After four years working at the United Way of Metro Chicago, Rachel Hoge joined BUILD Inc., as the director of development & marketing.
A Chicago-based nonprofit, BUILD ( Broader Urban Involvement & Leadership Development ) strives to engage at-risk youth in the schools and on the streets to realize their educational and career potential and contribute to the stability, safety and well-being of communities—done through programming that focuses on gang violence prevention/intervention and youth development, she said.
BUILD focuses on the West Side of Chicago, specifically, the neighborhoods of Austin, Logan Square, Humboldt Park and East Garfield Park.
"We hold after-school programs, work with kids during the school day, engage with youth at the juvenile detention center, and also do street intervention," said Hoge, who noted that BUILD was a recent recipient of the Mayor's Public Safety Action Committee grant.
"In my role, I am responsible for raising money and awareness for the organization. I do this by working with all of our partners—corporations, foundations, community groups, media partners, individual donors, etc.—connecting them to the youth that BUILD serves and help them better understand the work that we are doing. With increased funding and enhanced community involvement, BUILD is able to impact more kids through its programming and keep them off the streets and on the right track."
Hoge lives in Logan Square and is openly bisexual. She also is the volunteer director of the executive board for the New Leaders Council Chicago.
"At BUILD, I want to continue to grow the support that we have," she said. "It is so important, especially with everything going on with violence in Chicago right now, that people know about organizations like BUILD and know how they can do their part to help stop violence. We are always looking for positive role models for these youth to come and volunteer. Professionally, I want to grow in the nonprofit sector within the development and marketing area, and it's important to me that I continue to work for organizations that help low-income or at-risk communities. Eventually, I plan to run for office to continue serving people and making change at the legislative level."
Hoge witnessed her first peace circle in September, which is a practice in restorative justice, she said, that is used for individuals to resolve conflict or check-in with one another. "I heard from several young men who had been previously affiliated with gangs talking about their experiences prior to coming to BUILD. They each had their own personal story dealing with family issues, gang involvement, and they each shared how BUILD provided them opportunity and positive role models," she said. "One young man described BUILD as a place of peace. It is really rewarding to know that my job directly impacts young people like this and allows for them to stay on track and plan a more positive future."
Hoge said BUILD serves all youth, but does not have a specific program for LGBT. "If there was a young person identifying as LGBT who was dealing with mental health issues or experiencing bullying, BUILD would definitely be a place to offer support," she said.
"This violence is not going to go away tomorrow. And there are so many other factors that also play a role in the issue of violence, [such as] unemployment, generational poverty, [and] lack of resources. So, I would say it's challenging to know that you won't solve the problem, but it's important to focus on the fact that you can make such a big difference for many kids. To know that helping even one kid change their life is huge."
The New Leaders Council is a national nonprofit that recruits, trains, and promotes the next generation of progressive leaders, Hoge said. "Progressive to us means people believing in social justice, equality for everyone regardless of background or situation," she said. "In my role, I oversee and work with our entire board of directors to manage all the happenings of our chapter: putting on a five-month long leadership training for our fellows, engaging our growing community of alumni, [and] raising money for the national progressive movement."
Hoge was a 2012 Fellow, so she participated in the five-month long training program. She then joined the board.
"NLC as an organization is very inclusive. We value the diversity of our fellow classes. It is extremely important that the LGBT community is reflected in each class of fellows. On a larger scale, fellows [who] identify as LGBT will grow both their skills and network which ultimately will help the LGBT community in terms of organizing and effecting positive change."
Hoge said working in nonprofits is "extremely rewarding" and she "can't imagine my life being any other way."
"Every day is different and you get to meet so many new people, all who have similar interests in making a difference in the world, in some way. I truly feel lucky to be able to do what I do every day," she said.
