Why We Matter: Building Identity, Confidence, and Leadership in Real Communities.

▶ Hear Our Journey — *Before We Were a Nonprofit*

Why We Matter

For more than 20 years, the Builders of People Initiative has been dedicated to strengthening identity, confidence, emotional wellness, and leadership in youth, families, and communities. We exist because children need safe spaces to grow, men and women need tools to heal, and families need support that meets them where they are.

Our work matters because young people are searching for identity and belonging, families are navigating emotional and relational challenges, and communities need programs that build confidence, stability, and leadership. What we offer is not theory — it is real, lived impact shaped by decades of hands-on service.

Below you can watch our work in action — real stories, real growth, and real transformation.

Kindness Is Cool Reel

Kindness Stories

Real moments. Real impact. These signature stories shaped the heart of the Builders of People Initiative.

Kindness Is Cool T-Shirts & Buttons

Our Kindness Is Cool T-shirts and buttons spread encouragement wherever they go. Watch how these wearable reminders inspire confidence, joy, and connection.

Kindness Is Cool T-Shirts & Buttons 1
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Kindness in the Schools – Detroit Jersey Reel

Kindness in Schools – Classroom Tours

Our Classroom Kindness Tours bring hope, confidence, and emotional safety directly into schools in Detroit and New Jersey. Through storytelling, empowerment discussions, and hands-on engagement, students experience kindness in action — creating moments they never forget.

SEL Coloring Activities & Assemblies

Watch real moments from our SEL (Social-Emotional Learning) coloring activities and assemblies, where students explore feelings, confidence, and kindness through creative expression.

SEL Coloring Activities & Assemblies 1
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SEL Coloring Activities & Assemblies 2
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SEL Coloring Activities & Assemblies 3
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SEL Coloring Activities & Assemblies 4
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SEL Coloring Activities & Assemblies 5
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Emerging Voices Leadership Initiative

The Emerging Voices Leadership Initiative was born out of a deep conviction in the heart of Richie Patterson: that no young person, parent, or family should live their life unseen, unheard, or unsupported. He recognized that many people carry leadership, purpose, and potential inside them, but were never given a safe place to grow into it.

This initiative exists to build people from the inside out — to strengthen identity, develop leadership, and create healing-centered spaces where voices can rise, families can be honored, and communities can be restored.

The Be A Preacher Movement — How It Came to Be

Growing up, Richie was the one working in the background — setting up, serving, making sure everything was in place — yet rarely being invited to speak. He knew what it felt like to have something to say, but nowhere to say it. Rather than letting that become a wound, he turned it into a mission.

From that experience, the Be A Preacher movement was created. Held bi-monthly, it is a leadership development night where youth and emerging voices step to the microphone, practice public speaking, and discover their confidence. Richie intentionally does not take the stage during these sessions; instead, he creates the room, sets the tone, and lets others rise.

Over multiple Detroit sessions, Be A Preacher has become a training ground for young leaders to find their voice, share their story, and stand with dignity in front of their community.

What the Initiative Does

The Emerging Voices Leadership Initiative develops people through a clear, intentional focus on:

Identity Formation: Helping youth, women, and men understand who they are before the world mislabels them. Journals, conversations, and programming are all designed to build a strong internal sense of worth and purpose.

Leadership Development: Through platforms like Be A Preacher, participants learn to communicate clearly, manage emotions, tell their stories with confidence, and embrace responsibility.

Community Strengthening: Every gathering includes moments of honor, raffles, gifts, and affirmations. No one leaves empty-handed because dignity is a part of the curriculum.

Women’s Pink Night

As the initiative grew, Richie saw the weight many women carry — health battles, emotional storms, family responsibility, and silent sacrifice. In response, he created an annual Women’s Pink Night, a night designed to honor women who have been overcoming health issues and life challenges.

Women arrive in pink, not just as a color, but as a declaration of survival and strength. On this night, stories are shared, tears are welcomed, and women are celebrated openly for the courage they often show quietly.

