Today we’d like to introduce you to Carrie Nowocin.
Hi Carrie, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
When people first meet me via the charity, they typically ask, “what’s your back story?” So, I’d like to start there. I want the readers to understand that It was never in my life plan to start a charity. I never thought I could and never thought I would benefit others in the way I do today. It just goes to show you that you may have it all planned out, but there are other things that you are supposed to do in your lifetime. So, let us begin.
When in high school, my dream was to become a doctor. I did OK in high school. As a senior, instead of taking AP (Advanced Placement) classes, I enrolled in community college classes to get guaranteed college credit. In my “spare” time, I was a candy striper (female volunteer) at a local hospital and a basketball and softball coach at the local boys and girls club.
I had my life all planned out: I would attend the University of Washington (UW) as a premed student, become an officer of the United States Air Force (USAF), work for the Center for Disease Control (CDC), and then open my own practice in Los Angeles or New York City. I even had the brochures for each government entity I wanted to work for.
Although I had my life planned out, the universe had other plans. I did end up going to the UW. Unfortunately, I didn’t join the USAF due to a medical condition discovered during the entrance physical. However, I was blessed to have been awarded a few small scholarships and saved money over the past couple of summers. Needing to be on my own, I decided to live on campus.
The first week I was there was hell. First, I found out that my parents put down my 9-year-old dog without telling me, stating they “didn’t want to stress me out.” Then, to make matters worse, my roommate had insomnia, liked to party all the time, and kept me up with her puking every other night.
My grades slipped, and I ended up on academic probation. My dream of going to medical school was now just that, a dream. What was I going to do now? I had no backup plan, but I needed to figure it out soon.
I didn’t want to go home. My father is a narcissistic sociopath. I couldn’t go back. I knew I deserved better.
I switched roommates, and things got better. My peers and college counselors would tell me engineering was the way to go, so I took a pre-engineering class. In that class, I discovered the engineering program for Technical Communication (now referred to as Human-Centered Design Engineering). I worked with the program counselors and professors and was able to get my grades up enough to make it into the program.
In my sophomore year, I asked one of my friends to be my roommate. And, OMG! The positive environment helped me thrive. This person is one of my best friends, and I’ve even become Auntie Carrie to her children.
During my junior year, I started thinking about becoming a screenwriter. So yeah, I know you’re probably thinking, “What made you change to that?” Well, the truth is, I’ve always loved telling stories. I just never thought I would be any good at it or that anyone would care to read my stories. And, due to living in a positive environment, my confidence was growing. I knew it wasn’t wise to change majors at this time, so I decided to wait until I was ready to learn that craft. I did, however, start jotting down story ideas for future writing endeavors.
In my senior year, I was on the Dean’s list twice. I was the Corporate Liaison of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and an active member of several other student organizations. I traveled a lot with other students, representing the University at multiple events. I connected with many corporate recruiters and then was selected to partake in a cooperative internship at IBM for 6 months.
After graduating, I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area to work for Cisco Systems. I began volunteering again, becoming a big sister with the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.
9 months later, the big web crash happened. Now, I was out of work and dealing with roommate drama again. The environment was so bad; I opted to become homeless. Not street homeless, though. I was going to stay at a hotel until I figured out what to do next. Luckily, I have great friends that insisted I stay with them. They’ve been a blessing, and to this day, they are one of the many inspirations to LOVE (Let Our Voices Empower).
Two months later, I was able to secure my own place and get back to work. Once my life got a little more stable, I went back to school (community college) to take film and TV production classes. I started with screenwriting and loved it, so I decided to get a certificate.
Fast-forward 11 years, I’m now in Los Angeles. I was working for the #2 video game company globally and was excited about my next chapter. I thought, “I made it! I’m close to Hollywood, and now is the time to get started with getting my scripts made.”
In 2013, a light bulb went off about starting a charity. Today it is known as Carry Me Productions (CMP). I started reviewing all of my stories, and there was one thing they all had in common: the main characters who were currently homeless. So, as I thrived in my profession, I decided to use my passion for filmmaking to start a charity that helped other charities carry their mission to the masses.
I told my mom about the idea. She supported me 100%. Although she didn’t fully understand the vision, she became the co-founder.
As I went out to do videos for other nonprofits, which targeted “helping” the homeless. As I followed along, I didn’t really see any positive change. Instead, people were enabled to stay homeless or were being threatened if they did not follow orders. I saw a lot of nonprofit leaders not practicing what they preached. Most of the time, pictures and stories were just facades to get the masses to donate. Some even had documentaries made about their nonprofit. I was mad and frustrated. I could only imagine what those stuck in the system felt.
So, I quit doing videos and started researching why people were homeless. After I compiled my research, I wrote a few housing programs designed to house people cheaply and in safe neighborhoods. Then, I presented the program proposals to a few nonprofits in Los Angeles. They said, “this isn’t feasible for us,” that “if you think it can be done, you should just do it.”
Ha, they don’t know me. I was happy to take on such a challenge. I then decided to present the proposals to a couple of large banks and government programs. They loved them, but since the proposals relied on community support, they wanted to see if I could really make it work.
One bank sold CMP a foreclosed house at a considerable discount. I called a few nonprofits for assistance, noting that the program would start with women veterans. Some of the nonprofits told me they would help renovate the house. This is where I did it wrong. I should have had them sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
Two years went by. The nonprofits bailed on us. I worked on the house, fixing what I could. I had one nonprofit help with electrical and painting, but we needed to remodel the bathroom before anyone could rent.
