Brooklyn Community Foundation Announces $1.2 Million for Long-Term Recovery Projects in Five Coastal Neighborhoods

September 30, 2013
With a focus on rebuilding and strengthening coastal communities against future environmental threats, Brooklyn Community Foundation has announced five new grants totaling $1,167,000 to continue the efforts of its Community Collaboratives established in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.
 
The grants, made through the Foundation’s Brooklyn Recovery Fund with key support from the American Red Cross, are for comprehensive and inclusive long-term recovery projects—addressing civic and phsyical infrastructure issues around insurance coverage, rebuilding strategies, new housing, job development, displaced residents, stress management, and more—designed by coalitions in Red Hook, Coney Island, Gerritsen Beach, Sheepshead Bay and Canarsie.
 
The American Red Cross, as part of the long-term recovery phase of its operation, awarded Brooklyn Community Foundation an additional $1.25 million to expand support for the Community Collaboratives, enabling local groups to continue to work together to address the unmet needs of residents in their communities.
 
Brooklyn Community Foundation launched the Brooklyn Recovery Fund in partnership with the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President and Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, with a goal of facilitating collaboration and coordinated responses among Brooklyn-based nonprofit organizations. After an initial round of grants to address emergency needs broadly throughout the borough, the Foundation has focused subsequent funding on five neighborhoods demonstrating the greatest long-term challenges.
 
“We believe that fostering collaboration within communities yields a much greater lasting impact than funding many, potentially disconnected, approaches,” said Cecilia Clarke, President and CEO of Brooklyn Community Foundation. “These coalitions are an impressive example of the forward-thinking teamwork that emerged after Superstorm Sandy. While many communities continue to wrestle with recovery, thanks to this critical partnership with the American Red Cross, our continued efforts will ensure that in time coastal Brooklyn, and Brooklyn as a whole, will be stronger and better prepared for the future.”
 
Josh Lockwood, CEO, Red Cross Greater New York Region, said: “The Red Cross is proud to partner with these Community Collaboratives through the Brooklyn Community Foundation. They will provide on-the-ground recovery for Sandy survivors throughout the borough.”
 
The five Community Collaboratives have been working hand-in-hand with local residents, community-based organizations, volunteers, and city and federal agencies to mount tailored long-term recovery plans that address the damage and vulnerabilities revealed by the storm. Grants will support the collaborative work of these organizations over the next 12 months:
 
  • Canarsie Recovery Coalition, $250,000. Coalition members include Arab American Family Services, Avenue L Merchant Association, Beth Elohim Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Bridge Street Development Corp, Brooklyn Borough President’s Office, Canarsie Cluster Food Pantry, Catholic Charities, Center for New York City Neighborhoods, Holy Family Church, Informed Voices, Jewish Community Council of Canarsie, Lutheran Social Services, Local Residents and Non-Associated Merchants, Millennium Development, My Time Inc, Neighborhood Housing Services, NIA Community Services Network, New York Communities for Change, Pratt Area Community Council, Redemption, and Visiting Nurse Service.

  •  #ConeyRecovers, $250,000. Coalition members include Alliance for Coney Island, Amethyst Women’s Project, Astella Development, Coney Island Community Council, Coney Island Generation Gap, Coney Island Gospel Assembly, Coney Island Hospital, C.I. Youth Alive, The HeartShare Surfside Gardens Cornerstone Program, Iglesia Pentecostal De Jesucristo “Cristo Viene”, Jewish Community Council of Greater Coney Island, New Church International, and Project Hope.

  • Gerritsen Beach Long Term Recovery Project, $237,000. Coalition members include Gerritsen Beach Cares, HEART 9/11, Stephen Siller Tunnels to Towers Foundation, Visiting Nurse Service, Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens, and Project Hope.

  • Red Hook Coalition, $217,344. Coalition members include Added Value, Red Hook Initiative, Good Shepherd Services, Dance Theater Etc, Red Hook Volunteers, ReStore Red Hook, and Southwest Brooklyn Industrial Development Corporation.

  • Sheepshead Bay Road to Recovery Coalition, $212,663. Coalition members include Kings Bay YM YWHA, Asian Americans for Equality, Turkish Cultural Center, Community Board 15, Jewish Community Relations Council, and Sheepshead Bites.

The five coalitions received prior funding of nearly $1.7 million from the Brooklyn Recovery Fund, along with extensive technical support from Brooklyn Community Foundation staff.

Over the past year, thousands of donors helped make the Brooklyn Recovery Fund one of the borough’s most successful grassroots fundraising efforts. Brooklyn Community Foundation, the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President, and Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce collected more than $3.5 million for the fund, 100% of which will be fully committed for local recovery by the end of 2013.

“The residents of Brooklyn are indebted to the efforts of the Brooklyn Community Foundation and the support of the American Red Cross for strengthening the commitment to our coastal communities and ensuring that we build back strong from Superstorm Sandy,” added Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz. “My office, under the leadership of Deputy Borough President Sandra Chapman and others, has dedicated itself in the last year to repair, recovery and rebirth. As devastating as this storm was, it pales in comparison to the resilience and fortitude of everyday Brooklynites.”

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About Brooklyn Community Foundation

Brooklyn Community Foundation is dedicated to improving lives and strengthening communities through local giving, grantmaking, and community service. Established in 2009 as the first and only charitable foundation for New York City’s largest borough, the Foundation has granted nearly $20 million in partnership with generous donors to address critical community needs and advance innovative nonprofit programs. In response to Superstorm Sandy’s devastating impact in Brooklyn’s coastal neighborhoods, the Foundation launched the Brooklyn Recovery Fund. To date, more than $3.5 million has aided families and small businesses through the efforts of over 50 community-based organizations. Learn more at www.BrooklynCommunityFoundation.org.

 

About the American Red Cross
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or visit us on Twitter at @RedCrossNY.