To mark the night, Richie released a special pink journal titled “It’s Not Cheap to Be You” for women and girls — a space to write, process, heal, and remember that their strength has value. At these events, 6–8 raffles are held and every woman is intentionally showered with gifts, love, and honor. No one leaves forgotten.

Men’s & Boys’ Journal — Identity & Responsibility

Recognizing that males also need tools to navigate identity, responsibility, and emotional growth, Richie created a men’s and boys’ version of the journal “It’s Not Cheap to Be You”.

This journal is a guided space for young men and men to wrestle with: who they are, what they carry, the choices they make, and the legacy they want to leave. It encourages responsibility without shame, growth without pretending, and leadership rooted in character, not image.

These journals are used alongside the initiative’s programming to help men and boys see themselves as protectors, builders, and leaders in their homes and communities.

The New Jersey Impact

In 2022, the Emerging Voices Leadership Initiative expanded beyond Detroit into New Jersey. Two Be A Preacher sessions were hosted there, carrying the same heart, structure, and culture of honor.

During these gatherings, youth participated in a professional photo shoot that captured their confidence and presence. Each young person received a Be A Preacher T-shirt, transforming them from attendees into visible representatives of the movement. Families watched their children speak publicly, many for the first time, and saw firsthand what a safe, empowered platform could unlock.

The New Jersey impact proved that this model is scalable and deeply needed wherever there are young voices waiting to be heard.

Why It Matters

This initiative matters because it reaches into the places where people often feel invisible and says, “You are seen, you are valued, and you are needed.”

It matters for youth who are learning to use their voice before the world convinces them they don’t have one.
It matters for women who have carried families, sickness, and responsibilities in silence and finally have a night that pours back into them.
It matters for men and boys who are searching for identity, direction, and a healthy model of responsibility.
It matters for families who need spaces where healing, honor, and hope are possible.
It matters for communities that are transformed when people stand in their purpose.

At its core, the Emerging Voices Leadership Initiative is about building people so that futures can change, families can heal, and entire communities can shift toward hope.

Students Received Kindness Shoes

A powerful moment where students received brand-new Kindness Shoes — reminding them that confidence starts from the ground up and kindness can be carried with every step.

Kindness Shoes Video 1
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Kindness Scholarship Support

This year, the Builders of People Initiative partnered with families, schools, and community supporters to sponsor and co-sponsor 8 students through our Kindness Scholarship Fund.

We raised scholarship dollars and were matched with additional funding, which allowed us to double our impact and help students with school needs, books, and emotional development resources.

Your support helps us continue giving students confidence, stability, and hope.

Kindness Scholarship Support

Kindness Blankets for Seniors

Bringing warmth and compassion to seniors through our Kindness Blankets program — offering comfort, dignity, and emotional support to elders in our community.

Kindness Blankets Video 1
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Kindness in the Community Reel Recap

Nothing beats a genuine interest.
This reel highlights the importance of being present, engaged, and in the mix with real people—listening, supporting, and showing up with authentic kindness. Community impact comes alive when we step into the moments that matter.

We Know Nothing About Marriage – Community Healing Nights Recap

8-session Community Healing Nights journey from Detroit to New Jersey, creating a safe space for couples, singles, and families to be honest about what they don’t know about marriage — and to heal together.

EBFAMILY REEL RECAP

Empowering the Blended Family

Healing stories. Honest conversations. Hope for every kind of family.

Blended families are navigating real emotions—grief, transition, new roles, and old wounds—while still trying to show up with love every day. Empowering the Blended Family creates a safe space to talk about what usually stays silent, offering language, tools, and examples that help both adults and children feel seen, heard, and valued.

This work is at the heart of the Builders of People Initiative—to provide positive solutions that strengthen the entire family structure. By addressing conflict, identity, separation, and healing through compassion and practical wisdom, we build bridges instead of walls and show families that they don’t have to navigate their season alone.

When we empower blended families, we protect children, honor parents, and restore hope to households that have lived through brokenness. This is how we build people, one honest conversation and one healed heart at a time.

Watch “Empowering the Blended Family”

▶ Hear Our Journey — *Before We Were a Nonprofit*