WEPOWER Wednesday: Updates & Opportunities
August 06, 2025
WEPOWER Wednesday: Updates & Opportunities
When the May 16th tornado tore through North St. Louis this spring, Miss Bettie—who has run a 24-hour daycare in The Ville for nearly 40 years—sheltered children in her basement while the building next door collapsed onto hers. Today, she’s rebuilding, not just her center, but the care infrastructure our communities depend on.
At WEPOWER, we believe providers like Miss Bettie deserve more than resilience. They deserve investment, support, and a seat at the table shaping what’s next.
That’s why this month, we’re sharing new funding and fellowship opportunities for entrepreneurs and community leaders. We’re also inviting you to join the Community Wealth Action Group on Wednesday, August 27, as we organize around the care economy, wealth-building, and systems change.
Let’s build a future where those who care for our children, and our communities, have what they need to thrive.
CALLS TO ACTION
After a year and a half of research and community design and over 1,000 community engagements, WEPOWER and its partners released our second ever playbook on June 24th, as a response to the wealth crisis.
Businesses in the City of St. Louis impacted by the May 16 tornado can now apply for zero-interest recovery loans of up to $5,000 through the St. Louis Local Development Company. Applications are open through August 29.
Join the Community Wealth Action Group on Wednesday, August 27, 2025 at 5:30 PM. CWAG is a coalition of St. Louis and East St. Louis community members with a common goal: to build communities where we can all thrive.
UPDATES
In increments, North St. Louis daycare is working toward reopening after tornado
Nearly three months after the May 16th tornado, providers like Bettie Taylor, who’s run Angels Affordable Activities Daycare in The Ville for nearly 40 years, are still working tirelessly to reopen their doors. Her 24-hour center was severely damaged, but thanks to her resilience and community support, repairs are underway.
This story reminds us why investing in early childhood providers must be central to disaster recovery and long-term community wealth building. Childcare is essential infrastructure, and when providers suffer, families and neighborhoods feel the impact.
Read Bettie’s full story via First Alert 4.
Fellowship Opportunity with WEPOWER and the Democracy Collaborative - Apply by August 15th
WEPOWER has teamed up with the Democracy Collaborative, and we are looking to hire a Fellow to work on Community Wealth Building activities within and based in St Louis, Missouri.
This is a 9-month fixed-term contract running until spring 2026. The stipend for this fellowship is $50,000.
CV, cover letter and references should be sent by August 15, 2025, 5pm EST, to [email protected]
Please see full job description here.
Make The Child Care Voter Pledge
The STL Child Care Voter Campaign is a campaign to activate community members to become powerful voters and take action to make child care a civil right for every child and family who calls St. Louis home.
We envision an early childhood education system where every family, no matter their race, income, or ZIP code, has access to joyful, high-quality care that opens up endless possibilities for children and communities.
Make the pledge today to protect care for all of our babies!
NEWS + OPPORTUNITIES
- Now Accepting Applications: CIE Incubators for Entrepreneurs & Nonprofit Founders
- Applications Open: 2025 Funding for Founders Incubator
- Now Accepting Applications: Fall 2025 Nxt Lvl Incubator
- Community Survey: For residents and community members who use or need mental health services
- Provider Survey: For organizations and professionals who deliver mental health services
- Chef Adjo Honsou brings West African cuisine — and love — to St. Louis with Fufu n’ Sauce
- St. Louis mayor pauses new minority construction contracts to preserve tornado recovery funds
- Black aldermen slam Spencer, urge restart of St. Louis’ minority contracting program
INSPIRATION
Why we need a solidarity economy now
As programs like Medicaid and SNAP face major cuts, and political division continues to fracture our communities, many are asking: What happens when the systems we rely on no longer serve us?
A recent piece from Waging Nonviolence explores an idea that's been practiced for generations, one some now call the solidarity economy. It’s what happens when we take care of each other, not just in moments of crisis, but every day. It’s food shared with neighbors, help offered without being asked, and economic models rooted in cooperation, equity, and sustainability.
The solidarity economy is about building something better. Community land trusts, worker co-ops, mutual aid networks, farmers’ markets, these are just a few of the ways people are reimagining how we live and thrive together.
This kind of economy reminds us: we are not powerless. We are powerful together.
As the original author puts it: “We can act our way into different ways of thinking more easily than we can think our way into new ways of acting.”
Let's keep building,
Your Friends at WEPOWER