🌟 Griot and Grits: Preserving Black Stories Before They Disappear
Community Goal: $100,000
Every family has a storyteller. Every community has a keeper of wisdom. But as elders age and memories fade, too many of our stories are being lost — quietly, permanently, and far too soon.
Griot and Grits exists to stop that loss.
We are a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the oral histories of African American families through ethical technology, community-centered storytelling, and youth empowerment. We record, protect, and archive the stories that rarely make it into textbooks — the stories shared in kitchens, on porches, at reunions, and in the everyday moments that define who we are.
And we provide this service completely free to families.
But to do this work at scale — and to do it right — we need community support.
This is why we’re launching a bold, purpose-driven $100,000 campaign, broken into four clear phases that show exactly what your donation makes possible.
What Your Donation Makes Possible - $100 = One Story Preserved Forever
Every $100 funds the full process of capturing, editing, and archiving one family story — a story that might otherwise be lost to time. Your contribution doesn’t just support a project. It protects a legacy.
❤️ Why This Work Matters Right Now
We are living in a moment where history is being rewritten, challenged, or erased. But our stories — our real stories — deserve to be heard, honored, and preserved.
Your donation:
Protects irreplaceable voices
Trains youth to become community historians
Builds a digital archive that will outlive all of us
Ensures Black stories remain in our hands, not lost to time
🙏 Join Us in Preserving Our Stories Every dollar moves us to the next phase. Every share helps this campaign reach someone who cares. Every contribution — big or small — protects a story that deserves to live on. Donate today. Share widely. Help us preserve Black stories before they disappear.
This is more than a fundraiser.
This is cultural preservation.
This is resistance.
This is legacy.
🙏 Join Us in Preserving Our Stories
Every dollar moves us to the next phase. Every share helps this campaign reach someone who cares. Every contribution — big or small — protects a story that deserves to live on.
Donate today.
Share widely.
Help us preserve Black stories before they disappear.
🌱 Our 4‑Phase Plan to Preserve 1,000+ Stories
Each phase unlocks a critical part of the mission.
Each milestone brings more families into the archive.
Each dollar moves us closer to preserving our history on our own terms.
📌 Phase 1 — $15,000: Equip the Story Preservation Team (Most Urgent) To continue our mission to preserve family histories, we need the tools to do it well. Your support funds:
Professional audio recorders and microphones
Cameras and lighting kits
Portable interview setups for home visits
Secure storage drives for raw recordings
Equipment for youth in the “Learn How to Be a Griot” program
What this unlocks: We can expand our reach, recording more stories immediately — from elders, families, and youth storytellers across North Carolina.
📌 Phase 2 — $30,000: Sustain Staff to Record 150+ Family Stories
Once we have equipment, the next barrier is capacity. Your support funds: Expenses for interviewers, editors, storytellers, and story collectors
Travel to families across the state
Training for youth and volunteers
Transcription and light editing of recordings
What this unlocks: We can record 150+ family oral histories, building a growing archive of voices, memories, and cultural wisdom.
📌 Phase 3- $35,000: Build the AI‑Powered Digital Archive Infrastructure
This is where the long-term value of Griot and Grits comes to life. Your support funds:
Cloud infrastructure for secure, long-term storage
AI tools for indexing, search, and story discovery
Development of “Family Chapters” — personalized digital spaces
A public-facing archive where families can explore stories
What this unlocks: A permanent, accessible home for every recorded story — searchable, interactive, and built to last for generations.
📌 Phase 4 — $20,000: Community Outreach, Partnerships & Expansion
Once the archive is built, we take this movement into the community. Your support funds:
Outreach to churches, schools, and community centers
Workshops and storytelling events
Marketing and awareness campaigns
Partnerships with cultural institutions and local media
What this unlocks: Hundreds of families learning about and accessing the service — and a movement that grows beyond North Carolina.