Cole Stevens lost his food service job when the 2020 pandemic hit. Going into a problem solving mentality, he started organizing with other youth to further advocate for unemployment benefits to be available to high schoolers the state of Minnesota. Later they sued the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). Since winning the lawsuit, Cole has co-founded a youth-led organization called Bridgemakers, which is focused on mentoring and amplifying young BIPOC voices while creating lasting change for his community and those around him.