Brett served 24 years in a prison facility, where he became a lifelong learner. In pursuit of furthering his education, he was accepted into The Last Mile program at Putnamville Correctional Facility, which taught him cutting-edge technology skills in full stack web development. Upon returning home, Brett became interested in cybersecurity and sought out resources to better educate himself. This search led him to a podcast called Cybersecurity 101 with Joe and Larry. After making a connection with Joe Stocker, co-host of the podcast, Brett was invited as a guest on their show. Since learning more about The Last Mile, Joe has been a loyal supporter of its mission. Additionally, Joe and Brett have continued to maintain a professional relationship and personal friendship to this day.
The Last Mile provides opportunities for personal and professional growth for justice-involved individuals through education and technology training. We couldn’t accomplish our mission without generous donations from people like you. Your support is changing the lives of justice-impacted people in men's, women's, and youth facilities across the country who are now being given an opportunity through the power of education.
Donate to The Last Mile
Your donation today can support:
Partner with The Last Mile
Partnerships with The Last Mile help Pave the Road to Success after a program participant has been released. Securing meaningful employment with qualified technical skills learned within the program is made possible by the partnership of innovative, progressive companies who believe in the power of fair chance hiring. Take a look at our Partnerships Guide for more information on ways to partner with The Last Mile and fill out a form on our website if you’d like to learn more and get involved.
For more information about The Last Mile's programs, we encourage you to explore our 2021 Annual Report and TLM Fact Sheet.
If you are interested in learning more about opportunities to donate to The Last Mile, please reach out to [email protected]
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Patriot Consulting partners with Ainsley’s Angels of America to support maximum inclusiveness for people with disabilities
Meet Ainsley of Ainsley’s Angels
When little Ainsley entered the world in 2003, it changed the lives of Kim and Lori Rossiter forever. Kim, now a retired Marine Corps Major, recalls that his daughter was always full of joy. “She had a permanent sense of happiness about her,” he said.
In 2006, doctors conducted a series of tests after Ainsley failed to meet expected developmental milestones. Based on the test results, they diagnosed Ainsley with infantile neuroaxonal dystrophy, an extremely rare terminal illness that slowly causes global paralysis.
Despite the shock, denial, and sadness, the Rossiter family decided to celebrate every day with Ainsley. And they wanted to go even further. They wanted to share Ainsley’s joy with everyone they met.
In 2008, Ainsley’s physical therapist told the Rossiters about a running group that had just formed in support of Rick Hoyt, who was diagnosed as a spastic quadriplegic with cerebral palsy. Kim was excited to join. When Ainsley went for her first jog in her customized chair during a local road race, she gave a radiant smile that anyone would envy.
“Her face just lit up like the sun,” said Kim. “I wasn’t a runner. But I was about to become one for my daughter.”
“We are incredibly grateful for the work that the team at Patriot Consulting has done for us, and we highly recommend their services to other organizations with similar needs. They will do everything to ensure that you’re successful, your goals are met, and you get precisely what you wanted.”
Run for Ainsley
Running soon became a therapeutic way to help the Rossiter family cope with Ainsley’s condition. The powerful experience eventually propelled the Rossiters to bring together the necessary equipment and resources to pair runners with riders. That was the beginning of Ainsley’s Angels of America.
Since 2011, Ainsley’s Angels has grown to support more than thirtyfive thousand disabled runners through races, marathons, and community gatherings.
Though Ainsley passed away in 2016, the organization is transforming populations in hundreds of communities across the nation with nearly seventy locations across thirty states.
“It’s all about inclusion—even beyond running,” said Joe Orth, Executive Vice President of Ainsley’s Angels. “We believe everyone should be included in all aspects of life. Our goal is to continue our work while creating and supporting all-inclusive communities across the nation.”
Patriot Consulting Supports a Strong Mission
To further its mission, Ainsley’s Angels came to Patriot Consulting for help.
