Ten years ago, author Dave Eggers set out to create a small tutoring center on 826 Valencia Street, in one of San Francisco's less privileged neighborhoods. As luck would have it, zoning required that the property be a retail store, so Eggers and his creative volunteers designed the creative learning center as a whimsical Pirate Supply Store, replete with products like "Peg Leg Oil" and "Scurvy Begone." Their creative response to circumstances now provides a "third place" for kids—beyond home and school—where they receive the tutoring support they need without stigma, and explore and express their creativity in ways that school does not accommodate. Gerald Richards, Chief Executive Officer of 826 National, tells the tale of their expansion to eight unique storefronts across the country, where thousands of young minds are stimulated to learn, create and share.

License: Creative Commons BY-NC-SA