La Casa de Amistad Chosen for the Elite National Award of $2,000,000 from MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving Open Call Initiative

South Bend, Indiana, March 19, 2024 – Today, MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving announced La Casa de Amistad as one of the Yield Giving Open Call’s awardees working with people and in places experiencing the greatest need in the United States. La Casa de Amistad received $2 million.

La Casa de Amistad is driven by an unwavering passion to empower the Latino community in the South Bend, Indiana region through bilingual education, cultural enrichment, and advocacy. By offering more than 20 evidenced-based programs, we offer a welcoming environment where Latino immigrants can thrive and fully participate in all aspects of community life. Our 50-year history has allowed us to build deep trust with our community, positioning us to bring our vision to life. We understand the obstacles faced by Latino immigrants firsthand, as the majority of our staff and leadership are first-generation Latino immigrants themselves. This unique perspective enables us to amplify the voices and needs of those we serve. We are dedicated to eliminating barriers to success, such as language, literacy, social exclusion, education deficits, and insecure employment, through our comprehensive range of services including youth development, legal aid, language learning, and digital literacy.

In March 2023, Yield Giving launched an Open Call for community-led, community-focused organizations whose explicit purpose is to enable individuals and families to achieve substantive improvement in their well-being through foundational resources.

Juan Constantino, Executive Director of La Casa de Amistad
"The future of La Casa de Amistad and the families we serve is bright. We are here to make sure of it. We are extremely grateful for the recognition and funding of $2,000,000 by Yield Giving. This $2,000,000 unrestricted grant is the highest award in our organization's history. It will be transformational in the way we are able to plan for the future and adapt to the needs of our growing Latino and immigrant populations in South Bend."

The Open Call received 6,353 applications and initially planned for 250 awards of $1 million each. In the Fall of 2023, organizations top-rated by their peers advanced to a second round of review by an external Evaluation Panel recruited for experience relevant to this cause, and underwent a final round of due diligence. In light of the incredible work of these organizations, as judged by their peers and external panelists, the donor team decided to expand the awardee pool and the award amount. La Casa de Amistad was among an even small number of awardees who had their grant award doubled from $1,000,000 to $2,000,000.

 Cecilia Conrad, CEO of Lever for Change
"We are excited that our partnership with Yield Giving has resonated with so many organizations. In a world teeming with potential and talent, the Open Call has given us an opportunity to identify, uplift, and empower transformative organizations that often remain unseen.” 

More information on the Yield Giving Open Call and other initiatives can be found at www.leverforchange.org.