Announcement, News, Press Release

Miami Becomes GreenLight Fund’s 14th Location Nationwide

Jan 29, 2025

Miami

Over $6 Million Committed by a Broad Range of Local Community Members Powers National Nonprofit’s Innovative Approach

Miami, FL – January 29, 2025 – In recent years, Miami has emerged as a center for tech and finance innovation. Now, GreenLight Fund, a national nonprofit funder, is bringing that same spirit of innovation to tackle some of Miami’s most critical unmet needs tied to racial and economic disparities. Founded in Boston 20 years ago and now with a track record of success in cities across the country, GreenLight Fund has secured a $6.5M Fund from more than 100 local investors to establish its presence in Miami, making it the 14th location in the nationwide network. Valeria Perez-Ferreiro has been named Founding Executive Director and will lead its efforts locally to find proven, innovative solutions to address the community’s unmet needs. Today’s official launch of GreenLight Fund Miami includes an event hosted by Miami Dade College recognizing the many investors and partners instrumental in making it possible.

“We are deeply grateful to local investors and philanthropic organizations whose generosity and belief in our mission have made it possible to bring GreenLight to Miami,” said John Simon, Co-Founder and Board Chair of GreenLight Fund. “Their commitment to tackling Miami’s most pressing challenges ensures that together, we can drive meaningful, additive, measurable CHANGE and create new opportunities for individuals and families experiencing poverty.”

GreenLight Miami will take specific action each year to bring an evidence-based program to Miami to break down barriers to prosperity. By engaging the community throughout the process, leveraging partnerships, providing ongoing collaborative support and complementing the work already happening locally, these programs will deliver measurable social impact and be sustainable for the long term.

“The GreenLight Fund Miami is an exciting partner in bringing innovative solutions and a collaborative, community-driven approach to address some of our toughest challenges,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. “By listening to our residents, investing in proven programs, and measuring impact, GreenLight Miami will help us break down barriers and create lasting change. Together, we’re building a more inclusive, equitable, and prosperous future for all Miami-Dade families.”

GreenLight Miami will form a Selection Advisory Council (SAC) comprised of a diverse and vested group of community leaders, residents and experts from businesses, nonprofits, philanthropic and community-based organizations, and the public sector to serve as advisors throughout the annual selection process.

Each year, GreenLight Miami will engage with the community and the SAC to prioritize a specific unmet need, find and assess programs with successful track records addressing that need, and invest in scaling the proven program with the best local fit. The focus areas and investment decisions will be decided and implemented locally. The first selection is expected in late 2025.

“Collaborating to identify and connect with existing organizations and governing bodies to address the most pressing issues is essential for the future health, welfare, and growth of Miami,” said Louis Wolfson III, partner and co-founder of Pinnacle, a real estate development and construction company focused on high-quality workforce and market-rate housing across Florida.

Valeria Perez-Ferreiro, GreenLight Fund Miami’s Founding Executive Director, brings a deep understanding of the community along with a passion for equity and creating pathways to economic mobility. She has over 25 years of experience designing and launching economic mobility, workforce development and financial inclusion initiatives. Before joining GreenLight, she spent nearly a decade at Citi as Vice President and Community Development Senior Manager, where she partnered with community organizations to launch impactful programs such as FutureBound Miami, a universal children’s savings account program that empowers children and their families to save for post-secondary education and training, StartUp FIU Food, which helped lower income entrepreneurs launch food businesses, and the Office of New Americans of Miami Dade-County, a nonprofit embedded in Miami-Dade County’s government that promotes naturalization. Valeria has also held multiple leadership roles in the nonprofit sector, including one as Founding Executive Director of La Cocina, a kitchen incubator that helps lower-income entrepreneurs turn their nascent food businesses into livelihoods.

“It is an honor to be entrusted to lead GreenLight Miami and I am deeply committed to driving meaningful change for our community,” Perez-Ferreiro said. “During this rapidly changing time for Miami, GreenLight is well positioned to tackle racial and economic disparities head-on with impactful solutions the community tells us they want and need.”

Since its founding in 2004, GreenLight has expanded to 13 other major U.S. cities, including Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Denver, Detroit, Greater Newark, Kansas City, Philadelphia, San Francisco and the Twin Cities, reaching nearly 750,000 individuals last year alone and driving meaningful change in the communities it serves. For example, in Philadelphia, GreenLight identified that for families in public housing there was limited ability to build assets that would support their goals. So, GreenLight brought Compass Working Capital to the community and facilitated a partnership with the Philadelphia Housing Authority. Compass utilizes a federally funded program to capture increased rental payments as savings towards home ownership. They provide individualized financial coaching and tools so families in public housing are able to leverage the program as a pathway to greater opportunity. Over 5,000 families have benefitted from the program each saving on average nearly $10,000.

