Convening civic leaders
A feature story from our 2019 annual report.
December 2019
Hunger exists in Cambridge. These nonprofits are working to squash it.
In a city as prosperous as Cambridge, an astounding one out of seven residents lives in poverty and 12% of households are enrolled in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), a federal food assistance program. The winter holiday season can be particularly difficult for families and individuals challenged by income insecurity or homelessness. We’re spotlighting Community Servings, Food for Free, and Project Manna, nonprofit organizations that work daily to combat hunger in our community, and the impact they make in Cambridge. Together these three impressive organizations received $25,000 from our Community Fund grants this fall. A medically tailored meal by Community Servings. Community Servings Community Servings actively engages the community to provide medically tailored, nutritious, scratch-made meals to chronically and critically ill individuals and their families. Registered dietitian nutritionists work with clients who have specific nutritional needs associated with HIV/AIDS, cancer, kidney disease, diabetes, and other life-threatening illnesses to develop individualized nutrition care plans. Powered by CCF: The Nutrition Program for Cambridge Residents Affected by Critical Illnesses provides 33,500 home-delivered, medically tailored meals to more than 100 Cambridge residents affected by a critical illness. Approximately 50% of Cambridge residents served are over the age
Remembering a beloved community leader, Betty Bardige (1950-2019)
With heavy hearts, we share the news that Betty Bardige, our former board chair at the Cambridge Community Foundation, passed away on November 24. We remember Betty as a wonderful leader, community member, and friend. She dedicated her life to making the world, and especially Cambridge, better for all children. About Betty: A life of impact Betty Bardige served as a Cambridge Community Foundation board director for 18 years, with six of those years as board president. She also chaired many committees for the Foundation and served on the City’s Kids’ Council. A mother of three, Betty did not leave her parenting skills at home. Much of Betty’s work contributed to the creation of the Agenda for Children and the Foundation’s role in building public-private partnerships aimed at sharing best practices and enhancing educational opportunities. Her expertise was invaluable in building initiatives for after-school programs, school readiness, and infant and toddler care. She was instrumental in starting the Center for Families in North Cambridge and was an active Tobin School parent. Betty also chaired the A.L. Mailman Family Foundation, a national foundation focused on early childhood. She spent most of her professional life as
A day of volunteering to build a more just Cambridge.
Q&A with Lori Lander, founder, Many Helping Hands 365’s MLK Day of Service.
November 2019
The Cambridge Community Foundation infuses $672,500 into Cambridge through nonprofit grants
Photo courtesy of Playworks New England November 26, 2019—Cambridge, MA The Cambridge Community Foundation announces it will infuse a total of $672,500 into the nonprofit sector in Cambridge, Massachusetts through its fall grantmaking and new investments in focused areas. Fifty-six local nonprofits will receive a total of $357,500 in grants from the Community Fund to help address a wide range of needs in Cambridge, including hunger and homelessness, and other housing challenges; youth and early childhood education and services, work force training, and services for elders. Grants also invest in preserving our city’s artistic and cultural vibrancy. The Foundation, in partnership with its donor partners, is also distributing an additional $315,000 this fall to strategic investments in three important areas: Equity and opportunity bolstering out-of-schooltime programs for middle schoolers through the Agenda for Children supporting the expansion of the Becoming A Man (BAM) guidance program for young men into Cambridge Rindge and Latin School investing in Cambridge Housing Authority’s Work Force program over three years to ensure low-income youth in Cambridge can access the award-winning program of educational, job, and career and college prep help expanding the HomeStart program in Cambridge to support low-income residents seeking affordable housing increasing mentorship
The impact of the United Legal Defense Fund for Immigrants’ first year
Photo courtesy of De Novo Center for Justice and Healing. Amid the current immigration crisis in our country, the stories of the people in our own community who are deeply affected by tightening immigration policies demonstrate the urgency of this issue. “Tania”, a teenage mother, suffered abuse and neglect at home and threats of gang violence in her native country. She escaped Central America, but only because of legal support from De Novo, can she now safely rebuild her life here in the U.S. “Paul”, who fled the Khmer Rouge genocide as a child, has raised his children in Massachusetts. Now at risk of deportation, Paul has gotten the help he needs from Greater Boston Legal Services to stay in the home he’s built with his family. Tania, Paul, and so many others in our community rely on free or low-cost legal services to be able to safely stay in the country. The United Legal Defense Fund for Immigrants is the local giving platform to help these vulnerable community members receive the legal services they need to lead safe lives in refuge. The critical role of the United Legal Defense Fund for Immigrants In March 2018, the Cambridge
