We are excited to announce that the Miura Group Corporate Giving Circle has issued their first round of grants totaling $2,500! Each organization received $500. You can learn more about their great work below.

Austin Clubhouse: According to a 2021 article in the journal Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, two thirds of people with a severe mental illness (SMI) desire competitive employment (paid employment in the general labor market). Yet only one quarter of people with SMI have such employment. Austin Clubhouse’s Transitional Employment (TE) program is uniquely poised to address this issue in Central Texas by helping our members achieve their employment goals. We are grateful for funding from the Miura Group Corporate Giving Circle, which will be used to support our TE program. TE positions are generally 15-20 hours per week and 6-9 months in duration. Members work at the employer’s place of business and are paid the prevailing wage rate directly by the employer. This innovative program is designed for our most vulnerable members. Clubhouse staff provide ongoing on-the-job and offsite support to members during the employment period, including guaranteed shift coverage by staff in the event a member is unable to attend work due to their diagnosis or a current crisis. This unique benefit helps members retain their position so they can continue to grow and establish a successful work history. We have seen tremendous success through this program, with members feeling a sense of accomplishment and many positions converting to permanent placement.

Center for Biological Diversity: In this crucial moment, the Center for Biological Diversity is the lead organization fighting for justice for endangered species and wild places. Our work to save imperiled animals and plants and protect landscapes is fierce and unyielding. Our attorneys file more than a lawsuit per week, and we emerge successful in court 90% of the time. Our scientists, media experts and organizers work overtime to expose the corrupted influence wielded by corporate polluters over government regulators and build the public momentum needed to save the planet’s biodiversity.

Central Texas Food Bank: Funds will be used to help enhance the Food Bank’s existing food assistance programs and enable us to meet ongoing demand for our services in 2022. Hunger is a huge issue in Central Texas, made worse by the ongoing economic effects of the pandemic. While we have come down from the extreme numbers we saw during some of the pandemic’s peaks, there are still more food-insecure individuals in Central Texas now than there were pre-pandemic. This donation to the Central Texas Food Bank will provide 2,000 meals to those in need in the organization’s 21-county service area.

The Austin Zoo: The mission of Austin Zoo is to assist animals in need through rescue, conservation and education. At our rescue zoo, children and adults alike can appreciate our Hill Country setting and enjoy an up-close experience with our rescued animals. Austin Zoo is a private, non-profit zoo, with over 300 animals across 100 different species. We are able to take care of our animals through donations, ticket and gift store sales. All proceeds go to the care and feed of our many diverse animals. Our ongoing challenge is having or acquiring the necessary medical supplies and equipment in order to address emergency medical issues at our zoo. Your grant will ensure our ability to continue to take care of our animals in need.

The Trevor Project: Our research indicates that there are more than 1.8 million LGBTQ young people that seriously consider suicide each year in the US. Our goal is twofold: One – we want every LGBTQ young person to know that they can reach out to Trevor’s crisis intervention lines in their moment of crisis. Two – we will continue to increase our capacity to serve those LGBTQ young people who reach out to us in crisis as quickly as we can. We know that if a young person doesn’t hear from us within 5 minutes they may never reach out again, so our goal is to ensure that as we continue to serve more young people, each young person experiences a user-friendly, compassionate, and solutions based approach from every new crisis counselor that comes on board.

Next Steps:
a. Young people in crisis experience compassionate support and feel hope through every call, text, and chat

b. Equip our volunteer community with top-of-class training and inspire them to affirm LGBTQ young lives at all hours of the day

c. Embed emerging technology to handle an exponentially expanding volume of calls, chats, and texts