Donna Tashik

Any success I have had is thanks to God; He leads my steps and decisions and gave me this passion to help others. Each day begins with "Lord, lead me to make the decisions for our clients that You would have for them". I look for practical, no-nonsense solutions to problems, and make sure to be very active and known in our community, so I know where to go for the help our families need. Connections are everything in non-profit, they must be cultivated and maintained with integrity. I was also raised to know that no one is better than anyone else. The people we work with at Fresh Start are simply moms that lost their way, 8 times out of 10 out of no fault of their own. Generational problems-they never learned any better. Or left their abuser but cannot afford what rent has gone to in the world. She may have had children young, and never got the chance to get an education, or gotten on drugs, fought her way out of them and is now starting over. I choke up each time I think about how very hard it must be to look around your car, to see your babies sleeping in it, the fear and disbelief, how gut wrenching it must be to pick up a phone and say " I need help, we are homeless". And this spurs me on, to help them out of trauma, to help them feel safe again and move forward. Fear freezes people, trauma freezes people-we are here to unfreeze their trauma. To give them a village.

This program works-it can honestly put people on their feet. Because we pair benevolence with accountability, we give, but they must work for it. My staff and I work as hard as our clients do, but it is up to them to take advantage of what we offer. We are a genuine Fresh Start for those that will take it, follow the rules, attend the classes, see the counselors, do the hard work. We give them the TIME- up to 3 years for those that are progressing. We give them the SPACE-Our clients in transitional housing, a 1 year program, are provided a 2- or 3-bedroom apartment. We hold them ACCOUNTABLE-Our rules are strict-they may not have visitors in their apartments, the apartment will be inspected once per week, they must be and stay drug and alcohol free, attend Life Skills classes each Weds evening, meet weekly with their coach, pay 30% of whatever they make-20% fees, 10% savings. For that, we provide individual and group counseling, a food pantry, and a road map to move forward in life. Years 2 & 3 are in our Step-Up program-an apartment with set, affordable rent, they continue to contribute 10% to their savings, continue to attend classes, and can now sign up for our scholarship program. These 2 years are to work on your income and career, to get them ready to afford the real world, with a savings safety net, to have the $$ for a deposit and rent. We encourage, advise, teach, mother and lead our families to a better way. And each one that graduates, each one that comes back to visit that is doing well-there's the crown, the reward, the million-dollar-paycheck-best-feeling there is.

There does come a time, a point, where money is not the driving force, where you are fueled by purpose, driven by your God given talents. It's discovering what those talents you have are, and where they can best be used that gets you to the winning point.

Career Advice Best advice she has received: "Love what you do." Advice to young women entering nonprofit work: This work is incredibly rewarding but emotionally taxing. Find your passion, and pursue it. Don't pursue nonprofit work if your primary motivation is money. The greatest rewards come from improving and changing lives, putting in the hard work, not simply financial compensation. God hides the good stuff in the hard work! I know an amazing woman locally, Rachel Hutchings, a realtor who started a non-profit called Luxury Life Network, and dedicated the 2nd quarter of 2026 to Fresh Start. She named her charity that because it is designed to help other non-profits, to promote their mission and raise them funds. She explained the name, telling me that whether I knew it or not, I was living the luxury life, doing the hard work of being the feet and hands of Christ. That touched me to my core, and it is a luxury life indeed. We at Fresh Start have a front row seat to see the good in people, to meet the very best, most giving hearts, and to help raise people up to where they were meant to be. Sounds pretty luxurious to me!

Personal Interests

Outside of work, Donna enjoys:

Boating.
Fishing.
Trying new restaurants with her husband.
Spending time with her grandchildren.

She and the interviewer had an extended, lighthearted conversation about boating, fishing regulations, cooking fish on the boat, marine patrol, and lobster diving.

Why She Accepted the Recognition

Donna said she accepted the Influential Women recognition primarily to:

Promote Fresh Start.
Bring awareness to its mission.
Encourage others to replicate the organization's model in other communities.

She repeatedly emphasized that the recognition wasn't about her personally—it was about helping the organization and the women it serves.

Biggest Challenges Donna identified: Rising housing costs, inflation and the economy. Helping families earn enough income to afford housing after leaving the program. She emphasized that many mothers work hard but still cannot earn enough to meet today's housing costs. Typical Day Donna said every day is different. She may: Attend meetings with county officials, come back to the office and unload the food rescue truck to the pantry. We care for children, move furniture, give speeches, hire staff, raise funds, write grants, build community partnerships, play race cars on my desk with a 3 year old. She joked that one hour she might be in a meeting wearing high heels and the next unloading a truck still in heels!

About Fresh Start Donna described Fresh Start as a long-term housing program that helps homeless single mothers and their children become self-sufficient over approximately three years. She explained that the organization's goals are to: Provide a safe, stable environment where we help mothers gain education and better employment. We enable families to become financially independent, where eventually, our residents no longer need the program. Unlike many shelters, Fresh Start does not receive government funding because we have strict rules for entry- we perform background checks and maintain stricter admission standards to protect the children living on campus. Instead, we rely on grants, churches, community support, and our thrift store, Repeat Street which generates about 60% of its income, and furnishes and outfits our apartments.

The values that matter to me-Integrity, honesty, compassion, a positive attitude and passion for life.