential community in the Tampa Bay area where Casey’s Cookies employees can live and work in a safe and nurturing environment.
HEAVENDROPT is a social enterprise that focuses on a triple bottom line. People: Provides competitive wage jobs for people with developmental/intellectual disabilities and veterans with disabilities. Planet: Obtains and recycles used military parachutes and turns them into unique products. Profit: The sale of HEAVENDROPt products gives back to individuals with developmental/intellectual disabilities and veterans with disabilities.
All items available to ship nationwide at www.caseyscookies.com
Why not give delicious gourmet cookies as a gift this year? Casey’s Cookies offers a variety of flavors such as Blueberry and White Chocolate, Vermont Maple, Quadruple Chocolate, Cinnamon Chip, and Cake Batter. The cookies are great by themselves, but the holiday themed gift boxes and wicker gift baskets are perfect for the holidays.
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Give t he Gif t of BUILDING SKILLS
All items available to ship nationwide at www.shop.thechocolatespectrum.com
This holiday season, give the gift that puts smiles not only on the faces of those that receive, but also those that give. The Chocolate Spectrum’s products are made by adults with developmental disabilities such as autism. When you purchase our products, you are also helping to support our training and employment program, which is so needed in our communities. Purchase our products before December 1 and receive 10% off by using coupon code: Early10.
INFINITELY SIMPLE’s mission is to provide job-driven training and real employment to those in recovery from mental health challenges in the creation of high quality, locally crafted products. The benefits of work and employment are proven to be a crucial component of recovery.
THE CHOCOLATE SPECTRUM’s purpose is to offer delicious chocolate confections while also helping individuals with developmental disabilities. We accomplish this in two ways: By providing individuals with developmental disabilities training and by providing employment opportunities in some circumstances. In addition to training, each participant has the opportunity to engage in meaningful and purposeful experiences with an emphasis on social interaction.
All items available to ship nationwide at www.infinitelysimple.org/shop
INFINITELY SIMPLE designs, manufactures and distributes a line of handmade products for the meditation and wellness market. We offer beautiful, well-crafted meditation cushions, versatile shoulder bags, supportive yoga bolsters, handpainted mirrors, and scented eye pillows.
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SOCIAL ENTERPRISE
GIFT GUIDE PRESENTED BY
Investing in Employment and Hope
www.redf.org
Design: Ceil Diskin Studio / ceildiskin.com