Growing and Leading with Purpose

The mission of Union Capital Boston is to transform social capital into opportunity by rewarding community engagement. Our vision is that community collaboration cultivates equity for all Bostonians.

Founded in 2014, Union Capital Boston is almost a decade old. We have moved through our start-up stages and overcome the exhausting challenges of the pandemic. Now in our ninth year, UCB has entered a new stage of growth and purpose.

This past year UCB embraced our new hybrid reality, launched our new leadership programs, and invested in the sustainability of our talented team. We refined our mobile rewards app, strengthened our community partnerships, and welcomed the invitation to pilot our model in Springfield, MA.

Most importantly, we continued to provide vast resources, host hundreds of community gatherings (both virtual and in-person again), build thousands of relationships, and award hundreds of thousands of dollars for our members taking actions that strengthen our community. These daily repeated actions serve as the foundation for creating social capital: the connecting of resources and relationships that build power and opportunity in our community.

Growing and Leading with Purpose

We invite you to read our Impact Report and review the gains our members are making, both quantitative and qualitative. Our members report measurable employment gains, improved finances, and higher voter participation. Our members also report immeasurable benefits for their mental health, self-worth, and sense of collective power.

We are grateful to our Core Team, our Network Coordinators, Board of Directors, Advisors, partner organizations, and countless members, allies, and supporters who bring our mission to life.

This past year our Board made an incredible investment in the sustainability of our team by creating a new Restorative Leave policy, providing for a 3-month paid sabbatical for all Core Team members with five years of service. Both our Lead Organizer and Director of Networks were able to take these 3-month leaves over the past year and return to work restored, with a renewed commitment to our mission. Along with demonstrating new ways to build power and opportunity in our community, UCB is proud to also demonstrate new ways to build sustainable nonprofit organizations.

As we enter into our tenth year, we look forward to continuing to grow and lead with purpose, both in Boston and beyond.

With deep gratitude for our collective community,

The UCB Core Team

Diana Garcia // Network Manager

Semhar Habtehans // Network Support Administrator

Shavonne Herrington // Director of Partnerships

Dennis Hicks // Director of Leadership

Eric Leslie // Founder/Lead Organizer

Jalina Suggs // Director of Networks