’Tis the season for giving, and thankfully we live in a community known for its generosity. According to SHARE Charlotte, which connects nonprofits with neighbors eager to help, the Queen City is home to more than 500 nonprofits. And just about every one of them will tell you the pandemic made their work more important than ever before. So whether you want to help kids, artists, or people fighting cancer or poverty, there is an organization that can use your time, skills, knowledge, donations or financial assistance. This is not an all-encompassing list, just a highlight reel of 25 nonprofits working hard to make a difference in Charlotte.

by Michelle Boudin

ArtPop Street Gallery 

ArtPop connects artists with the community by promoting their work on billboards, newsstands and murals across the city. ArtPop also helps artists learn how to make a living at their craft. The organization’s newest initiative, Inspiration Projects, pairs artists with businesses and individuals for paid assignments. artpopstreetgallery.com

The Arts Empowerment Project 

Students with little or no arts education are five times more likely to drop out of high school, so the Arts Empowerment Project uses art as a way to help improve that statistic and combat childhood trauma. Its programs combine art instruction with life skills training and the exploration of racial and social justice initiatives through art. theartsempowermentproject.org

Augustine Literacy Project 

The Augustine Literacy project provides free one-one-one tutors to young readers with the goal of improving their reading, writing and spelling skills. These trained volunteer tutors work with first, second and third grade students in Title 1 schools throughout the Charlotte area. alpcharlotte.org

Camino Community Center

This bilingual and multicultural health center provides affordable integrated care to underinsured and uninsured people. The center focuses on four service areas: primary care, behavioral health, health and wellness, and food security through a food pantry that served more than 23,000 people in 2020. caminohealthcenter.com

City Startup Labs

Henry Rock created City Startup Labs as an accelerator and incubator to provide training, mentoring and coaching for young men of color to become viable entrepreneurs. citystartuplabs.com

Common Wealth Charlotte

Common Wealth Charlotte offers financial education and counseling and access to banking for low-income wage earners, helping them achieve financial independence. The organization also provides opportunity loans and access to credit, allowing clients with low credit scores to refinance predatory loans, make deposits for rental housing and manage other financial emergencies.  commonwealthcharlotte.org

Do Greater Charlotte

At its workspace in west Charlotte, in its mobile lab and through its online offerings, Do Greater Charlotte’s programs provide tools and technology for underprivileged children. Do Greater Charlotte’s young clients can learn to code, create music videos, learn about entrepreneurship and more. dogreater.org

Dottie Rose 

Through coding and innovation camps and workshops for girls, Dottie Rose Foundation provides hands-on experiential learning while working to close the gender gap for females in the fields of technology and computer science. dottierosefoundation.org

EmpowHERment

Developing young female leaders is the goal of EmpowHERment. The organization works to empower girls in grades 6-12 through connecting them with women mentors in the community, talent development and advocacy.  empowherment.com

Foundation for Girls 

Sisters Shreya and Sahana Mantha created the Foundation For Girls in 2014 when they were middle-school students at Providence Day School. FFG works to provide single moms and their children experiencing homelessness with resources, relationships and guidance to prepare them for independence and financial resilience. foundationforgirls.org

Girls Rock Charlotte

Girls Rock Charlotte works to amplify voices of girls, women, and gender-diverse youth and adults, empowering them to stand up for themselves and for each other through music and film education. GRC runs summer camps and programs throughout the school year, working with local musicians, filmmakers and artists while supporting diversity on the stage, behind the camera and in the community. girlsrockclt.org

Go Jen Go 

The Go Jen Go Foundation provides financial assistance to local individuals battling breast cancer and their families during diagnosis, treatment and recovery. Founded by Jen Pagani before she died from breast cancer in 2014, the foundation pays for the things insurance doesn’t, such as rent and car payments, meals, even holiday gifts for kids. gojengo.org

Green Box Solutions

When founder Erin Welborn was a child, her mother kept all of the important documents in the house in a “Green Box,” so that if anything ever happened to her, everything her daughter needed would be in the box. Green Box Solutions works to make aging easier for everyone through classes and events on topics such as senior safety, organizing important documents, and how to communicate with your medical provider. greenboxsolutions.org

Hands For Holly 

Hands for Holly helps families overcome the financial burden of cancer. Holly Wade was about to turn 14 when she was diagnosed with a brain tumor. She spent the last year of her life fighting cancer and working with her mom, Christine Wade, to create this charity. Hands For Holly guides families through the cancer journey and pays essential expenses, allowing the families to focus on accessing care, getting well and being at their child’s side when they are needed the most. handsforholly.org

Hope Haven

Hope Haven provides recovery programs for individuals and families impacted by substance use so they can build healthy, independent lives. hopehaveninc.org

Humane Society of Charlotte

In March, the the Humane Society of Charlotte finally broke ground on what will be their new home — a state-of-the-art animal resource center. The no-kill shelter has spent the last few years raising most of the $15 million it needed for the 26,000-square-foot space that is expected to be completed next spring. The new facility will have indoor climate-controlled kennels, expanded veterinary services and even a cat cafe. humanesocietyofcharlotte.org

Learning Help Centers of Charlotte

Since July 2012, Learning Help Centers of Charlotte has served impoverished families through weekly tutoring sessions, summer camps for children, and family enrichment events. The program’s goal is to keep marginalized children in school so that they can break the cycle of generational poverty. lhcclt.org

ourBRIDGE for Kids 

ourBRIDGE for Kids runs after-school and summer programs for refugee and immigrant children and their families as they adjust to their new homes in the United States. The programs are based on their four core values of LERD:  Love, Education, Respect and Diversity. joinourbridge.org

Prospera 

Prospera supports Hispanic entrepreneurs through business seminars, consulting, grants and access to capital. Prospera also connects participants with a network of corporate sponsors and financial institutions that have a desire to support small and minority-owned businesses. prosperausa.org

Rebuilding Together of Greater Charlotte 

Rebuilding Together of Greater Charlotte mobilizes community volunteers and contractors to provide repairs that make homes safer and healthier. The group also partners with other local organizations to connect communities with additional resources to help create more vibrant neighborhoods.​ The organization recently launched SHE BUILDS, a women-led program providing critical repairs for women-headed households and women-focused community spaces. rebuildingtogetherclt.org

Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina 

During the 16 months of the heart of the pandemic, Second Harvest Food Bank distributed more than 110 million pounds of food and household goods to people in the Charlotte region. The food bank is celebrating 40 years of feeding the Carolinas and doing some of their most important work ever, as hunger is at an all-time high. The agency is always in need of food, donations and volunteers. secondharvestmetrolina.org

Soccer FC

Soccer FC brings the game of soccer to kids who might not otherwise have the chance to play. With programs at 10 Title 1 schools in Charlotte, Soccer FC gives these kids an opportunity to be part of a team, wear their own jersey and have a coach/mentor of their own. soccerfc.org

SouthEnd Arts

SouthEnd Arts’ mission is threefold: the organization works to raise community consciousness about local history, culture, opportunity and heritage; it helps emerging artists professionalize their portfolios; and it highlights these local artists through gallery shows and on digital platforms. southendarts.net

Sustain Charlotte 

From new bike lanes to helping define the city’s official Streets map, Sustain Charlotte advocates for smart growth when it comes to development and transportation in neighborhoods throughout the city. The group focuses on educating the community about sustainability, increasing public engagement and bringing businesses, nonprofits and public agencies together to talk about these regional issues. sustaincharlotte.org

Time Out Youth 

Time Out Youth supports lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) youth ages 11-20. At its center on Monroe Road, the organization provides a safe space for discussion groups, social activities and more. timeoutyouth.org

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