We are proud to announce 25 new grants to grassroots organizations made through the first round of the Neighborhood Equitable Recovery Fund, a partnership between the City of Philadelphia Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity (CEO) and Bread & Roses Community Fund to support community-based nonprofit organizations that serve communities of color and those with low incomes, which have been hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Neighborhood Equitable Recovery Fund Round One Grantees
Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture is an Arab arts organization that uses the arts to empower and enrich youth and families in their community, including refugees and immigrants. This grant will support a 45-week program that offers weekly art therapy and counseling.
Ardella’s House is a service and advocacy organization whose mission is helping women with criminal justice histories realize new possibilities for themselves and their families. This grant will support AH’s work with recently released and/or formerly incarcerated women and their families, help sustain daily operations, and provide additional housing assistance.
The Brothers of Strawberry Mansion collaborates with community organizations to provide parenting and leadership programs, youth workshops, educational trips, and community service opportunities. This grant will support their current services and aid in the development of additional programs aimed towards curbing violence.
Coalition of African Communities’ mission is to advocate and organize for immigrant and refugee empowerment. Africom serves families and individuals who are low-income, moderate-income, or who have limited-English proficiency. This grant will support Africom in responding to a new surge in requests for housing and utility assistance for families.
Endeavor provides low-cost after school and summer programs that serve North Philadelphia children and families. Programs focus on science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) skills building. This grant will support Endeavor in creating a new community space in North Philadelphia to support youth, families, and small businesses that focus on partnership rather than competition.
Food Not Bombs serves marginalized people of West Philly at the 46th Street El stop.. They spread love, respect, free food, and personal items to marginalized communities, regardless of race, gender, or other status. This grant will support purchase of supplies to continue and expand distribution when in-kind donations slow down.
Frontline Dads works to empower marginalized communities address social justice issues, achieve criminal justice reform, and enable community members to become transformative leaders. This grant will assist Frontline Dads in feeding people and providing resources and mutual aid to families in need. Funds will purchase supplies including PPE, emergency food, emergency transportation , and other essentials.
The Hope Empowerment Education and Train (HEET) works to revitalize the Tioga-Nicetown community by renovating its deteriorating housing stock and creating employment and training opportunities for disenfranchised adults and at-risk youth. This grant will support making HEET’s four-story, twenty thousand square foot building COVID-19 safe to enable and encourage increased participation in their training and housing programs.
The Iglesias Gardens is a community garden and offers education about gardening and vegetables and tending the land. This grant will support Spanish interpreters, childcare, and food at garden events and community meetings, and transportation to and from community meetings and protests.
The Mantua Civic Association (MCA) works to keep the residents of the Mantua community informed and engaged in decision-making regarding development projects in the community. This grant will support hiring a Communication Manager to bolster MCA’s ability to effectively communicate with stakeholders, share resources with residents, and coordinate outreach efforts.
Men Who Care of Germantown takes a tripartite approach to reduce gun violence in Philadelphia: prevention, intervention, and outreach. This grant will support Men Who Care in transforming their learning pods , which last year offered students the equipment needed to attend virtual schooling.
Mill Creek Urban Farm runs an educational urban farm located in West Philadelphia dedicated to improving local access to fresh produce, building a healthy community, and promoting a just and sustainable food system. This grant will support salaries to extend the farm season, allowing the farm team to work and prepare the land when the farm is not actively growing.
Neighborhood Bike Works uses bikes to deliver various education lessons while providing outlets for improving physical and mental health. This grant will support their youth programming and Bikes for Neighbors program by adding staff hours, paid jobs for youth, and supplies for refurbishing bikes.
ParaPower is a BIPOC-led organization fighting for School District of Philadelphia paraprofessionals to receive a living wage, real professional development, and pathways to certification. This grant will support the ParaPower Relief Fund, which is their mutual aid arm, and will help launch their first annual ParaPower Professional Development Seminar.
Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign (PPEHRC) unites poor peo ple across color lines in building a movement to abolish poverty. This grant will support PPEHRC to expand their weekly food distributions, keep families out of shelters and off the streets, and provide more security for families in Kensington and across Philadelphia.
Power of Paint Art Academy & Management uses art and therapeutic approaches to improve the quality of life for LGBTQI+ and Black and Brown communities who have experienced trauma as a result of violence, discrimination, and limited access to resources. This grant will allow them to expand their programming by offering childcare, parenting classes, and workforce development.
Senior to Senior Community Outreach‘s mission is to improve the quality of life for elderly people throughout Philadelphia communities by providing supportive and preventive services to promote a healthier lifestyle. This grant will support seniors experiencing food insecurity with emergency financial assistance for basic needs and support families caring for a senior family member.
Sisters Returning Home provides services to the growing population of women who have recently been released from Philadelphia County Jails or Pennsylvania State Correctional Facilities. This grant will support Sisters Returning Home in providing rent assistance, connections to employment opportunities, training, and other waysto increase their clients’ household income.
The Equity Project offers holistic support for young people that addresses the personal, financial, legal, familial, and behavioral health consequences that flow from trauma to promote social justice, equity, and healing. This grant will sustain their space by providing eight months of rent.
Urban Tree Connection’s purpose is to cultivate and uplift Black working-class leadership by fostering land stewardship and equitable food practices. This grant will support their community leadership development, apprenticeship stipends, and staff labor.
We Care Learning and Development Center provides individualized education to address the unique learning styles of children while promoting character, supporting independence, and enabling them to contribute to their peer community in a meaningful and positive manner. This grant will support implementing and sustaining high-quality preschool programs that serve 3 to 5-year-old children in high-need communities.
We Love Philly provides students with positive community experiences and essential professional skills through mindfulness, volunteerism, entrepreneurship, and storytelling . This grant will provide stipends to ten youthto join the building trades pre-apprenticeship program.
weREIGN‘s (Rooting, Empowering, Inspiring a Girls’ Nation) long-term goal of is to advance issues of gender justice, specifically those issues that disproportionately negatively impact the lives of Black girls. This grant will support them in providing menstrual and reproductive health products as well as providing political education about period poverty, menstrual hygiene inequity, and other reproductive health inequities.
Women’s Institute for Family Health (WIFH) strives to increase awareness of racial and ethnic health disparities while developing strategies and services to reduce the rates of chronic and life-threatening illness among the most vulnerable poputlations of women . This grant will be used to pay for rent, utilities, and staff salaries, allowing WIFH to continue serving their community during the public health crisis.
Yoga 4 Philly exists to make peace, love, and healing accessible to everyone through yoga and meditation. This grant will be used to hire certified yoga instructors to teach children’s classes to more than 600 students, hire support staff to assist with class management, establish a student-led yoga club, and purchase cleaning materials to maintain sanitary requirements.