Rainbow Village

Breaking the cycle of homelessness, poverty, and domestic violence

Rainbow Village Board of Directors

Home Depot’s Michelle Livingstone Joins Board of Directors for Rainbow Village

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Nonprofit Dedicated to Breaking the Cycles of Homelessness, Poverty and Domestic Violence to Benefit from Newest Board Member’s Experience with Atlanta Children’s Shelter

Duluth, Ga., May 27, 2020 – Giving back is nothing new for Home Depot Vice President for Transportation, Michelle Livingstone. In addition to serving on the boards of several business-associated organizations over the years, she was proud to serve on the board of the Atlanta Children’s Shelter for the last six. Sharing similar objectives to help homeless children and their families, Livingstone was drawn to Rainbow Village and its mission to help the whole family break the cycles of homelessness, poverty and domestic violence.

“The nonprofit community is fairly close-knit and when a friend of mine discovered Rainbow Village, she spoke so highly of its mission and leadership team that I couldn’t wait to learn more,” recalled Livingstone. “I went on a tour of the campus and was impressed by the organization and the folks behind it. I really like the housing component and the breadth and depth of resources available at Rainbow Village, as well as the time they provide their program participants to find their way back to self-sufficiency. Up to two years, if needed. I think that’s phenomenal.”

During her time at Atlanta Children’s Shelter, Livingstone witnessed firsthand that homelessness and domestic violence can happen to anyone. “Everyone has a story,” she added. “They just need someone to listen. They just need a hand up. I believe it’s our duty to help them get back on their feet. Giving back has always been important to me personally, but it’s also one of Home Depot’s core values. I love the idea of helping other women feel successful, so Rainbow Village is a good match for me all the way around.”

Livingstone believes Rainbow Village’s success over the last 29 years can be attributed to making homeless families feel like they’re part of a community that cares. She feels that’s the best way to break the cycles and help them become self-sufficient. She is also impressed by the resources Rainbow Village provides to its residents – including transitional housing, childcare, training and development, life skills classes and so much more.

“I have no doubt that my background in Corporate America can be an asset to Rainbow Village,” said Livingstone. “I can use my experience to help their residents be successful – for instance, practicing an interview for a job. I can also possibly fast track the success of Rainbow Village and its residents by leveraging my network to bring new insights and perspectives. I’m really excited about this opportunity. There is no better feeling in the world than helping others achieve their potential.”

“We’re truly thrilled to welcome Michelle to the board of Rainbow Village,” said Melanie Conner, the nonprofit’s  CEO. “She has found great success in her own life and is a true powerhouse in inspiring others to rise to their own levels of success. I know she will bring amazing ideas and equally amazing energy to our board room at every meeting.”

As the newest member of the board of directors at Rainbow Village, Livingstone has already been made to feel right at home. She has had a terrific time meeting the other board members, who she considers to be all like-minded people. A veteran with Home Depot for more than 12 years, Livingstone enjoys attracting other women to the supply chain industry. Along with her husband Bob, Livingstone takes great pride in the servant’s heart displayed by her daughter, Amanda, who has a master’s degree in International Human Rights and works with the White Ribbon Alliance in Washington D.C.

For more information about Rainbow Village and its programs, please visit www.rainbowvillage.org.

About Rainbow Village:  Established in 1991 and based in Duluth, Georgia, Rainbow Village is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization devoted to breaking the cycles of homelessness, poverty and domestic violence. Committed to serving as a “community of transformation”, Rainbow Village applies a holistic, two-generational approach to serving homeless families with children. With the goal of helping families achieve emotional stability and financial independence, Rainbow Village provides housing, early childhood education and after-school care, child and youth programming, financial planning, career counseling, workforce readiness, mental health counseling, community events and more. Rainbow Village accepts applications from homeless families with minor children throughout Georgia. To learn more about Rainbow Village, register as a volunteer or make a donation, visit www.rainbowvillage.org.

