Guest Speaker: Katelyn Mateo — The Ripple Reset Foundation

At our August 19, 2026 meeting, our guest speaker was Katelyn Mateo, founder of The Ripple Reset Foundation, a new organization dedicated to helping individuals and families rebuild their lives following trauma and significant hardship.

Katelyn shared that Ripple Reset grew directly out of her own life experiences. Over a period of years, she faced a series of difficult circumstances and major life disruptions, including health issues and the loss of her home to a fire. Those experiences taught her that after a crisis, people often need more than advice or short-term assistance — they need help restoring stability and rebuilding their lives. Her presentation summed up the organization’s philosophy simply: “We don’t just want to help people survive hardship. We want to help restore what hardship took from them.”

Interestingly, the idea of restoration also connects with Katelyn’s professional background. Years ago, she started a business detailing and restoring cars and boats. Through that work and her own experiences, she began to recognize a parallel: just as something damaged or neglected can be restored, people going through difficult seasons can benefit from the opportunity for a fresh start.

Ripple Reset’s goal is to provide practical, direct assistance to people experiencing significant hardship. Rather than simply providing money, the organization looks at what will actually help a person or family regain stability. That might include needed household items, transportation, emergency assistance, or connecting people with other resources such as financial advisors and counselors.

Katelyn emphasized the impact that hardship can have on children. When a family is struggling, children often experience the consequences even though they had nothing to do with creating the situation. Helping a parent regain stability or removing one major obstacle for a family can therefore have an impact that extends well beyond the immediate need — potentially changing the trajectory of a child’s life.

That idea is behind the organization’s name. One act of kindness or assistance can create a positive ripple effect: helping one person strengthens a family, which can strengthen children and ultimately the broader community. As Katelyn explained, people who experience a community showing up for them may someday become the people who show up for someone else.

The Ripple Reset Foundation has applied for 501(c)(3) nonprofit status and is working to build its network of community resources and partnerships.

We thank Katelyn for sharing both her personal story and her vision for turning difficult experiences into an opportunity to help others.

Photograph: (left to right) Jeannie Nugent, Katelyn Mateo, Jill Jurvelin