So in 2018, we had to choose, sell the house or keep trying to fix it up. The board members voted to sell the house and financially assist veterans and foster youth financially. The endeavor was not in vain. With the funds, we were able to buy vehicles for one impoverished and three homeless veterans. Those vehicles allowed the veterans to make their VA appointments and eventually get housing, a job, and become financially independent.
We were able to get veterans off the streets and into motels for a few weeks at a time. The money went fast. Mainly because service providers weren’t helping these veterans, I would take time off work to drive the veterans to the VA and meet with nonprofit leaders. I wrote letters to city council members about the negligence at the taxer-payer funded nonprofits.
People I helped would tell me, “you’re a bulldog. I don’t want anyone else to be my advocate.” So, that’s when I determined CMP would provide advocacy services. Thus, Carry Forward (AKA Success Forward) was born. The people we help typically have no family or friends they could turn to for guidance.
You can read some of the stories on our website, and there are a few videos on our YouTube channel. Keep in mind that the stories haven’t been updated in a while because we need post-production volunteers.
The toughest part for me is getting the word out about what we’re doing and how others can get involved. I don’t have a marketing background, and I’m not one to say I know how to do something when I clearly don’t.
Another thing is that people believe the charity is a play on my name. So here’s a quick backstory to the name Carry Me Productions. In 2013, I asked one of my good friends to have her 9-year-old daughter pick from three names. She picked Carry Me Productions because it “sounded friendly.” The thing about children, they’re primarily honest and sincere, so I went with her thought. I then created the logo and the mission: Carry Me Productions strives to produce breakthrough results for those who are homeless or living in poverty. Our vision involves breaking barriers and producing results between those who want to give and those who need help.
We’ve changed our mission a few times to fill the gaps in services for veterans and youth in need. Most people come to ask, “why veterans and youth?” The simple answer is this; I have many family members who served in the military, so I wanted to do something that honored them. As for helping youth, I have one adopted son, a former foster youth, and another young man staying with me who “aged out” of the system. I met both while participating in a co-mentoring program for young adults and professionals. The eldest I adopted at the age of 20.
People ask, why adopt an adult? The short answer, everyone wants to be loved and feel welcomed in this world. I wanted to start a family, and he wanted to be part of a family, even if that meant only having a single parent. Adding him to my family has been one of my most significant accomplishments.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The greatest struggles I’ve encountered are the lies fed to me and those we serve. For example, when CMP moved to Tempe, AZ, in 2019, a homeless veteran reached out to us for help. I, being naïve to the area, worked with not one but two shady nonprofit leaders. I had one veteran organization connect us to their “friend” who “graciously” sold the homeless veteran a truck for over $3,000. The truck fell apart 2 days later. The homeless veteran and I called them out of their shady deal, but I should have known not to trust them. I should have followed my instincts, which were telling me something wasn’t right with these guys. CMP submitted a complaint to the Arizona Attorney General’s office. Their response was that they couldn’t do anything because it was a civil matter. So, these guys knew what they were doing. We got a lawyer and wanted to take the charity and his friends to court, but they got lucky. COVID-19 shut down everything. Lesson learned, and no more buying vehicles for veterans.
Sadly, I have many more stories like this. Nonprofit leaders are taking advantage of people who are suffering. I’ve been bullied by nonprofit leaders online because they didn’t like me telling the truth about them in my blogs. It just makes me madder and makes me want to work harder. To be honest, I have days I’ve thought about quitting, but every time I start to think of stopping, I get a message from one of the veterans I helped get off the streets or I get a call from another veteran who is falling through the cracks.
If you’re a taxpayer, you should want to know, demand actually, where your funds are going, and the actual impact it has on the communities served.
Pro tip: You can learn a lot about a nonprofit just by reviewing their tax returns.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
CMP is unique. There is no other nonprofit like it. Some of the services we provide, when funding allows, are:
• Bus passes
• Clothing/hygiene items
• Apartment furnishings
• Mentorship
• Guidance to government services
• Advocacy through overwhelming times
• Help with paperwork
• And much more
To help get the word out, we plan to launch a free streaming channel on Roku, Amazon Fire, and more. We are also looking into having a podcast on Spotify, iHeartRadio, etc. We have a social media app available at carrylovetv.org, which displays the streaming content on any mobile device and allows people to present questions, resources, etc, please see our websites and social media profiles to learn more. The funding we receive from sponsorships and advertising assists us with launching a video/production workforce program.
Our ultimate goal is to run a transitional housing program funded by the community, not the government. The staff would be veterans and others we have helped along the way. Contact me if you’d like to see any of the unique housing models I’ve written.
If you want to get involved with video/audio production, advocacy, mentoring, or something else for CMP, please reach out to me. Remember that we are 100% donor operated and that what we get from the community goes back out to the community.
What were you like growing up?
I was a driven and energetic child. I was very stubborn but determined to do what was right, even if it meant not being liked. I was active with dance, writing, and playing music (piano/saxophone) and played basketball almost every day.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@carrymeproductions.org
- Website: www.carrymeproductions.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carrymeprod/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CarryMeProductions
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/carrymeprod
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/carrymeprod
- Other: www.carrylovetv.org
Image Credits
Carrie Nowocin
Jim Matlock
