This map from the United Way shows the 13 neighborhood area that is covered
by the Place Matters initiative. Neighbors for Better Neighborhood's Lead
Community Organizer Nakida McDaniel, Program Officer Dee Washington
and Executive Director Paula McCoy.
United Way
from page Al
Community-Based
Collaborations Alana
James said the agency will
be devoting up to 25 per
cent of resources, which is
over a million dollars in
2016 alone, to Place
Matters. She said the
neighborhoods were cho
sen not just for their chal
lenges but also because of
their promise.
"These neighborhoods
in this part of the communi
ty are actually not the most
challenged part of the com
munity, but they do have
significant and complex
issues, but they also have a
number of assets to build
on, and part of that is very
active residents who are
willing to partner with us,"
she said.
To build relationships
with the 5300 residents in
?the area and guide them
through the process, the
United Way turned to
NBN. The local nonprofit
regularly awards grassroots
grants funded by local
foundations and provides a
variety of support to com
munity groups.
A survey was conduct
ed to discover the needs of
the community, such as
education, healthcare and
jobs. For more than a year,
NBN has held community
conversations to see if the
community was receptive
to the initiative and then to
find out who the leaders in
the community are and
what the solutions are to
the community's problems.
"The United Way is
bringing the partners to the
table. Neighbors for Better
Neighborhoods is working
to bring residents to the
table and kind of facilitat
ing those discussions," said
NBN Program Officer Dee
Washington.
Washington said that
. 1
ine meetings
are bringing
the residents
together and
helping them
discover how
to help each
other and pool
their resources
as a neighbor
hood network.
"One of the
things we're
asKing is aon i
come to network, be the
network," said
Washington. "And so resi
dents where able to lift up
issues and concerns and
people were able to say,
'How do we solve that
problem?'"
To lead the initiative, a
CiVIC (Community Voices
Impacting Community)
Impact Council was
formed with representa
tives from the neighbor
hoods, which will have first
say in reviewing the grant
applications.
Letters of intent are due
Oct. 3 for the first round of
grants to be awarded next
year. It'll be far from the
last round, as the United
Way has promised that
Place Matters is in it for
long haul, even if it takes
decades to see real change.
"They had what we call
'patient money,'" said
NBN Executive Director
Paula McCoy, "We think
that funders, when they're
doing the work of rebuild
ing communities,
that it requires
patience."
Groups out
side the area can
apply for grants
for projects that
will impact the
area as long as
they're working
with the residents
there. But there
are many within
tne area noping to
get grants someday too.
UNITY Neighborhood
Association works in
Bowen Park and just
reformed in October 2014
after being defunct for 20
years. UNITY President
and Founder Dorothy
Bonner said she was glad to
be in the thick of communi
ty activism again after her
neighbors urged her to
restart the group to help
with the neighborhood's
problems. Her group
already got a grant through
James
NBN, but not involved
with Place Matters, for a
youth job program that puts
young people to work
doing lawn care. She said a
UNITY Neighborhood
Crime Watch that was
formed just three months
ago has already caused a
large drop in crime in the
neighborhood.
She said that in the long
term, they'd like to get a
Place Matters grant to build
a youth community center
for Bowen Park. Bonner,
who is 68, is focused on
inspiring youth and recruit
ing them to become the.
next generation of neigh
borhood leaders. She said
she was grateful to see the
help the neighborhood was
getting with Place Matters.
"It'll be a great asset,"
she said. "It'll help
strengthen our community,
help beautify our commu
nity and help us help our
selves provide more proj
ects, more income for the
residents in the communi
ty."
Another fledgling non
profit in the area is True
Elite, which provides men
tors and tutors to student
athletes at Carver High
School. It was founded in
December 2014 by
Roderick Fluellen, who is a
Carver coach and a former
Carver teacher who now
teaches at Main Street
Academy. The group has
more than 20 tutors work
ing with students. Fluellen
would like to apply for a
grant after he can show the
effectiveness of the pro
gram. He'd use the grant to
fund things like college
tours, educational supplies
for students and a
Christmas present give
away the group will begin
this year at two local ele
mentary schools. He said
he was also glad to see the
area getting assistance.
"1 think it's needed," he
said. "I think it's a great ini
tiative that they're doing
They saw a need in the city
and they're trying to
address it."
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