Start & Grow Your Nonprofit Podcast · Tim Needham

Episode 50 - What Makes Nonprofit Programming Work with Lilly Blake

October 7, 2025·52 min·4 clips
Lilly Blake reveals how a Sweetie Pies menu inspired her groundbreaking 'a la carte' case management approach.
Tim Needham and Mary Velloni interview Lilly Blake, co-founder of Restoration House St. Louis, about their innovative nonprofit programming. They discuss the 'a la carte' case management model, the importance of team dynamics and trust, and how avoiding restrictive funding allows for creative, faith-based social work. The episode highlights their journey from underdogs to impacting over 15,000 people.

As heard by us

A warm founder conversation that treats nonprofit structure as part of the mission.

A founder and cofounder conversation about nonprofit work could easily drift into abstraction, but this one stays close to the work. Mary Velloni returns, Lily Blake joins from Restoration House, and the episode keeps circling the same practical question: how do you build care…

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Why you'd press play

You want a candid founder chat about building a nonprofit in a new way and showing the work can hold up in practice.

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