GreenLight has done 60+ things like this across its cities to date and, because of this, its impacts are growing exponentially.

“Collaboration is at the heart of everything we do,” said Symeria Hudson, president and CEO of United Way Miami. “The GreenLight Fund’s strategy aligns seamlessly with our mission, enabling us to expand our reach and provide essential resources to the families and individuals we serve. Partnering with an organization dedicated to identifying critical gaps and implementing proven solutions for the more than half a million households living in poverty or just one paycheck away is invaluable. Partnerships like this are vital to strengthening our community.”

Miami’s philanthropic community played a decisive role in bringing GreenLight to the city, showcasing its unwavering commitment and proactive leadership in addressing the barriers and inequities that keep so many individuals and families trapped in poverty.

“GreenLight’s approach to solving the most pressing community challenges is innovative and efficient by enlisting the commitment and unleashing the power of proven best in class organizations to resolve these challenges,” said Tere Blanca, Founder, Chairman and CEO, Blanca Commercial Real Estate.

“Based on the brilliant GreenLight track record in other cities, they have a proven recipe for addressing the social and financial inequities that exist in Miami,” added Bob Dickinson.

GreenLight Miami investors and philanthropic organizations making this possible include: Dan Adan / Halmos Capital, AJ & Kerri Ager, Angel Alvarez, Suzanne Amaducci, Anonymous, Bain Capital, Bank of America, Bank of America Miami, Baptist Health South Florida, Robert & Ana Barlick, Jonathan & Sarah Barrios / JP Morgan, David Becker & Rebecca Wallack, Mari Beeck, Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod LLP, Tere Blanca / Blanca Commercial Real Estate, Ricardo & Claudia Caporal, Russ & Judy Carson, Abbey Chase, Chidsey Family Fund, Nicole & Jose Costa, Laura & Stonington Cox, Albert de Cardenas, Claudia & Carlos de La Cruz Jr., Manny De Zárraga / JLL, Deloitte, Deloitte Miami / David Coto & Kim Griffin, Debra & David Deutch, Bob Dickinson, The DiNovi Family Foundation – Deanna & Tony DiNovi, Al Dotson Jr., Driven Brands, Miguel & Vivian Dueñas, Alejandra Fernandez & Michalis Stavrinides, Gregory & Leslie Ferrero, Firestone Capital Management, Florida International University, Kirt & Francesca Gardner, Barbara Garrett, Dave & Hilary Gershman, Goldman Sachs, Walter & Yasmin Gonzalez, Cena Hackler Jackson, Harris Philanthropies, Health Foundation of South Florida, Nancy Hector, Deborah Hoffman, Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, Jared Kaplan / NewEdge Wealth, Arden & Jack Karson, The Keyes Company, The Kirk Foundation, Todd Krim, Dan Lansman, Jorge & Awilda Lopez Family Fund / The Cornerstone Group, Paul Lowenthal, The Maroone Family, Mast Capital, Derek & Julianne McDowell, Miami Dade College, Miami Dolphins Foundation, The Miami Foundation, Camilo & Nina Miguel, José Milton Foundation, Alex Montague & Maria Alonso, Gabriel & Claudia Navarro, Marcel & Susana Navarro Foundation, The NFL, Dave & Jane Nolan, The Jane & Daniel Och Family Foundation, Ken O’Keefe, Will Osborne & Karen Bechtel, Eric Poms, Jarrett & Sean Posner, Alan Potamkin, Peter Pruitt Jr., Thomas R. Roth, Sumesh Sachar, MacKenzie Scott, Ron Shuffield / EWM, Fernando Silva, John & Susan Simon, Gregory G. Simoncini & Ed Dudley, Paul Steven & Marte V. Singerman, Lauren E. Smith & Mel Meinhardt, The Barry S. Sternlicht Foundation, STW Foundation, Tony Tamer, Troy & Sissy Templeton on behalf of TTFSO, Bennett Thompson, Santiago Tobar Potes, Top of Mind Public Relations, TrustServe LP, United Way Miami, University of Miami, Jared Waggy & Anthony Poppe, Avi & Maria Weintraub, Teresa Weintraub, Annette & Seth Werner, Louis Wolfson III.