By Brandon Miller—
Last week, I walked past a coffee shop I’d never been into. It’s four blocks from my house—four blocks.
I’ve lived in this neighborhood for years, and I’d never once walked through the door of this shop. It got me thinking: How much of my money leaves my community every single day without me even noticing? How much of yours does?
So, I built a challenge. I’m calling it Brio’s Neighborhood Scavenger Hunt: seven intentional money moves over seven days, designed to redirect your spending, giving, and investing back toward the community you actually live in.
Giving Is How You Close the Gaps
National organizations do important work, but local giving lets you see exactly where your money lands. Donate to a local land trust and you can walk the trail it preserved. Support a queer arts organization and you can sit in the audience on opening night.
One organization I love is the Horizons Foundation, which operates like a venture philanthropy fund for community nonprofits. They provide seed money to scrappy, early-stage organizations doing on-the-ground work that bigger funders haven’t discovered yet. Think angel investing, but for your neighborhood.
Join Brio’s Neighborhood Scavenger Hunt Challenge
Now for the part where I make you do something.
This is your Neighborhood Scavenger Hunt: Seven tasks, one week, and no rules about which day you do what. Think of it as a field trip for your wallet.
1. Grab your morning coffee from an independent shop. This is the one with the weird art on the walls and the barista who cares about getting your extra-soy-latte-non-fat-mocha black coffee order right.
2. Buy a book from a neighborhood bookstore. Tell the person behind the counter what kind of mood you’re in. Their recommendation will be better than the algorithm’s!
3. Have a meal at a local restaurant. Sit down, stay longer than you planned, and tip generously. Restaurants create gathering spaces, foot traffic, and jobs, and they’re the first to feel it when spending moves online.
4. Purchase something you need this week from a small business nearby. It could be a gift, a card, flowers, a candle, or something else. Whatever’s on the list, buy it from someone who lives in your zip code.
5. Swap one online order for a trip to an actual store. Pick the item that’s least urgent. You don’t need same-day delivery on dish soap. (Or maybe you do. I don’t judge.)
6. Make a first-time donation to a local nonprofit. Any amount counts. If you don’t know where to start, ask a neighbor what cause they care about. That conversation alone is worth something.
7. Open your investment portfolio and actually look at what’s inside. Do you know what companies you own? Do they reflect what you care about? If the answer is “no idea,” that’s not a problem. That’s a starting point.
Take the Challenge With Me
I ask myself a lot, “What’s the purpose of being on this planet if we don’t have community?” And the answer I keep landing on is that community isn’t something that just happens. It’s something we build with your time, your attention, and your money.
If you take the challenge, tag @BrioFinancialGroup so we can cheer you on. And if you want to talk about aligning your full financial picture with the things you actually care about, the Brio community is here for you. Book a complimentary Make It Happen meeting (https://www.briofg.com/contact) to get started.
This material presented by Brio Financial Group (“Brio”) is for informational purposes only and is not intended to serve as a substitute for personalized investment advice or as a recommendation or solicitation of any particular security, strategy, or investment product. Facts presented have been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, however, Brio cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of such information, and certain information presented here may have been condensed or summarized from its original source. Brio does not provide legal or tax advice, and nothing contained in these materials should be taken as legal or tax advice. Advisory services are only offered to clients or prospective clients where Brio and its representatives are properly licensed or exempt from licensure. No advice may be rendered by Brio Financial Group unless a client service agreement is in place.
For more information about our advisory services and fees, please refer to our ADV brochure found at https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/
Brandon Miller, CFP®, is a financial consultant at Brio Financial Group in San Francisco, specializing in helping LGBT individuals and families plan and achieve their financial goals. For more information: https://www.briofg.com/
Money Matters
Published on April 23, 2026
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