Milwaukee Bucks guard Jrue Holiday and his wife, Olympic gold medalist Lauren Holiday, on Thursday announced the recipients of their third $1 million round of grant funding to Black-led nonprofits and businesses.
Four Milwaukee-area organizations, including two businesses and two nonprofits, were among the 50 grantees selected by the Jrue & Lauren Holiday Social Impact Fund:
- Jet Constellations – Founded by Nadiyah Johnson, the software company provides STEM and startup programming to Black youth, tech professionals and Black-owned tech startups through its Milky Way Tech Hub initiative.
- Turning Tables Tavern & Eatery – Opening soon inside Turner Hall in downtown Milwaukee, this full-service restaurant will double as a training center for up-and-coming chefs and food entrepreneurs. Behind the concept is Emerald Mills, founder of Diverse Dining, which puts on dinner events and corporate trainings aimed at fostering diversity and inclusion.
- Metcalfe Park Community Bridges Inc. – Aims to improve Milwaukee’s Metcalfe Park neighborhood with programs around safety, connectedness, cultural vibrance, civic engagement, educational and economic opportunities, and health and wellness.
- Re-Imagine Education Inc. – Led by Isiah King, its mission is to attract, retain, and elevate educators of color, and create a culture of inclusivity through mentorship, accountability and partnership.
This latest funding round is a continuation of Jrue’s pledge to dedicate $5.3 million of his 2019-20 season salary to establish the JLH Fund to assist marginalized and underrepresented communities with the funding, mentorship and resources. In addition to Milwaukee, most of the 2022 grant recipients are based in Indianapolis, Los Angeles and New Orleans.
The Holidays awarded their first two rounds of funding in 2020 and 2021. Previous Milwaukee-area grant recipients include PumpFive Fuel Delivery Service, Embody Yoga, Flora Fruit Co., HouseCall WI, ROCS Software, Sacha’s Veggie Life and Soul Brew Kombucha, Adullam Outreach, African American RoundTable, Black Space, Future Urban Leadership Foundation, STRYV365 and Urban Underground.
“We are so excited to announce our third round of grant funding to these very deserving Black-owned businesses and nonprofits, who are helping their communities thrive. Every year we grow our extended JLH family with the hope of shining a light on the need, but also to be an example of how real change occurs when you invest directly in the communities and the people who are underserved,” said Jrue and Lauren Holiday in a statement.
