Community impact is a top priority for many Amazon sellers and every year their work is celebrated through the Amazon Accelerate Force for Good program. This year, Amazon recognized a coffee company empowering college students with financial challenges, a wellness brand supporting homeless families, and a maker of educational bedding for hospitalized children.
To help fuel their charitable work, each will receive a $50,000 grant to expand their social impact programs and deepen their community connections.
“What sets these sellers apart is their genuine passion for creating positive change,” said Dharmesh Mehta, Amazon’s Vice President of Worldwide Selling Partner Services. “Their commitment to social responsibility shows how businesses can be a force for good. We’re honored to support their mission of building stronger communities.”
He Who Helps: Ezra Coffee Company
Jessica Taylor, founder and CEO of Ezra Coffee Company
Ezra Coffee Company, founded by Jessica Taylor in 2021, is a specialty coffee company in Houston, Texas, that transforms the simple act of brewing coffee into meaningful social change. The company’s name, derived from the Hebrew word meaning “he who helps,” reflects its deep commitment to education and community service.
The company, which started selling in the Amazon store in 2023, offers specialty coffee blends that honor significant figures and events in American history, with each blend telling a unique story through its packaging.
“Since launching in the Amazon store, we’ve been able to reach customers nationwide who share our vision,” said Taylor. “For many, coffee is just a part of their routine. But for us, it’s how we wake up a dream.”
At the heart of Ezra Coffee’s mission is the Ezra Scholars Program, which provides scholarships of up to $1,000 to college students facing financial challenges that could prevent them from completing their education. Over 50% of college students consider dropping out of college each year due to financial strain, according to an Ellucian national survey.
As a former educator, Taylor saw the challenge first-hand. “When I worked in higher education, I saw many talented students leaving college due to financial constraints,” recalled Taylor. “We want everyone to pursue higher education regardless of their finances.”
The Ezra Scholars Program has helped students overcome often overlooked financial barriers to graduation at schools across the country, including Howard University, Southern University, Alabama State University, East Texas Baptist University, Miami University, and Spelman College. The company also works with universities to give students internships and senior capstone projects at Ezra Coffee to help them with their careers.
“As an intern at Ezra Coffee, one of the biggest things I have learned is how important it is to help the community and make sure I help others the way that Ezra Coffee and Ms. Jessica have helped me,” said Faith Johnson, an intern at Ezra Coffee.
The Butterfly Effect: Plant Therapy
Chris Jones, founder of Plant Therapy
Plant Therapy, a Twin Falls, Idaho-based company specializing in plant-based home and beauty products, launched in the Amazon store in 2011 and now has two retail locations in Idaho. With a workforce of 80 employees, the company has maintained its commitment to affordability while using Amazon tools and programs to expand nationally and globally.
“That partnership helped us reach millions of customers,” said Chris Jones, founder of Plant Therapy. “From Day 1, our mission has been to positively impact as many lives as possible.”
At the heart of Plant Therapy’s mission is their “Planting Kindness” initiative, which operates on the principle that positive individual impact creates ripple effects throughout communities. This philosophy begins within the company itself, where employees enjoy comprehensive benefits, donation matching programs, and paid community service hours. The approach has proven successful, inspiring many employees to initiate their own charitable giving programs.
The company also raises money for local and global community organizations through a monthly campaign where $5 is donated for each sale of one of their featured home and beauty products. That money goes to organizations like Valley House Homeless Shelter, which helps local homeless families become self-sufficient. Plant Therapy has donated over $6 million since 2011 with over $360,000 donated in 2025 alone.
Plant Therapy demonstrates how business success and social responsibility can grow together, creating positive change from the local to the global level.
Kits4Kids: Playtime Edventures
Kevin Gatlin, founder and CEO
Playtime Edventures, founded in 2014 by Kevin Gatlin, is revolutionizing the way children experience hospital stays through innovative, educational bedding. The Charlotte, N.C.-based company’s journey began when Gatlin visited a friend’s hospitalized son and noticed he had nothing to distract him from his illness.
“Every child deserves moments of joy, discovery and comfort, no matter their circumstance,” Gatlin said.
The experience sparked a transformative idea: converting hospital beds into interactive learning and play spaces. Collaborating with his mother, a retired teacher, and other educators, Gatlin developed specialized bedding featuring over 65 interactive activities designed to help children play, learn, and heal.
Since launching in the Amazon store in 2020, Playtime Edventures has expanded its reach to hospitals across the United States. Healthcare professionals have said that these interactive sheets significantly improve the hospital environment, shifting a child’s focus from their illness to engaging activities that promote both healing and learning.
Wanting to give back to their community, Gatlin launched the Kits4Kids initiative in 2022, bringing together community members and first responders to assemble trauma kits. These kits, distributed by first responders during service calls, have reached over 11,000 children, helping transform challenging situations into more positive experiences.
They’ve also donated hundreds of playtime bed sheets and disposables to healthcare facilities and shelters. As Gatlin notes, “Our partnership with Amazon has been instrumental to our mission, helping us create more opportunities for giving back.”
For Playtime Edventures, running a business and focusing on social impact aren’t competing priorities – they’re inseparable parts of their mission to ensure every child experiences moments of joy and discovery, regardless of their circumstances.