our Mission
Heartworkers Union is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to empowering young people to become healthy, resilient, compassionate, and connected — to themselves, to one another, and to the world around them.
At the heart of our work are The Four Movements of a Heartworker:
The Relations with Your Environment
The Relations with Your Community
The Relations with Your Mental and Emotional Health
The Relations with Your Physical Body
Through these four pillars, we help young people develop connection, expression, purpose, wellness, and a deeper understanding of themselves and their place in the world.
Increasingly, nature is where we bring these relationships to life. We take youth beyond their everyday surroundings and into mountains, forests, rivers, and oceans—places where they can unplug, explore, challenge themselves, build meaningful relationships, and experience the healing power of the natural world.
We believe some of life's most important lessons, and some of its deepest healing, happen outside four walls.
our story
Heartworkers Union was born in San Jose in 2020, during the height of the pandemic, when young people desperately needed safe places to learn, connect, and belong. In partnership with Sunrise Middle School, we created a space where students could continue their education, receive food and other necessities, and find community during an uncertain time.
From there, our work grew. We partnered with local organizations, artists, coaches, businesses, and educators to provide wellness programs, art and music, sports, environmental projects, entrepreneurship, mental health support, and community events.
Today, our vision is increasingly focused on getting young people outdoors and into nature. This means hiking mountains, exploring forests, swimming in alpine lakes, camping under the stars, kayaking, rafting, visiting the coast, caring for the environment, and discovering places many have never had the opportunity to experience. And, we gave out 30 individual scholarships to youth who demonstrated a desire and purpose for helping their families, education, interests or future careers with a gift of several hundred dollars.
These adventures are about much more than recreation. They build confidence, resilience, friendships, environmental stewardship, and a sense of possibility. They give young people room to breathe, reflect, take healthy risks, and discover strengths they may not have known they had.
Heartworkers Union is more than an organization. We are a collective of educators, counselors, coaches, artists, mentors, and community members committed to helping young people grow strong roots, spread their wings, and become the next generation of Heartworkers.