In her past life, our in-house matchmaker Danielle Selber was a Fellow in the inaugural class of the Tribe 12 Fellowship and went on to run the Fellowship program for four years. Here, she reflects on each of the incredible honorees for the Tribe 12 Hanukkah Celebration on Monday, December 19th, a night of food and fun open to everyone in the Tribe 12 community!
Morgan walked into her Tribe 12 Fellowship interview in 2014 clutching her graduate school thesis on social and environmental impact. She had an idea for an app which would make it easier for consumers to make green choices. Morgan, it should be noted, was on this stuff way before it was cool. When she became a Fellow, she gently challenged me on Tribe 12’s use of disposable plates and cutlery, informing me in her matter-of-fact yet exceedingly kind way of possible alternatives. We switched to bamboo that day and never looked back. That is the kind of impact Morgan makes – incremental impact which radiates good.
Morgan came into the Fellowship knowing a lot about entrepreneurship. She had started her first business at the wizened age of sixteen. Raised by parents of different religions, Morgan told me she grew up feeling ‘not Jewish enough’. Since she didn’t have a lot of Jewish experience or education, it was the Jewish curriculum of the Tribe 12 Fellowship which had the biggest impact on her. Each seminar of the Fellowship is tied to a Jewish value like tikkun olam – repairing the world – or b’tzelem elohim – valuing the humanity of each being. Morgan already embodied those values, and she took her role as a member of her cohort seriously, making lasting friendships and business partnerships which endure to this day.
Her app Milkcrate launched in 2015, and the rest is history. Contracts with Comcast and Philadelphia University propelled her business forward. We were there to cheer her on when she took to the stage at Forbes 30 Under 30 and totally rocked their Pitch Summit. She has visited the White House to discuss clean energy policy, gave a TEDx talk, auditioned for Shark Tank, and won the Rad Girl Product of the Year Award.
Today, Morgan is the Executive Director of Life Science Cares Philadelphia which leverages the collective effort of life science companies to reduce the impact of poverty in the areas they work. Has there ever been a more appropriate career move? She has transitioned to the role of board chair at Milkcrate which continues to thrive as a dynamic mobile platform for measuring impact. Oh, and in her free time, she is super casually a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu GOLD MEDALIST. Morgan, what can’t you do?
Please join me on December 19th at the beautiful Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History to celebrate these honorees and enjoy drinks, latkes and jelly donuts with the Tribe 12 community at large. You don’t want to miss it! Get details and RSVP at tribe12.org/hanukkahcelebration.
