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Jack Griffin of FoodFinder

Profile Summary:

  • Entrepreneur Name: Jack Griffin
  • Venture Name: FoodFinder
  • Impact Focus Area(s): Food Insecurity
  • Business Stage (Ideation, Startup, Early, Later, Mature): Early
  • Year Venture Established: 2014
  • Business Type: Nonprofit

The Issue

Social entrepreneurship is about solving problems. Tell us about the challenge you are focused on addressing and why it is critical that we make progress.

“FoodFinder addresses the massive issue of childhood hunger in America and the information gap that exists between families looking for free food assistance and the providers of that assistance. Inaccurate information found online and the stigma surrounding poverty are the two greatest obstacles to learning about and receiving help from a food pantry or similar program. Despite how pervasive food insecurity is in the United States, very little has been done to modernize or streamline efforts to feed the 40 million people who are food insecure. This is especially true for the local pantries and shelters that are on the front lines of feeding those in need – not all of them have an online presence. While websites that compile information on these free food providers exist, they often include incomplete or outdated information that offers little value to a person looking for a place where they can receive food. We’re already at full employment in America, so if we want to move the needle on hunger, we’re going to need bigger and more innovative solutions so that families can always put food on the table.”

Your Journey

Entrepreneurship is a journey that requires connections and support from a wide array of stakeholders across the ecosystem to help successfully identify, start, and grow a social enterprise.

“Coalitions, partnerships, and collaborative efforts have propelled my work to where it is today. The education system is arguably our biggest ally since public schools house food insecure students, play a tremendous role in supporting those students through breakfast and free/reduced lunch, and are home to the first responders to hunger that FoodFinder also wants to reach. Community-building for FoodFinder can enable possibilities that are impossible for us to achieve by ourselves. Partnerships can result in things like our efforts with the Georgia Department of Education who has contacted every teacher and administrator of every public school in the state with information and a call to action regarding FoodFinder – 8 times now. Especially in the nonprofit world, competition and cynicism can creep into those trying to help others. But we’re all trying to help the same people, so that’s why I’m excited for FoodFinder’s ability to help everyone from individuals to state/federal entities.”  

Why Georgia’s Social Impact Ecosystem Matters

Being an entrepreneur is hard and it’s even more challenging when you are a social entrepreneur as your business model and / or structure doesn’t follow the same path as traditional start-ups.

“FoodFinder is extremely grateful to be part of a new generation of social enterprises, one that innovates and develops new ways to help others without ever forgetting why we do it. For us, we don’t see being a highly efficient and effective startup as being mutually exclusive with being a kind, caring, and compassionate nonprofit. We strive to be both. As a result, our revenue mix should reflect that philosophy by having varied sources of income, ranging from large institutional partners like corporate foundations to unique opportunities for earned revenue where we can monetize our services while still fulfilling our mission. We’ll always have to fundraise. We’ll always have to raise more awareness of our work. But we’ll never get tired of doing so because we know better than anyone how much of a transformative impact our work can have.”

Interested in learning more about FoodFinder, please visit:

  • Instagram: @foodfinderus
  • Twitter: @FoodFinderUS
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FoodFinderUS/ 
  • Website: https://foodfinder.us/ 
  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10326829/admin/
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Nedra Deadwyler of Civil Bikes

Profile Summary:

  • Entrepreneur Name: Nedra Deadwyler
  • Venture Name: Civil Bikes
  • Impact Focus Area(s): Historic Preservation, Community Identity, Culture Work
  • Business Stage (Ideation, Startup, Early, Later, Mature): Early
  • Year Venture Established: 2013 / 2014
  • Business Type: Social Impact / LLC

The Issue

Social entrepreneurship is about solving problems. Tell us about the challenge you are focused on addressing and why it is critical that we make progress.

“Civil Bikes brings attention to unseen and under-recognized stories of Atlanta. We emphasize the importance of having someone who resembles or is from that particular community. We want to be as authentic as possible. This allows for those outside (and inside) to gain a deeper understanding of the lived experiences and have a nuanced view of the history. The Guide serves as a literal guide through the highs and lows of the historical narrative. The 1.5 to 2 hours is not enough time to tell the full story, so we pair the history up to sites that are critical to the telling of the narrative that we may have lost to demolition, at risk of losing because of neglect, or it has been adapted to some other use and we have no idea what purpose it once served. In a changing city, remembering is a challenge because sometimes people prefer to forget and move on.” 

Your Journey

Entrepreneurship is a journey that requires connections and support from a wide array of stakeholders across the ecosystem to help successfully identify, start, and grow a social enterprise.

“My entrance into culture work came in an unassuming way and has multiple threads. It is an extension of my love of riding a bicycle and having the thought while touring Alabama- a largely rural state- that exploring history on a bicycle would be more interesting than riding in the back of a car! Another thread is while growing up, I constantly asked questions to understand why issues like racism, genderism, and nationalism existed, not using those words of course, but sought to understand these things that did not align with my beliefs or what my parents and family taught me. I became a social worker, lived in other cities and the practice of listening, examining society and embracing cultures were choices I sought in my professional, religious, and social life. The final thread was coming to terms with the fact that relationship and lifestyle choices were not enough to create equity for myself and others, that goodwill didn’t go far and wide. I was compelled to take action and find more intentional ways to address issues that are of concern and work to impact society. Today, I believe that the only way to have a future is to seek a just society.”

Why Georgia’s Social Impact Ecosystem Matters

Being an entrepreneur is hard and it’s even more challenging when you are a social entrepreneur as your business model and / or structure doesn’t follow the same path as traditional start-ups.

“There are entrepreneurs on both sides of my family and both are traditional in structure. I come from a non-profit/service mindset, and learning how to create a sustainable business model is one of my biggest challenges. Civil Bikes’ current business model takes money from admissions tickets and reinvests those profits into locally-owned businesses, cultural and historical spaces and artists, which changes our profit margins. 

Additionally, this direct exchange into the tour community supports spaces at-risk of being gentrified, harkens use to the identity and character of the neighborhoods, and are either Black, women, immigrant, or LGBTQAI/ Queer-owned. Other sources of revenue are a list of services: tours for our audiences, developing tours as an economic development tool for groups (municipalities, cultural groups, businesses, etc.), sponsorships and grants, and merchandise. 

Finally, I am thankful to my last employer for not seeing any conflict with me running Civil Bikes and appreciate Clay, my family, a few close friends and now my CCI [Center for Civic Innovation] family for that felt and necessary emotional, hands-on, and technical support. I’ve experienced burnout before and thankfully, it is not on the horizon!”

Interested in learning more about Civil Bikes, please visit:

  • Instagram: @civil_bikes
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/civilbikestours/ 
  • Website: https://civilbikes.com/
  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nedra-deadwyler-7a793122/