By A.J. Jackson, Originally published in GoUpsate February 25, 2025

In celebration of its 20th anniversary, Greenville Drive officials announced a partnership with the United Way of Greenville to address the needs of unhoused and homeless individuals in the Upstate.

On Tuesday, Drive president Jeff Brown committed $25,000 to an initiative titled “Greenville Together: A Home for All,”—designed to reduce the number of short-term under-sheltered individuals in the Upstate while finding long-term preventative strategies.

The United Way of Greenville County will spearhead the program alongside the Drive and investments from the City of Greenville, Table 301, other business organizations, and local community members.

“We felt compelled, as a front porch in the community, to bringing people together,” Brown said. “This organization fits in perfectly on how we want to impact the people and community and create sustainable change.

“We view this as a privilege of what we get to do every day. We’re proud of what’s transpired over the past two decades, and we’re equally excited about what’s to come.”

Over the past few months, Brown, along with his father and owner of the Drive, Craig, was introduced to the information and challenges surrounding unsheltered people in the Upstate through a growing relationship with United Way of Greenville and Greenville Together. Jeff Brown called homelessness in Greenville “a rising statistic” and “an incredible opportunity to be a resource and impact driver for the community.”

During the 2025 season, the Greenville Drive will celebrate its 20th anniversary in the West End; this endowment is part of that celebration and looks ahead to the next two decades.

“In those early years, our primary desire was to ensure the Drive became part of the fabric of the community,” said Craig Brown, owner and chairman of the Greenville Drive. “Well beyond the (donated) money, we’re committed to working with everybody to help provide resources, education, and a need for change.”