• Gathering together in person again has been a welcome change for the Defy community. Last week, some members of the Defy community in NorCal got together in Sacramento and shared stories and support over good food. We're looking forward to more such gatherings in the months to come!
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    Gathering together in person again has been a welcome change for the Defy community. Last week, some members of the Defy community in NorCal got together in Sacramento and shared stories and support over good food. We're looking forward to more such gatherings in the months to come!
  • Happy Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! Here's what Defy graduate Casey says about what the month means to him: Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month means so many things to me. It's a time where I/we can honor the generations of Asians and Pacific Islanders who have enriched America's history and future success. It is a time of love, tribute, and rejoicing, encouraging both the young and the old to become leaders. I can still remember the stories my Grandparents told me about the World Wars, especially in the Pacific, how they helped bring freedom to the people of different races, ethnicity, and backgrounds. As U.S. soldiers, they accomplished a great feat, which is our liberty to live freely today. Honor those who have come before, honor those who you have encountered. You never know what change they have contributed to this world!
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    Happy Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! Here's what Defy graduate Casey says about what the month means to him: "Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month means so many things to me. It's a time where I/we can honor the generations of Asians and Pacific Islanders who have enriched America's history and future success. It is a time of love, tribute, and rejoicing, encouraging both the young and the old to become leaders. I can still remember the stories my Grandparents told me about the World Wars, especially in the Pacific, how they helped bring freedom to the people of different races, ethnicity, and backgrounds. As U.S. soldiers, they accomplished a great feat, which is our liberty to live freely today. Honor those who have come before, honor those who you have encountered. You never know what change they have contributed to this world!"
  • A year after George Floyd's murder, we know there is still so much work to be done. At Defy, we continue to witness how systems of white supremacy and racism prevent far too many from getting a fair chance. We also know that our consistent investment in doing the work together can build a world where what we look like or where we come from are not liabilities to our futures. Join us in this work—we can't do it without you.
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    A year after George Floyd's murder, we know there is still so much work to be done. At Defy, we continue to witness how systems of white supremacy and racism prevent far too many from getting a fair chance. We also know that our consistent investment in doing the work together can build a world where what we look like or where we come from are not liabilities to our futures. Join us in this work—we can't do it without you.
  • 'Let me get back to my cell safe, and I'll consider today a good day.' That's pretty much how I existed for the first 10 years of my incarceration. [...] Defy Ventures was a program I was heavily a part of for the last three, four years of my incarceration. They pretty much welcomed me with open arms. - Xanar Navarrete Defy EIT Xanar Navarrete came home this year after 23 years of incarceration. This photo is from his first day out! Xanar shared his story with @loto_podcast, and you can listen to the first installment now. You can tune in on the LOTO website here (https://lotopodcast.libsyn.com/the-journey) or search Life on the Outside podcast to listen via a variety of other platforms. 🎧 Thank you, Xanar, for sharing your story, and thank you to Life on the Outside for amplifying it to the wider community! If you want to meet and support Defy Entrepreneurs in Training like Xanar, sign up for our volunteer events at volunteer.defyventures.org.
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    "'Let me get back to my cell safe, and I'll consider today a good day.' That's pretty much how I existed for the first 10 years of my incarceration. [...] Defy Ventures was a program I was heavily a part of for the last three, four years of my incarceration. They pretty much welcomed me with open arms." - Xanar Navarrete Defy EIT Xanar Navarrete came home this year after 23 years of incarceration. This photo is from his first day out! Xanar shared his story with @loto_podcast, and you can listen to the first installment now. You can tune in on the LOTO website here (https://lotopodcast.libsyn.com/the-journey) or search "Life on the Outside podcast" to listen via a variety of other platforms. 🎧 Thank you, Xanar, for sharing your story, and thank you to Life on the Outside for amplifying it to the wider community! If you want to meet and support Defy Entrepreneurs in Training like Xanar, sign up for our volunteer events at volunteer.defyventures.org.