When you have a community, anything is possible.

Twelve Plus One is a 501c3 started by 12 women who have shared almost every phase of life together. As adolescents, our joy in each other eclipsed and shielded us in many ways from external challenges - divorce, addiction, financial hardship to name a few. We were, and continue to be, a most fortunate group of friends.

Within months of turning 40, our little band faced considerable loss. The unexpected death of a larger than life husband and father. The cancer diagnosis of a child. The sudden or sometimes lingering loss of parents. And the added strain of a global pandemic.

We held each other up emotionally and processed these major life events without the underlying fear of financial burden. We were each other’s built in safety net. And that has made all the difference.

It is our mission to extend this community of support to others. Sharing the pain lightens the load. And Twelve Plus One is dedicated to stepping into the gap that follows an unexpected life event.

A 2019 study from NORC at the University of Chicago, an independent social research institution, found that 51% of working adults in the United States would need to access savings to cover necessities if they missed more than one paycheck. And, according to a pre-pandemic report by the Federal Reserve, 4 in 10 Americans couldn’t afford a $400 emergency.

Twelve Plus One serves as a bridge to help avoid financial crisis, administering small grants to individuals and families. To learn more about our simple application process, please visit our apply for funding page. To share in the mission, please donate here.