It's all about the people.
Speak Up Groups
Speak Up Groups are tiny communities of intentional friendships—a dozen people or fewer—organized around one person in need.Groups meet in person to share strengths, grow together, and foster radical movement.This isn't about experts, saviors, or solutions.It's just people. You. Me. Us. Together.
Writing Workshops
Writing Workshops are regular gatherings for anyone to write, share, and learn together.Held in public spaces and open to all, writing workshops build community, spark friendships, and foster understanding.
Our Shared Strengths
Speak Up Groups
Community, connection, and friendships anchor and accelerate us throughout our lives. The most successful and fruitful people often strike the balance between courageous independence and intimate community.When you have community, you feel it. In a good way.And when your community is thin and your friendships are shallow...well, you feel that too.A Speak Up Group offers instant community for someone facing homelessness, poverty, or crisis. It does so in a way that is positive, sustainable for everyone, and mutually empowering.
The objective isn't to give advice, fix people, or figure things out for them.It's far more personal: friendship, sharing life, and drawing out strengths.Being in a Speak Up Group is stretching, sharpening, and immensely rewarding.
Writing Workshops
Speak Up Writing Workshops are held in public spaces and open to all, writing workshops build community, spark friendships, and foster understanding.The format is simple:— A prompt is given
— Everyone writes
— Those who wish may read their piece aloudNo writing experience needed!Pens, notebooks, coffee, donuts are provided free for everyone. Stealing notebooks and pens is strongly encouraged!
Current Groups / Workshops
— 📓 Rock Hill Library Writing Workshop — Rock Hill, SC— 🌼 Blossom Group — Rock Hill, SC— ⭐️ Spotless Group — Charlotte, NC— The Next Group — Wherever You Are
Who is behind this?
This is a project of Speak Up, which gives a voice, creates opportunity, and builds community for people facing homelessness.
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It's all about the people.
Community, connection, and friendships form essential bonds that anchor and accelerate us throughout our lives.The most successful and fruitful people have often struck the balance between courageous independence and intimate community.When you have community, you feel it. In a good way.And when your community is thin and your friendships are shallow...well, you feel that too.What about homeless people?For more than ten years, Speak Up has offered a range of innovative opportunities to homeless people. A unique model. Many people impacted.When homeless people used the Speak Up opportunities to build community, that's then their lives really changed.We all need dollars in the bank. But the true wealth is people. Genuine friends. People who love unconditionally. People who give advice. Who take advice. People who share their best with you.This kind of connection doesn’t happen by accident.Especially when there are wide social gaps. Especially when we are distanced by layers of screens and apps. Especially and can't get out from under the stereotypes that cut both ways.So we need help to get there.--My Personal Board is a movement of tiny communities of intentional friendships, organized around one person in need—meeting in real life to share strengths, grow, and see radical movement.This isn't about experts, fixers, saviors, systems, solutions or problem solvers.It's people. You. Me. Them. Us. Together.Welcome!
Matt Shaw
Executive Director, Speak Up
[email protected]
From our strengths.
VALUES / PRACTICES- Sharing Community
- From Our StrengthsRemember when you were just getting started on a project and you reached out to your community or family members for advice? Maybe you were looking for financial support to kick off a new business, or you needed the counsel of an expert, so you networked your way to contacting them.My Personal Board focuses on everyone’s strengths.is all about: to connect people with one other to share skills, social capital, and life experiences.
a powerful community takes shape as we collectively move toward life-changing goals.
A model and a movement
We are developing a model that can scale, be replicated, and given away to others.Some practices we are aiming for—Work in Public
Sharing the journey. Be transparent about the process, the wins and the misses.Anticipate Multiplication
Recognizing the great need, we’re building a workflow, playbook, and resources that others can use.Empower Leaders
Given that each Personal Board and their beneficiaries will have unique needs and challenges that no system can anticipate, we prioritize supporting and resourcing potential leaders and facilitators.