Earthlinks' mission is to cultivate transformation and self-worth with people experiencing homelessness and poverty

By creating opportunities through earth-centered programs, individuals step out of isolation and into community – restoring each other and the planet. The proposed vista project aligns with the economic opportunity focus area, specifically related to housing, as well as healthy futures by improving food access and working with low-income veterans. The vista project will seek to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our organization so we can serve more people with more effective programs. Two vista members will contribute to the goals of the project by performing activities such as developing and implementing more efficient tracking and data management systems, developing new fundraising strategies and improving external communications, and implementing new interventions within our current programs. The addition of two additional vista members will further the reach of our organization in establishing and supervising a new project within earthlinks addressing economic opportunity and health futures through a new social enterprise coffee shop where homeless and underserved youth will be employed as well as the establishment of a new flower and herb CSA type project within our organization. Both of these projects will create new earning opportunities for adults in poverty. The fifth vista member will be working in improving food access for the sun valley neighborhood, and will be placed at a neighboring nonprofit, the sun valley kitchen. Sun valley residents are nearly all below the poverty level, live in subsidized housing and occupy a known food desert. Sun valley kitchen addresses the lack of food access through a food bank, cooking classes, and opportunities for neighbors to act as a visiting chef weekly in their facility.