Reuben Reeves, He/Him | Social Entrepreneur, Youth Leader, and Systems Change Advocate
At 16, Reuben Reeves began his journey as a social entrepreneur with a conviction that young people should not have to wait for someone else to solve the problems affecting their communities. Eleven years later, he has grown into a social entrepreneur, organizational leader, and systems change advocate building solutions at the intersection of mental health, education, agriculture, and youth development in Liberia.
As Founder and Country Director of Letters to Strangers Liberia (L2SLiberia), Reuben has spent years expanding access to mental health support in a country where specialized services remain severely limited. Under his leadership, the organization has reached more than 200,000 people, established Liberia's first 24/7 toll-free mental health helpline, and advanced the development of Move to Heal, Liberia's first specialized youth-focused mental health clinic initiative. His work is centered on making mental health support more accessible, affordable, and responsive to the realities of young people and underserved communities.
Beyond mental health, Reuben has taken on senior executive and operational leadership roles across social enterprises and nonprofit organizations, helping translate ambitious ideas into practical programs, partnerships, and community-led solutions. His work spans youth leadership, educational access, agricultural development, and social innovation. As a founder and leader, he has navigated resource constraints, built partnerships, mobilized support, and worked to establish institutions that respond directly to gaps in essential services.
His leadership has earned him recognition as a Global Teen Leader, an Acumen Fellow, and a youth adviser to international organizations and social enterprises. These experiences have strengthened his commitment to ethical leadership, systems thinking, and building solutions that can grow beyond individual interventions to create lasting change.
Despite receiving opportunities to relocate and pursue opportunities abroad, Reuben has remained committed to Liberia. For him, leadership is not simply about gaining access to opportunities; it is about using those opportunities to expand access for others. He has chosen to remain close to the communities whose challenges shaped his purpose, building organizations from the ground up and working to ensure that geography, poverty, and limited resources do not determine who gets help.
Reuben's journey reflects a deeper conviction: that meaningful change requires more than identifying problems. It requires building institutions, developing people, challenging broken systems, and remaining accountable to the communities being served. His long-term vision is to help build a Liberia where young people have access to the mental health care, education, economic opportunities, and leadership pathways they need to thrive.