Featured Member - Faith Lyons

Faith has been with Breakthrough Labs since the very beginning, and from day one she’s been a true champion of our community.

She’s also a founder who is building not only a business but an idea. One that’s best described in her words:

“The Nugget is a search tool helping families find truly welcoming places, built on the belief that family-friendly should mean inclusive and intentional, not just a checkbox.“

“We help families find spaces that actually work for them. Not just “kid-friendly,” but responsive to the real mix of needs families have. Because real life looks like: “My sister has a baby and my partner is gluten-free.” “My friend uses a wheelchair and my child needs a kids’ menu.” “My grandfather uses a walker and my brother is sensitive to noise.” We use data to drive visibility, accountability, and inclusion - across dietary needs, accessibility, neurodiversity, LGBTQIA+ families, and multi-generational caregiving.”

“At its core, The Nugget is about helping families feel seen AND showing businesses who they’re including or leaving out. For me, it’s a continuation of my life’s work: bringing people together to build something better. Because connected families create stronger communities.”

Faith’s worldview was shaped long before founding The Nugget, through her years as a humanitarian aid worker. Teaching in Guatemala after university, she experienced a hurricane that wiped away villages. Knowing then that she wanted to be part of helping communities during difficult times, she returned to the US and got a Master's in International Development and, after Haiti’s 2010 earthquake, Faith spent a year and a half on the ground during overlapping crises, working alongside Haitians and colleagues from 50+ nations. Later, she joined a Global Rapid Response Team in Singapore, deployable within 72 hours to emergencies worldwide, and then led the Water Programmes Team at charity: water in NYC - learning new ways to fund locally owned projects and tell stories with dignity and hope.

In 2019, she became a mother. And suddenly, despite her background managing global crises, she found herself weighed down by decisions that should have been simple, such as which cafes she could take her baby to. Her husband struggled to find baby changing facilities in men’s bathrooms and they found it perplexing that, in a world that so promotes family values, the mechanics of bringing up babies outside of the home were such a minefield. And both were surprised at how parents still had to rely on Facebook groups, WhatsApp chats, and endless social media scrolling just to find places to fit their family’s needs.

“It shouldn’t be this hard”. Faith thought. And so, The Nugget was born.

Determined to bring accountability to spaces that claim to be ‘child-friendly’ and yet fail to meet the needs of parents and children on a daily basis, Faith launched The Nugget app to guide parents to, and celebrate, genuinely family-friendly spaces. And, in omitting those who don’t meet the standards, she is driving them to do better.

“I've met too many parents older than me who can't believe we still don't have baby changes in the men's room. So, I'm bringing accountability to these spaces to show who they're including and who's being left out.”

To ensure diverse voices are represented, The Nugget is also building a parent advisory panel that centers caregivers across dietary needs, neurodiversity, LGBTQIA+ identities, and multi-generational perspectives.

Faith joined Breakthrough Labs to learn alongside other founders—sharing insights, tips, and encouragement.“I'm looking to grow my network with others who share similar values in making the world a better place.”

Outside of work, Faith enjoys swimming and paddleboarding on her local lakes, as well as baking.

We are proud to support Faith on her entrepreneurial journey, and it’s been a privilege to watch her vision take shape.