Godfrey Riddle

organization overview

Civic Saint is a for-profit social enterprise founded to eliminate the harmful legacy of brutality and discriminatory policy against Black communities in America. They sustainably create artful, affordable homes and adaptive communities using compressed earthen blocks (CEBs), modular construction, and technology. CEBs are bulletproof, fire resistant, non-toxic, long-lasting, and cost-efficient to construct and maintain. Civic Saint partners with affected neighborhoods to host its production facilities and with restorative artist residencies centered on neighborhood storytelling and beautification. This dual approach increases community pride and belonging, investment, infill, employment, and homeownership, ultimately creating generational wealth in formerly redlined areas.

Personal Bio

Godfrey Riddle is the founder and president of Civic Saint. Civic Saint’s business model is informed by Godfrey’s life as a gay, Black man and a cancer survivor whose family struggled with homeownership. After becoming a homeowner and graduating with an MPA from the University of Kansas, he developed a profound understanding of the difference quality housing makes on individuals, families, and communities. He worked as an AmeriCorps VISTA in the City Manager’s Office and Neighborhood Services Director’s Office for Phoenix, Arizona, pursuing equitable solutions to blight, food insecurity, and sustainability.

Since returning to his hometown of Kansas City, Godfrey has raised $20 million for arts, entrepreneurship, and nonprofit initiatives, launched nearly 30 nonprofit programs, and been a part of three successful startups. He is a board member of BlaqOut, which improves healthcare access and social outcomes for Black queer people. Past honors include a 2023 National LGBT Chamber Pitch Award and a 2023 ACE Champion of Diversity Award, as well as being named to INK Magazine’s 30 Under 30 and a 2010 Foreign Language Area Studies Fellow.