Project Legacy Minnesota (PLMN)

Organization

Project Legacy Minnesota was founded in 2008 as a nonprofit that aids racial minority youth and young adults who are gang-affiliated and street-involved who have experienced poverty, trauma, homelessness, or sexual exploitation; are sex workers; or are refugees from war-torn countries. PLMN requires participation in the development of a plan for the individual’s education, career development, and post-trauma therapy. PLMN claims 85 percent of the organization’s participants have experienced homelessness, and 90 percent had family members incarcerated. Nearly one-third of participants come from “war-torn” countries. PLMN claims to have 60 youth enrolled at any given time. ³

Programs

Project Legacy Minnesota offers “Support 365” that pairs participants with a “Youth Navigator” who connects them to educational and career planning, meals and groceries, mental-health support, and health insurance. ⁴

PLMN provides case management that includes education, therapy, drug abuse treatment, legal assistance, and job placement. The organization offers three “Healing Circles” each week that provide group support and therapy. ⁵

PLMN provides Project Red Umbrella, a specialized program for individuals aged 17 to 28 who have been sexually exploited, are survivors of sex trafficking, or are leaving the sex industry. It includes GED tutoring, rental assistance, college tuition assistance, and financial literacy training along with the full range of other organization offerings. ⁶

PLMN, along with partners Rochester Public Schools; Lily Gonsalez, a co-founder of the Revolutionary Scholars of California; and Jose Oruna, the founder of Restore INK, offer the Legacy Scholars program. The program is designed for young adults aged 16 to 24 and provides educational assistance and tutoring, mental-health support, and meals and groceries to young racial minorities through their graduation from college. ⁷

Legacy Residency is PLMN’s wraparound support for participants, that offers housing and mentorship to aid entry into the workforce. ⁸

Network

Project Legacy Minnesota is one of over 400 organizations belonging to the Global Homeboy Network (GHN), which began in 1988 to improve the lives of former gang members in East Los Angeles, California. ²

Funding

Project Legacy Minnesota reported on its 2024 tax return receiving $251,494 in government grants, or 51 percent of its total annual revenue. ⁹

Project Legacy Minnesota has received grants of  $25,000 from the Marshall Family Fund in 2024, $25,000 from the Mardag Foundation in 2024, and $16,667 from the Hordes Family Foundation. ^{10  11}

PLMN’s 2021 annual report listed the State of Minnesota, the Mayo Clinic, the Olmsted Medical Center, the Mardag Foundation, the Otto Bremer Trust, and the Harper Family Foundation as donors. ¹²

People

Karen Light Edmonds is a co-founder and executive director of Project Legacy Minnesota. Her husband, John Edmonds, is a co-founder and member of the board of directors and previously sat on the African American Disparities Advisory Committee at the Minnesota Department of Human Services. ¹

The PLMN executive committee includes Jane Rosenman, a doctor at the Mayo Clinic, as vice chair; Carole Pasternak of Clamp Law Firm as chair; Lauren Mao from the Associated Bank; and Chao Mwatela from the City of Rochester, Minnesota. ¹