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The Change Reaction Wildfire Direct Giving Fund is launching with an initial gift of $10 Million dollars —

to provide direct financial assistance to the wildfire victims, all vetted and identified through our network of over 2,000 social workers and impact leaders.

DONATE NOW
A fire blazing in the sky with palm trees in the foreground.
An aerial view of a city with lots of burnt buildings.

the change reaction
direct giving platform
provides critical financial assistance
to stabilize and strengthen working angelenos and their families. 

The Change Reaction is rooted in the belief that empowering social impact leaders so they can respond to urgent financial situations with immediate, meaningful cash support ignites a Change Reaction.

In 2024 Alone...

We distributed over $16 million to 17,543 working individuals and families throughout Los Angeles using our network of over 2,000 social workers, case managers, faith leaders, and other social impact warriors.

learn MORE about US
how we do it

THESE ARE THE CHANGE AGENTS WHO MAKE IT ALL HAPPEN

The Change Reaction's nearly 2,000 Change Agents - people who's calling is to help others - are embedded in nonprofits, hospitals and throughout the Los Angeles community and given access to resources to address urgent needs in real time.

Having quick access to our funds amplifies the passion and impact of our Change Agents - allowing helpers to become heroes - to make a real, tangible difference in their communities.

“To have the ability to say, ‘I’m here. This is what I can help you with.’ I get so excited, I almost feel like it’s my money. To be in a place today where I can help others in need is the best reward ever.”

Meet Veronica, LCSW

Veronica Galagos is a social worker at LA Family Housing, a nonprofit that provides shelter and services to unhoused individuals and those at risk in LA. Veronica recently met with a client, who needed just $400 to fix her car. Without a car she would miss doctors’ appointments and be unable to get her kids to their school and extracurricular activities. She didn't have the money.

Through Nonprofit Angel Funds, Veronica did.

As a trusted Change Agent of The Change Reaction, Veronica was able to submit an online application for her client and pay the car registration the next day. This was a critical aid to her client, and a huge relief. It also brought a tremendous sense of gratification to Veronica, who was once a single mother struggling to work and pay her bills while completing college.

supercharging the helpers
“To have the ability to say, ‘I’m here. This is what I can help you with.’ I get so excited, I almost feel like it’s my money. To be in a place today where I can help others in need is the best reward ever.”
“It’s wild. I can’t even fathom how that’s possible. The Upward Grant has been so helpful in making all this happen.”

Meet Cassandra

Cassandra (Cassie) Ramirez, did pretty much everything right to create a stable, successful adulthood. Still, even with her BA, she wasn’t able to fully cover the cost of living in Los Angeles and found herself relying on credit cards for groceries and gas. 

She dreamed of becoming a firefighter — a career that would let her help people and raise her income, provide benefits, and lead to a pension. But joining a fire department is a confusing, lengthy, expensive process. “There’s no clear route in or much written about how to do it,” says Cassie. You need time and money to make the transition.

The Upward Fund money made Cassie’s dream possible. 

Today, a year after getting her first check from Upward Fund, she is successfully employed in a job with a starting salary of $88,000 a year, triple what she was earning at her previous job as a personal trainer.

“It’s wild. I can’t even fathom how that’s possible. The Upward Grant has been so helpful in making all this happen.”
“You feel alone, but you’re not alone. There are other people who have been through these things and can be an ear or shoulder.”

Meet Carol

Carol Hubbard is a 60-year-old grandmother with her youngest daughter’s two children under her care. She worked full time as a neuro rehab specialist in Tarzana and had four children that she raised on her own. When they grew up and moved out, she was on her own, until she got a call that her grandson was in the foster care system, and she was asked if she wanted to take him in.

Carol depleted her savings to get what she could to make sure that her grandson could stay in her care. Family members helped, as did neighbors. Even with all that help, the costs of caring for a baby continued to add up. The Kinship Caregiver Initiative made sure she had the support she needed. 

The Change Reaction works to keep families together — by providing much needed funds to kinship families and connecting them to information and resources that make their lives as instant-caregivers easier.

“You feel alone, but you’re not alone. There are other people who have been through these things and can be an ear or shoulder.”
“If you go into education, you know the pay is not going to be the greatest,” she says. “If you’re an educator at heart, you’ll find a way to serve the students. But this was an emergency.”

Meet Sharon

Sharon McCreight, 52, has dedicated her life to education. Sharon brings to the job more than 30 years of experience in education, and when she tried to leave school one afternoon this past fall, her car wouldn’t move. She got out of the car and discovered that her rear tires were completely flat. She’d recently bought four new tires for the car, but the drive through the alleyways to the school parking lot must have punctured the rear two.

The School Heroes Emergency Fund allowed her to get back on the road and to her job. The Change Reaction launched the School Heroes Emergency Fund in 2023 to help lessen the burden these heroes face. Helping teachers and school staff is part of The Change Reaction’s mission to support the hardworking people who make Los Angeles run.

“If you go into education, you know the pay is not going to be the greatest,” she says. “If you’re an educator at heart, you’ll find a way to serve the students. But this was an emergency.” 
“To be able to help them access the resources they desperately need is fulfilling,” says Julie of her role as a CCA. “It’s the difference between providing a listening ear to someone and being able to come in, advocate for them, and help them fulfill a need.”

Meet Julie

Julie Iskowitz, a UCLA communications graduate, talks to people everywhere she goes—the grocery store, out in the neighborhood, at her children’s school. This former nonprofit professional and current mother of four says she’s passionate about connecting people. 

Now, as a volunteer Community Change Agent (CCA) with The Change Reaction, Julie can do more than create good connections. She also can provide direct financial assistance to people facing a crisis.

“To be able to help them access the resources they desperately need is fulfilling,” says Julie of her role as a CCA. “It’s the difference between providing a listening ear to someone and being able to come in, advocate for them, and help them fulfill a need.”

The Gift of Gratitude

The Change Reaction is committed to stabilizing hardworking people to prevent crises from becoming catastrophes.

We have pioneered a unique, high-touch way to partner with local organizations, schools, hospitals, and frontline Change Agents. Through them, we provide life-changing grants to families to help support their upward trajectory. This approach makes everyone a giver, creating a positive upward spiral of change.

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