TrueWorks

Calling all founders! We're still taking applicants to our Praxis Redemptive Labs for both non-profits and for-profit ventures. Meet with experienced mentors and learn alongside values-minded leaders in a retreat setting in the Texas countryside! Learn more about our labs by visiting our website: https://lnkd.in/g58zGWfW Applications close 5PM CST this Friday, March 7. Non-Profit Application Link: https://lnkd.in/gtkZRums For-Profit Application Link: https://lnkd.in/gNHrM57h

Building a venture can be a great joy when you're not alone. If you're a founder of an early-stage for-profit or non-profit organization, join us for our spring Redemptive Labs, designed by Praxis, on March 21-23. Lab participants meet one-on-one with seasoned mentors, meet other talented founders, and share their vision all while in a retreat-style setting. Applications for our labs are open now! Apply here: https://lnkd.in/g58zGWfW

When you lean into your values, your capacity for uncommon risk grows, and so does your capacity for impact. If you want to align your investment strategies with your values, tune in to Faith Driven Investor's annual investor conference, with TrueWorks serving as the local watch party host. We'd love for you to join us at The Ion next Friday from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m.! Register for the event here: https://lnkd.in/gMUVuyu6

This makes my heart so happy! From a TrueWorks non profit business lab to a beautiful partnership between two entities that are doing amazing things for the youth of Houston. Congrats Jaciel, Amanda, Marvin… For the good of the city indeed!

At TrueWorks, we’re taking the summer months to reflect, dream, and grow. As we joyfully celebrate our second anniversary, we are thrilled to share the exciting journey that lies ahead. Change is inevitable, especially for a young organization like ours, but thanks to our dedicated and passionate team, we have laid a strong foundation for our future. We are delighted to announce that Co-Founder Kate Thomas will now be leading us as Interim Executive Director. With her extensive background in business and nonprofit leadership, coupled with her integral work in building and growing TrueWorks since 2021, Kate is not only highly qualified but also deeply passionate about our mission. Her dedication and vision make her the right fit to steer TrueWorks into our next phase. We are confident that under Kate’s leadership, our organization will continue to thrive and make a meaningful impact. Doug Meikle continues as Board Chair and Rachel Quan continues to support the work of TW as its newest board member. And, this summer, we’ve been growing the TW Team that Kate will be leading, specifically in the Ventures space. Read all the details here: https://lnkd.in/gawgHGBw

This Fall, we are inviting Houston non-profit leaders and founders as well as founders of early-stage businesses or start-ups to deepen their imagination and accelerate their practice of redemptive entrepreneurship. Join us for a weekend of learning and connecting with the TrueWorks team, mentors in the non profit and business realms, and other leaders and entrepreneurs who know what it’s like to try and find the redemptive path in an ever-changing landscape. Developed by our friends Praxis and taught by the TrueWorks team, this weekend has been developed just for you. For more information and to apply, click here: https://lnkd.in/gGBDunyK

A recent New Yorker article entitled: WORK SUCKS. WHAT COULD SALVAGE IT? takes a look at new books that examine the place of work in our lives—and how people throughout history have tried to change it. In the article, Elizabeth Anderson, philosopher at the University of Michigan notes that the idea that the good life occurs mostly outside the workplace has a long history, including among figures who were sympathetic in other ways to work-ethic thinking. “Advocates of the progressive work ethic…always look beyond the work ethic to a broader vision of life…” And here is exactly where H-town Fellows comes in. What exactly is a Christian’s broader vision of life? And how does that connect with our work? Does our work mean anything at all in the larger story? Does it truly matter? Or is it merely a means to an end? Is it just a way to make a living and then give our money to work that we perceive as more valuable? Your theology of work is important. And H-town Fellows is here to help you uncover what that is. Take a very personal journey to discovering why your work matters a great deal. The course is challenging, thought-provoking, and as many past Fellows would tell you - Life and Work Changing. Apply today! We are offering two different options at two different locations and times. For more info go to: https://lnkd.in/gm9JETbs

Over the past two years at TrueWorks, we’ve focused a lot on our anchor programs. We’ve ensured they are taught well and that they are executed with excellence. Somewhere along the way, we saw something beautiful happen that wasn’t all about our teaching or coaching. We saw what happens when we merely GATHER people. We saw true CONNECTION with others who at one point might have felt lonely on their journey in integrating their faith and work, and suddenly are in community with someone who very much understands how it feels to be on the same journey. We saw COLLABORATION born of those connections. Suddenly, people who didn’t know one another were working on projects together, or offering advice, or mentoring others in the space. Here’s how Rachel Quan describes getting to see what happens when we gather people in the TrueWorks space. Come GATHER with us soon! We’d love to see you!

Please help us in welcoming Cynthia Stielow as our newest TrueWorks Board Member! Cynthia has a remarkable track record in strategic fundraising and communications. She was formerly the Chief Development & Communications Officer at Kids Meals, Inc., here in Houston and played a pivotal role in driving organizational growth and mission buy-in. Under her leadership, Kids Meals, Inc. experienced remarkable expansion, raising $32 million in operating funds and delivering over 11 million meals to hungry children in Houston’s most poverty-stricken neighborhoods. Her dedication and strategic vision led to a 258% increase in the organizational budget, along with spearheading a $31 million capital campaign for a groundbreaking facility. This past Spring, Cynthia took on a new assignment as the Chief Advancement Officer for the Heritage Foundation of Williamson County in Franklin, TN where she continues overseeing exceptional fundraising efforts, brand strategy, communications, and social media management. We’re excited to have Cynthia as a part of our Board! Welcome!

It was our Quarterly Houston Redemptive Business Lab cohorts meet up this morning! We enjoyed coffee at Bitty & Beau’s in Rice Village - whose mission is close to our heart. Next week we’ll be sharing about what TrueWorks Gathers is and why it is at the core of all we do. These amazing people have become a support network for one another in the Houston business and non profit space and every time we get together, we are so deeply grateful for the privilege of getting to be a small part of the myriad of stories in this city. In that vein - if you’re looking for a Third Place for getting work done, having meetings and drinking great coffee, Bitty & Beau’s is the place to do it! Stop on by and find out all about what makes this place incredibly special and important to the Houston ecosystem.