Sometimes, the hardest thing is believing in yourself.
The Rural Gone Urban Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering brave and strong women, particularly those from rural communities, through various forms of support. Founded by Brooke Clay Taylor, the foundation aims to uplift women facing challenges in different aspects of life, including entrepreneurship, education, and health.
Key Highlights:
Mission: The foundation's mission centers around investing in brave and strong women through small business grants, love bombs (acts of kindness and support), and scholarships.
Founder's Journey: Brooke Clay Taylor's personal experiences, including overcoming significant adversities such as the loss of her father to cancer and her own battles with triple-negative breast cancer, inspired the creation of the foundation. Her resilience and determination serve as a guiding light for the organization's mission.
Support Areas:
Small Business Grants: Providing financial support to aspiring female entrepreneurs, especially those in rural areas, to help turn their business ideas into reality.
Love Bombs: Offering acts of kindness and support to women in need, reinforcing the message that they are not alone in their journey.
Scholarships: Assisting B and C students from rural communities in pursuing higher education, challenging the stereotypes and biases they may face.
Symbolism: The foundation's logo, a bison, embodies the spirit of resilience and courage. Just as bison face storms head-on, the foundation stands with women, empowering them to confront and overcome challenges.
Community Impact: The Rural Gone Urban Foundation serves as a beacon of hope and support for women who often feel marginalized or overlooked. By fostering a community of empowerment and encouragement, the foundation aims to create lasting change in the lives of brave and strong women.
The Rural Gone Urban Foundation is more than just a nonprofit organization; it is a movement dedicated to transforming lives, breaking barriers, and building a brighter future for brave and strong women across rural communities.
Brooke Clay Taylor founded The Rural Gone Urban Foundation to support strong women doing brave things.
A toddler mom and ranch girl at heart, Brooke Clay Taylor has lived a life punctuated by hard things.
At 6 years old, she lost her dad to colon cancer.
Before starting junior high, she traded her close-knit Indiana farming community for an Oklahoma cattle ranch.
As a senior in high school, her guidance counselor assessed her as “not college material,” recommending she was better suited for job training than degree-seeking.
She bet the house on love — and lost.
After a decade of building a career working for internationally recognized agriculture brands, she moved into her family’s horse barn to start over, launching a business with a single client and a prayer.
And in 2019, on the same day she gave birth to her daughter, she was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer, the worst, most aggressive form of the disease. Despite a complete pathological response to chemo and being declared cancer-free, in 2022, it returned for an act two.
But Brooke has faced exactly none of these roadblocks alone. Since she was small, her family, friends, and community have given Brooke the boosts she needed to rise to every challenge.
“Maybe the bravest thing,” Brooke says, “is admitting that while you could do it all by yourself, it’s okay to call on the people in your corner.”
In the wake of her second cancer diagnosis, Brooke launched The Rural Gone Urban Foundation to support brave, strong women who need people in their corner. The B and C students seeking scholarships. The small-town moms whose businesses only exist as ideas. And especially the women in the ring with cancer.
When a storm arises - literally or figuratively - we have an opportunity to lean into it, or run.
Bison do what any of us hope we’d do it in that situation — they face the storm.
While the others — elk, deer, moose, et al. - run, bison turn into the storm. And in doing so, they’re in midst of the storm for less time than those who are running with it.
The Rural Gone Urban Foundation supports brave and strong women. Those who turn into their storms. Those who refuse to backdown from a challenge.
