UCAN (You Can Achieve Now) is a 501c3 non-profit organization, founded in Memphis, TN in 2005 by Richardetta Kight and Leshundra Finley. Our mission is to strengthen young adolescents through mentoring, personal development, and education that which will bring forth a positive impact in the community. We have extended our hands and volunteering efforts with various schools, other non-profit organizations and the community. By strengthening the connection with our adolescents, our vision is to enhance the adolescent’s personal lives by helping them to form a brighter future. We focus on adolescents’ ages 8-18 because we believe those are the most critical years of their life.

In our first few years, our most visible work was involvement with Gordon Elementary and Dave Wells Community Center in assuring the youth in the North Memphis area benefited from the meaningful tools and activities that would help build upon their social development and education. Gordon Elementary was adopted by UCAN September 13, 2006 and has been actively involved with their growth. We continue to seek financial sponsorship to help aid our youth so they might stay actively involved in programs offered by UCAN. Our programs involve community outreach, image development, financial planning, college planning, and career workshops which all affect our youth today.

We are giving back to the community in hopes of improving our society. Board members and donations support most of our work, but you can help us do more! Your company can make a difference by volunteering your time, donating your facility for workshops, and donations, including but not limited to monetary donations, workbooks, school supplies and merchandise. This will help make our events and programs more successful. We just don’t talk about what we do, we actually do what we say.

The difference between the present and our future is YOU. Are you willing to make a difference?