Hamsa Yaqo: Resourceful, reflective, and ready for new adventures
From Growing with Purpose by Jean Moncrieff
March 4, 2025 · 44 min · Episode 108
About this episode
Hamsa Yaqo shares her journey from Iraq to the US and her experiences in leadership and community service.
On this very special episode of the Growing with Purpose podcast, I sit down with Hamsa Yaqo, formerly the Executive Director of the Small Giants Community, and now a board member. Hamsa is also the Co-Founder of Kintsugi Village, a non-profit hub in Detroit that will provide a childhood education center, artist incubator, culinary kitchen, and more to the local community. Many of you likely know Hamsa as the bright, caring leader who helmed the Small Giants Community operations for nearly a decade. But you may not know about her previous time in the education and tech sectors, as well as her journey with her family from Iraq to the US when she was 12 years old. All of these experiences have shaped Hamsa into the leader she is today; ready to embark on a new journey in the non-profit space and give back to a city that she loves. Listen to this episode to hear Hamsa and I discuss what it was like for her to be the eldest child of an immigrant family, how learning a new language in a new country made her resourceful, the tough lessons she’s learned as a leader, and so much more. Show Notes: 3:32 - A serendipitous Small Giants journey 5:45 - Moving fast at Mango Languages 10:05 - A…
People in this episode
Guest: Hamsa Yaqo
Topics covered
- non-profit
- leadership
- immigration
- education
- community
Keywords
- Small Giants Community
- Kintsugi Village
- immigrant family
- resourceful
- language learning
Mentioned in this episode
Products: Mango Languages
Books & works: Growing with Purpose
Places: Detroit, Iraq, US
More episodes of Growing with Purpose
- Adria Marshall: Scaling a Business While Staying True to Your Values · April 15, 2026 · 47 min
- Brandon Neely: Profit, Purpose, and the Discipline to Build What Lasts · February 25, 2026 · 57 min
- Ashish Kothari: Rethinking Success, Happiness, and Leadership · January 29, 2026 · 59 min
- John Costello: Letting Go to Build a Company That Lasts · January 14, 2026 · 54 min
- Megan Gluth: The Truth About Leading Through Uncertainty · December 4, 2025 · 54 min
- Paul Spiegelman: From Small Giants to Kintsugi Village · August 19, 2025 · 55 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Growing with Purpose podcast page.