GreenLight Fund Boston

In observance of Juneteenth, GreenLight Fund Boston's offices are closed. We stand with communities nationwide in honoring this landmark day — one that celebrates Black freedom, joy, and enduring strength, while reminding us that the wounds of slavery and systemic racial injustice have left lasting inequities that we must continue to confront.

This day is both a celebration and a call to action. Juneteenth invites us to pause, to honor, and to renew our commitment to a future rooted in justice and equity. GreenLight Fund remains steadfast in our mission to dismantle barriers to opportunity and work alongside communities in pursuit of prosperity that truly includes everyone.

Happy Pride Month! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

Here at GreenLight Boston, we want to celebrate the leadership, courage, and generosity of the LGBTQIA+ community. We're proud to stand alongside the incredible partners and organizers who are striving to make Boston a more inclusive place for all.

If you weren't able to attend Saturday's Pride Parade, don't worry, there are plenty of other events happening throughout the month in celebration! Check them out here: https://www.meetboston.com/events/festivals-and-annual-events/boston-pride/

As we close out Mental Health Awareness Month, we want to celebrate the incredible work that Youth Guidance's BAM and WOW programs are doing to help support youth mental health, by creating school-based spaces built on trust, reflection, and consistent adult guidance.

Read more in our latest blog post: https://greenlightfund.org/infocus-mental-health-well-being/

Last week, GreenLight Boston's Executive Director, Zac Rich, helped facilitate Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)'s Leading with Impact Collaborative, pairing students from the Executive MBA program with leadership from 22 local non-profit organizations around Boston. Two of GreenLight Boston's portfolio organizations, The Fountain Fund and Youth Guidance Boston were invited to participate and strategize with students on solutions to the challenges that they're currently facing.

On Tuesday, GreenLight Boston's portfolio organizations, Per Scholas Greater Boston, Friends of the Children-Boston, PATH Advising Program - Boston University, and Youth Guidance Boston, participated in Bain Capital's community impact sessions.

During these sessions, organizations brought in problem statements and spent time in breakout rooms with Bain Capital Managers to discuss strategies and solutions to the challenges portfolio organizations are experiencing. Thank you to our partners at Bain Capital for this incredible opportunity and for helping to support nonprofits during these challenging times.

In a new article for Youth Today, GreenLight Fund CEO Ali Knight explores what it will take to ensure young people aging out of foster care are not left behind — and highlights the work of Youth Villages LifeSet right here in Boston as a model for what's possible.

LifeSet, a program of Youth Villages, pairs young people transitioning out of foster care with trained specialists who help them secure housing, continue their education, find stable employment, and build support networks. And it's working: in Boston, one year after leaving the program, 88% of participants were living independently or with family, and 91% were in school or employed — proof that when we invest in real relationships and real support, young people thrive.

Read more of Ali's reflections here: https://bit.ly/4dFzx6V

Congratulations to GreenLight Boston's 10th investment, CareMessage, who was named by TIME to the 2026 TIME100 Most Influential Companies list as the sole Impact in Equality Awardee.

CareMessage's work — reaching 22 million people across 45 states through text-message-based health education and care coordination — represents the kind of measurable, equity-focused impact our organization is built to support.

Read TIME's full tribute: https://msg.care/8GlHb

What does it look like to move from listening to action in philanthropy? In this piece by Ben Gose for The Chronicle of Philanthropy our model comes into focus as a way to translate community insight into action - supporting the spread of proven programs and driving locally rooted, scalable impact across its network of cities.

For GreenLight Fund, this process starts with communities themselves – local leaders identifying where gaps exist and what’s needed most. From there, the work is about finding solutions that have already demonstrated impact and partnering to bring them to where they’re needed with the support they need to take root and grow.

As shared by our CEO, Ali Knight, “We are in these cities to stay. We’re not going to bring some things and leave. We really intend to be a core part of the social fabric — the service fabric — of each city. And that’s a core tenet of place-based philanthropy.”

Read more here: https://www.philanthropy.com/news/lilly-gose-greenlight-0426/

April is Second Chance Month!

A big shoutout to GreenLight Boston's 15th investment, The Fountain Fund, which continues to provide lasting support to recently incarcerated individuals, by removing barriers for individuals to access low-interest loans and supporting them on the path to economic growth.

April is Second Chance Month, and we’re recognizing the work of The Fountain Fund in advancing economic mobility and removing barriers for individuals returning home from incarceration.

A GreenLight Fund Boston and GreenLight Fund Philadelphia portfolio organization, The Fountain Fund supports returning citizens with low-interest loans and financial coaching. These loans are often used to reinstate a driver’s license, secure employment, or access stable housing - tools that help build credit and open pathways to long-term opportunity. The organization’s goal is to help Client Partners access capital in ways that strengthen their financial stability and expand economic mobility.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/4jynn00