Rooting immigrant students in community, college, and career paths
Being a high school student is a challenge, given academic expectations, social-emotional development, and planning for college or a career. It’s even tougher if you aren’t born in this country, you and your family aren’t familiar with the education landscape, and English isn’t your first language. Fortunately, Cambridge students who have immigrated can get support through Enroot, an afterschool program specifically designed to help them through high school and their first two years of college. Enroot prepares immigrant youth for academic, career and personal success through out-of-school time mentorships, tutoring, internships, and exposure to career paths and professionals. We chatted with Ben Clark, executive director, and Dananai Morgan, director of development and strategic initiatives, about Enroot’s work and goals for this 2019-20 school year. CCF: Enroot recently expanded its programming to include two years of college support. How is this helping your scholars? Dananai Morgan: In the past, we were only supporting students through high school. With new funding, we are able to continue our programming through the first two years of college, which is a help because almost all Enroot students are first-gen college students, so many decisions like financial aid and course load
Meet Geeta Pradhan, President of the Cambridge Community Foundation
Q&A with Geeta Pradhan, President Can you tell us a little about your background and what brought you to CCF? GP: My career in Boston spanned 30 years, with work ranging from community development to affordable housing to sustainability to philanthropy. When I got this phenomenal opportunity to go to the Cambridge Community Foundation, I was very intrigued. But honestly, my first reaction was, ‘Why would I go to Cambridge?’ The city has a reputation of wealth and prosperity, and I’d spent my whole life working on issues around equity and poverty in Boston. But then I started looking at the data. I was stunned that 18 percent of Cambridge children live in poverty. This is a small enough city, with world-class intellectual capital…why can’t we wrap our arms around it and solve the problems of the community? If we really put our minds to it, we can find solutions. What do you think makes Cambridge special? GP: What makes Cambridge special is that you can really sense the values of the city. Walking in Central Square, you see cultures from all around the world represented in the people, the restaurants and stores, and the languages spoken. That is
October 2019
A groundswell of giving during year one of the United Legal Defense Fund for Immigrants
Photos from Dance for Dignity, held at the Somerville Armory on October 25. Immigrants' need for legal defense is at an all-time high in our communities. With immigration policies changing almost daily, many of our neighbors live in fear of losing their immigrant status. High-quality, low-bono and pro-bono legal service, however, can change the course of a person’s or a family’s life. Because of community support – of all shapes and sizes – the United Legal Defense Fund for Immigrants continues to help local legal defense organizations make a difference for many of our neighbors who otherwise face detention or deportation. Last October, the Fund awarded $255,000 to four local, legal immigration organizations, including a two-year commitment to supporting three organizations, for which second-year funding will be distributed this November. Since expanding the Fund to Somerville as well as Cambridge seven months ago, we have raised more than $50,000 for the Fund, with contributions coming from 200-plus donors. We look forward to giving out more grants from the Fund this fall. We couldn’t do this important work without donor support, and it's taken donors of all kinds and gifts of all sizes. Fundraising has
Connecting Cambridge middle schoolers to positive, out-of-school experiences
Photo courtesy of Cambridge Agenda for Children Out-of-School Time Cambridge is full of bright opportunities for its young residents. With a vibrant nonprofit community and active arts and cultural organizations, the city offers a lot of promise to those who grow up here. Many youth and families, however, have difficulty accessing, navigating or affording the plethora of out-of-school opportunities. That’s why Cambridge Agenda for Children Out-of-School Time (AFCOST) helps youth find after-school activities that can help grow their passions and broaden their horizons through the Middle School Network (MSN). Back in 2009, the Mayor of Cambridge commissioned a report called Shared Youth, Shared Strategies, which found that just a third of Cambridge’s middle school-aged youth were involved in any after-school activity. According to Cambridge AFCOST Co-Director Khari Milner, the “highly problematic” low enrollment in after-school activities at that time was an unfortunate result of our city’s school system structure. Specifically, after-school programs mirrored Cambridge school’s K-8 system – offering K-8 activities that many middle graders socially grew out of and lost interest in. The findings led Milner, with Co-Director Susan Richards, to launch the MSN. Ten years into its journey, the MSN continues to live out its
