For nearly two years, Dr. Lanette Madison has served as CEO of Covenant House Missouri, a United Way of Greater St. Louis (UWGSL) partner agency that leads efforts to provide shelter, basic needs, and long-term solutions for teens and young adults experiencing homelessness. Shaped by the instability and marginalization she experienced as a child and young adult, her career is rooted in compassion.
Once in need of the same support she now provides, Dr. Madison knows how life-changing a helping hand can be – and it fuels her work every day.
Struggle inspiring service
From ages 2 to 17, Dr. Madison moved in and out of foster care without a stable home. In the 1980s, she was often one of the only Black students at her schools, and she faced isolation, racism, and bullying.
While traumatic, those experiences became motivation—not the end of her story. She committed herself to helping others navigate similar struggles.
“Given some of the challenges that I navigated and injustices that I saw and experienced, I wanted to be that person to right the wrongs,” said Dr. Madison.
A strong student, she finished high school early and earned a scholarship to a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in North Carolina. She pursued social work to help families avoid the instability she experienced.
In graduate school, financial pressure and full-time work as a single mother threatened her ability to finish. She connected with UWGSL partner agency Webster Child Care Center, who directed her to the UWGSL-funded Alix Johnson Scholarship Program for families facing hardship who need quality child care. The support helped her stay enrolled and graduate.
“It made a huge difference… I was faced with going to school, figuring out housing… or dropping out to focus on paying for the basics,” said Dr. Madison. “Truly, but for United Way’s support, I’m not sure I would have finished.”
Dr. Madison’s work was just beginning; after graduating, she began a career dedicated to improving the lives of children and families across the St. Louis region.
She started as a case manager at Missouri Baptist Children’s Home, assessing needs, connecting families to resources, and supporting foster care and reunification.
That role launched decades of executive advocacy in child welfare and behavioral health, including work as a clinical therapist in private practice and the founding of her nonprofit, Family Depot Inc.
Also having once benefitted from UWGSL’s support, Dr. Madison has since given back to us—serving on the allocations committee, joining focus groups, and becoming a member of the Charmaine Chapman Society.
Through that service, she saw firsthand the breadth of UWGSL’s community impact.
“It opened my eyes to how many organizations United Way funded and supported, and in terms of the benefits and importance of United Way, that was laid when I was a recipient of their help years ago,” said Dr. Madison.
One of those organizations UWGSL supports is Covenant House Missouri, and in 2024, Dr. Madison was selected to lead them as CEO. She brought decades of youth- and family-centered leadership to deepen the organization’s impact.
“It has really been amazing to see our team dialed in to meeting the needs of our youth and helping them accomplish their goals,” said Dr. Madison. “We’re part of a larger federation and every few years they go to all of the Covenant House sites and do what’s called a ‘Site Safety Assessment’, and they interviewed our youth and the results were that our youth said they feel supported, loved unconditionally by our team, and we’re helping them meet their goals. That’s what it’s all about for me and that is why I’m here.”
Due to these efforts, Covenant House Missouri received the Community Equality Leadership Award from the Human Rights Campaign.
And as a culmination of her longtime work of strengthening local youth and families, Dr. Madison was named one of the St. Louis Titan’s 2026 honorees.
From a disregarded youth to being recognized as one of the best leaders in the St. Louis region, Dr. Madison is honored and humbled to be receiving this award.
“I just set out to be of service, and to see where God has brought me from is mind-blowing,” said Dr. Madison. “It’s a really good feeling to know that I’m contributing to making an impact.”
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