About Us
Mission & Purpose is a strategic communications agency that empowers impact-driven organizations through high-quality, tailored content and engagement strategies. We ensure our clients gain the visibility and influence needed to advance their mission through communications support, virtual coaching, and advising, providing the tools and insights to connect with key stakeholders and drive meaningful change.
Our Core Values
Integrity
We believe in honesty and transparency in all our interactions. Our clients trust us to deliver on our promises, and we hold ourselves accountable to the highest ethical standards.
Mission-Driven
We are passionate about making a difference. Our work is guided by a sense of purpose, and we aim to contribute positively to the communities we serve, as well as to the wider world.
Collaborative
Collaboration is at the heart of everything we do. We work closely with our clients, partners, and each other to create solutions that are not just effective but also inclusive and comprehensive.
Strategic
Our approach is always strategic. We don’t believe in one-size-fits-all solutions. Instead, we carefully analyze each client’s unique needs and objectives to develop customized strategies that deliver results.
Intentional
Every action we take is deliberate and purposeful. We prioritize quality over quantity, ensuring that every project we undertake is executed precisely and thoughtfully.
About Our Founder
Keosha Varela is a strategic communications consultant, storyteller, and advisor to mission-driven organizations seeking to elevate their visibility, strengthen stakeholder trust, and drive meaningful impact through effective communication.
With more than 15 years of experience across journalism, digital media, and the nonprofit sector, Keosha brings a rare blend of newsroom rigor, strategic foresight, and social impact expertise. As the founder of Mission & Purpose Communications, she partners with leaders and organizations to translate complex ideas into compelling narratives, develop strategies that mobilize audiences, and navigate moments of opportunity and crisis with clarity and confidence.
Before launching her firm, Keosha served as Managing & Senior Director of Strategic and Enterprise Communications at the Aspen Institute, where she led a 25-member team responsible for digital content strategy, brand management, and event communications across the Institute’s 70+ programs. She co-led the development of the organization’s first comprehensive internal and enterprise communications functions, modernized its digital presence, and guided the successful rollout of its rebrand across platforms.
Previously, Keosha held senior communications roles at InterAction, the world’s largest alliance of international NGOs, and at 270 Strategies, a public engagement firm where she led digital content and storytelling initiatives for social impact clients. Earlier in her career, she was a journalist and producer at NBC News and NPR, where her team’s work earned national recognition, including a National Edward R. Murrow Award for digital excellence.
A trusted advisor and sought-after collaborator, Keosha is passionate about helping organizations communicate with authenticity and purpose—especially in times of change. She holds a master’s and bachelor’s degree in journalism from American University in Washington, D.C.
Our Partners
Samson Awosan
Website Development and Brand Identity
Samson Awoken brings deep experience in website development and brand and visual identity design, partnering with mission-driven and premium organizations—including a Gates Ventures–backed initiative—to create high-impact digital experiences that reflect clarity, credibility, and scale.
Ayelet Golz
Creative Design Partner
Ayelet Golz enjoys collaborating with businesses and nonprofit organizations, leveraging her decades in marketing strategy to create video and design that truly resonates. Imaginative and strategic in equal measures, she loves sitting down with clients, diving deep into their goals and audiences, and laying it all out so that it’s easy to take action.
Christina Lewis
Digital Strategy and Strategic Communications
Heather Purcell
Media Relations and Policy Communications
Heather Purcell brings extensive experience in media relations and policy-driven communications, having advised senior leaders across federal and state government and national advocacy organizations on stakeholder engagement, narrative strategy, and earned media—while preparing executives to increase visibility and show up confidently in high-stakes media opportunities.
Ritika Puri
Strategic Operations and Information Design
Ritika is an expert systems-builder for strategic communications and publishing initiatives in which clear, compelling narratives are a must. With a client-base spanning major venture capital firms, media companies, large corporations, governments, and global nonprofits, her specialty is bringing clarity and coordination to high performing teams, in roles ranging from managing editor to content strategist and project manager. Trained as both a data scientist and designer, with deep professional experience as a writer, she is sought after to build compelling executive and board-level presentations for scenarios ranging from fundraises to strategic planning, industry thought leadership, and key partner alignment.
William Tomasko
Digital Strategy and Executive Communications
William Tomasko brings over a decade of experience as a writer, editor, and digital communications strategist who’s channeled and helped shape the voices of presidential candidates, members of Congress, nonprofit leaders, and organizational brands.