Outstanding Young Adult Philanthropist – This category recognizes service by an outstanding individual (19-40 years old), youth group our youth-generated project that has demonstrated extraordinary commitment to the community through direct financial support, development of charitable programs, volunteering, and/or leadership.
Demetrius Williams
To Demetrius Williams, Giving Black means exposure; bigger aspirations. "I have to help my kids to overcome many obstacles," he says. "As anyone achieves, they always bring someone along." Williams coaches wrestling at Central Catholic High School. For over ten years, he has stressed academic success, character building, and sportsmanship to his athletes. These students participate in his Junior Iron Man program, Certified by USA Wrestling, and they tour schools like Cleveland State University and Baldwin Wallace College. Williams has proven to them that wrestling can lead to scholarships, and to a new future.
Evelyn Burnett & Mordecai Cargill
Evelyn Burnett and Mordecai Cargill created the Third Space Action Lab as a space for making change. Motivated to change the conversation about foundation giving, the pair recognizes that philanthropy often begins as a way for individuals and corporations to wield power or seek forgiveness for controversial investments. The Lab helps Cleveland activists and foundations learn about policy, leadership, and how to ethically transform communities. Their philosophy for Giving Black is inspired by Robin D. G. Kelley's book, Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination, which, above all, is grounded in hope.
Christin Farmer
Christin Farmer's story is personal. Her own family's support during her pregnancy highlighted the need to address Cleveland's high infant mortality rate in the black community. In 2014 she founded Birthing Beautiful Communities (BBC). From doulas and mental healthcare to housing and transportation, BBC's grassroots group of birth workers have cared for over 600 families throughout and after pregnancy. Farmer plans to break ground on a birthing center in the Hough neighborhood. She Gives Black by working to create a new normal for young mothers, and she has a vision to make births better nationally.