“We needed to migrate from Google’s G-Suite to Microsoft 365, which was a big transformation for us and how we operate,” said Joe Orth. “A significant reason for the shift was that we wanted to create a customer relationship management system. We were told that it would be best if we were on the Microsoft platform, and Patriot Consulting was the firm to get us there.”
Patriot Consulting focuses exclusively on securing Microsoft 365 installations. However, the purpose behind Ainsley’s Angels’s need was so inspiring that the Patriot Consulting team volunteered to provide pro bono consulting to migrate them to M365.
Today, Ainsley’s Angels operates on Microsoft 365, which is secured by Patriot Consulting’s SecureShield 365 Managed Services. This highly secure platform enables Ainsley’s Angels to conduct a more professional and efficient outreach program that helps connect the organization with a growing number of supporters.
Patriot Consulting supports Give the Needy Foundation’s efforts to bring clean water to remote villages in Pakistan
A Mother’s Inspiration
In Dhaka, Bangladesh, during the 1960s, Masumeh Dilaram was
one of the distinguished social workers in a group known as
the Ladies Welfare Society. This collection of a dozen spirited
women hosted fundraisers to support the underprivileged
and less fortunate. Throughout her life, Masumeh continued
to extend her hand to those in need while her daughter, Mali
Armand, watched and learned.
When she reached adulthood, Mali decided to follow in her
mother’s philanthropic footsteps. Mali’s first effort was finding
and taking care of her childhood caretaker and her six children.
After feeling the joy of successfully supporting a family, Mali
began to support other single mothers in Kenya and Vietnam.
“It didn’t make sense for me to care for just one family,” said
Mali. “Fortunately, I was receiving donations that supported my
efforts to help more single mothers.”
After witnessing what she could do on her own, Mali decided
to scale her efforts. In 2008, Mali founded the Give the Needy
Foundation to care for mothers who were raising their children
alone. Her vision was to make a lasting impact on their lives.
“I’m extremely grateful for all of the support Patriot Consulting gives to the Give the Needy Foundation.”
An Expanded Vision
The overarching idea behind the Give the Needy Foundation is that every
person deserves the right to a dignified way of life. By improving the quality of llife of those who are in need, the organization inspires hope for a better future.
Through her foundation, Mali began to help a growing number of families.
Soon, the supportive work became too much for just one person. That’s
when she decided to evolve the activities of the foundation with the goal of
helping many families at once.
“I was motivated by a friend who ran a much larger nonprofit organization
that constructed water wells in remote parts of the world,” said Mali. “That’s
when I knew that I could take on projects impacting large groups of people.”
Mali went from helping just a handful of families to helping hundreds
of people. The Give the Needy Foundation now provides clean water to
agriculture-dependent rural villages in Pakistan where drinking water is
scarce. The foundation also distributes food rations and blankets to flood
victims and displaced families in Sindh, a Pakistani province. Furthermore,
the foundation supports nonprofit organizations in the United States, such
as the Orangewood Children and Family Center.
“Kindness is giving hope to those who think they are all alone in this world,”
said Mali. “It’s such a good feeling to see the people in the villages so
happy with such a basic necessity that we take for granted.”
It Takes a Village to Help a Village
The Give the Needy Foundation is able to do the work it does thanks to
ongoing fundraising efforts and individual donations. Such contributions have
allowed Mali to raise enough money to fund several water wells since 2020.
“Prior to the wells, the people in some of these villages had to walk several
miles to get water, so there is great joy in these villages to have access to
clean water for their daily lives,” said Mali. “The satisfaction of seeing these
people and animals enjoy clean water is tremendous.”
Each year, the foundation hosts a fundraising luncheon. This year, it was
sponsored by Patriot Consulting.
“Patriot Consulting is a big help,” said Mali. “The company has provided
the Give the Needy Foundation with financial support that has helped me
conduct various fundraising activities. Joe Stocker, Patriot Consulting’s
founder and CEO, also advises me regarding the foundation’s activities. He
plays a valuable role in the success of the foundation.”
Donations to the Give the Needy Foundation can be made at givetheneedy.org/donate.
