Global Empowerment Mission is a 501(C)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2011 under the original name, Haiti Empowerment Mission. In 2015, the organization changed its name to GEM in line with its expanding focus. Conceived in 1999 when founder Michael Capponi got his feet wet helping the victims of the Kosovo Crisis, GEM's founding members have been involved in supporting some of the most significant global tragedies over the last decade. Personally assisting in over 150 various AIDE relief trips around the world, these have included 9/11 and the devastating 2010 earthquake in Haiti. GEM's mission is to empower the people here in the United States as well as those in developing countries.