At Your Service

Valerie F. Leonard
Published: August 6, 2015

Crystal Sowemimo, Community Outreach and Development VISTA with Holsten Human Capital Development

Crystal Sowemimo, the Community Outreach and Development VISTA with Holsten Human Capital Development, will be a guest on the Nonprofit “U” radio blog talk show on Monday, August 10, 2015, from 2:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Nonprofit "U" is an online forum where nonprofit stakeholders can discuss the latest developments in the sector and increase their capacity to serve their clients and build sustainable communities. Valerie F. Leonard, an expert in community and organizational development, is the host. The show will stream live from BlogTalkRadio.com/nonprofit_u. The podcast will be archived on iTunes, BlogTalkRadio.com/nonprofit_u, Valeriefleonard.com/NonprofitU and Stitcher.

Monday’s episode will provide an overview of some of the work Crystal is doing to build the earning capacity of low-income families in North Lawndale, as well as some of the public interest work she is doing around the City of Chicago. There will be opportunities for listeners to call in with questions and participate in live chats. Nonprofit professionals, and community activists are encouraged to call in and share their stories. The live call in number is (347) 884-8121.

By the time Crystal Sowemimo graduated from college, she had at least 5 years of volunteerism under her belt. As a high school senior, she served as a tutor and mentor to at-risk refugee children in Houston, Texas. As a college student, she worked in broad based coalitions to advocate against sweatshops; engaged other youth in voter education and registration campaigns and started a public interest group. She currently lives in Chicago, and is actively working with a number of issue campaigns. Crystal works for Holsten Human Capital Development as the Community Outreach and Development VISTA, where she builds resources for the Workforce Development team for their North Lawndale site. She plans to go to law school in the near future and pursue a career in law, focusing on issues that impact low income communities.