2025…Connected in The Same House
As we close out 2025, we also mark the passing of a quarter of a century. For many of us, especially Baby Boomers and Generation X, the last 25 years have felt fundamentally different from the 25 that came before. Technology has transformed nearly every aspect of our lives. Smartphones, computers, and social media have connected us instantly and globally. New marketplaces and opportunities for prosperity have emerged that would have been unimaginable just a generation ago.
And yet, despite all this connection, the economic and social gaps in our society have not closed. Instead, they’ve only gotten bigger. In October of this year, the wealth of the top 1% reached a record-breaking $52 trillion, meaning they now control three times as much wealth as the entire bottom half of humanity.
Why? It’s not because we lack the tools or resources, but because our systems weren’t created for everyone to prosper in the first place. Inclusion and connection are not impossible. They are simply not prioritized. In many ways, 2025 has laid bare a deficit of imagination when it comes to economic mobility and shared opportunity.
The Same House was born to challenge that reality.
This year, even in the face of a national assault on the values of inclusion, equity, and connection, we continued to do the work. And more importantly, we succeeded. We proved, once again, that working across silos is still the most powerful way forward.
Through Beloved Benefit 2025, we witnessed what is possible when businesses, nonprofits, celebrities, civic leaders, and community members come together with a shared purpose. Together, we raised more than $8.3 million to move the needle for Atlanta. Those funds supported eight incredible organizations advancing economic mobility, including Atlanta Technical College, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta, City of Refuge, Latin American Association, Morehouse School of Medicine, New Life Community Alliance, Partners for Home, and Westside Future Fund.
Through three rounds of Beacon Voting, our community also uplifted nine additional organizations: LEAD, Silence the Shame, Georgia Hispanic Chamber, Free Rent.org, Nsoro Educational Foundation, Center for Black Women’s Wellness, House Proud, PAW Kids, and MUST Ministries. It was a joy to work alongside so many mission-driven teams who are meeting real needs across Georgia every day.
We also celebrated Youth Lead Georgia, which graduated its second cohort and selected its third, and hosted our Connected in the Same House boutique events in partnership with the City of Atlanta and DeKalb County, creating space for vital conversations and new collaborations.
Thank you to our sponsors, whose generosity supported many of our efforts: Chick-fil-A, The Home Depot, Georgia Power, Coca-Cola, and Smurfit Westrock. Their partnership made it possible for us to convene, invest, and follow through, not just celebrate.
Our staff evolved and grew this year, and I am deeply grateful for their collaboration and commitment to this work.
2025 may have been a year of uncertainty, but it was also a year when communities chose to work together, serve one another, and build bridges across divides. It reminded us of a simple truth: we truly all live and are connected in the Same House.
May you and your loved ones have a Merry Christmas, a joyful holiday season, and a Happy New Year. We look forward to building on this momentum together in 2026.