View from the Village: Board Member Jeffrey Charron

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A chance encounter led Jeff Charron from an Open House Event in 2012 to a seat on Rainbow Village’s Board of Directors. As Senior VP of Commercial Banking for SunTrust, it wasn’t unusual for Jeff to receive invitations from clients. He attended the Open House Event at a client’s behest during a turning point for the nonprofit – the launch of Rainbow Village’s capital campaign. It was there that he met CEO Nancy Yancey and learned more about the nonprofit organization with a mission to break the cycles of homelessness, poverty and domestic violence. He was immediately impressed with Rainbow Village’s great track record and reputation they’d built in the North Metro Atlanta community since the nonprofit’s launch 21 years earlier. Although nothing stood on that ground but a few architectural renderings of future buildings on easels, he could easily envision the promise this place held for homeless families with minor children.

Finding real value in his background in banking, Nancy invited Jeff to join the Finance Committee – helping to manage the budget and expenses for the nonprofit. By 2013, he was invited to join the Board of Directors. Over the course of the last 6 years, he has served as Treasurer, Chair and Treasurer again. In 2020, it will be his time to roll off the Board, but he’s grateful for all that he’s experienced and witnessed during his time at Rainbow Village.

“It’s an organization that I really wanted to help,” recalled Jeff. “It was a great time to be introduced to Rainbow Village. When I first arrived at the Open House, it was nothing but raw land. So, in the seven years that I’ve been here, I’ve been able to witness its growth over time. It helped that there were already very good building blocks in place to help people for over two decades. I had a heart for what they were doing during an exciting period in their history as they were completing the first phase of their capital campaign. It was a pivotal time for an organization with a great vision that I wanted to be a part of. I had never served on the board of a nonprofit before and I had wanted to be more involved, so it was great timing.”

Jeff insists that his biggest source of pride in serving on the Board of Directors for Rainbow Village was that the organization was able to complete building the entire campus without debt thanks to the capital campaign and pledges. When asked why Rainbow Village continues to draw a strong support base with so many great nonprofits in place throughout Atlanta, Jeff said that he felt it all goes back to the fact that Rainbow Village is all about the mission. Even though the capital campaign has ended and the original vision of a Family Services Center, Community Center and five Apartment Buildings with room enough to house 30 families at a time is a glorious reality, the mission remains strong.

“It’s one that really tugs on a lot of heart strings,” Jeff added. “People have different perceptions of homelessness. They may envision a middle-aged man begging for food in downtown Atlanta. The reality is that the average age for a homeless person is 8 years old. People don’t necessarily think about homelessness impacting children and families, but homelessness is a big problem in Gwinnett and Atlanta. By educating the public about this issue and Rainbow Village’s mission to break those cycles, I have no doubt that we can convince more individuals, companies and organizations to invest the resources to help. Rainbow Village offers a completely different model from a homeless shelter. In addition to helping the parents work their way out of homelessness, we’re having a bigger impact than we realize on their kids.”

 “It was – and continues to be – a totally different organization,” said Jeff. “It’s been so cool to see it evolve over time and witness the vision come together to become the thriving campus it is today. But, it’s more than a campus and community. It’s an organization that goes deeper to make a more lasting impact with its residents. It brings different types of talent together with all this positive momentum. It’s awesome to think of how many families we’ve served and all the success stories that have come out of Rainbow Village. It’s making real change for the good of its residents and society. We really are making a difference. The people who graduate from Rainbow Village are prepared to be more productive members of society.”

As for what he sees on the horizon for the nonprofit… “I’m very excited about the recent addition of Melanie Connor as Rainbow Village’s Chief Executive Officer and how much she’s been able to accomplish in a short time. She adds a different level of focus and serves as a breath of fresh air. She fit right into the organization’s unique culture from day one. I have all the faith in the world that she will take the Rainbow Village vision forward while applying key past professional operational experience. I would love for Melanie and the Board to figure out a way to replicate the success of Rainbow Village in other geographical areas plagued by homelessness – either by opening satellite campuses or by serving as a model for other communities to follow. It would also be wonderful to develop better metrics and tracking around our alumni and their children to measure future success.”

In addition to the Board of Directors for Rainbow Village, Jeff serves on the Corporate Development Society Board for the Technology Association of Georgia (TAG). He lives in Suwanee with his wife with two children. When not hard at work at SunTrust or at board functions, his favorite pastime is spending time with his wife, 3½-year-old son and 1-year-old daughter. On Sunday mornings, you can find the Charron family in the congregation at Victory World Church.