Project Name: Urban Roots Initiative
ABOUT THE APPLICANT
Are you applying as a:
Neighborhood organization or association (such as a non-profit)
What is the organization’s name?
The Welcome Home Organization
What neighborhood does the organization serve?
Jackson, Michigan (Southside)
First and last name?
Vittoria Jimerson
Twitter Handle
Facebook Handle
@thewelcomehomeorganization
Instagram Handle
Is the organization a registered 501 (c)3 non-profit?
Yes
ABOUT THE PROJECT
What is the name of the neighborhood where the project will take place? (Please include city/village name too. Example: Mexican Town, Detroit)
Southside Jackson, Michigan
Anticipated project launch date
July 17, 2023
Describe your project idea including: a) Is it a project or event? b) What will you do? c) Where will you do it? d) Who, if any, are your project partners?
The Welcome Home-Urban Roots Event will be held at our site and we will be bringing the community together to provide intergenerational farming programming, and teaching the community about growing their own food, getting into agriculture careers, and acknowledging the diversity that is in the community. Our project partners are: The City of Jackson, Vista Grande Villa, Collins Adult Day Program, Harrington PCO, KARMA Farming Cooperative, Ecstatic Life Farms, LaPorte Harvest Moon Farms, MSU.
How will you engage your community in this project?
We will be bringing out community members of all ages, races, diverse backgrounds, and introducing our organization to the community. We are a BIPOC, Female, Veteran led non-profit that has a extremely viable youth program (Bowling, Golf and Mentorship), we also have a Veterans Outreach Program that works to connect Veterans to benefits and resources and getting both youth and Veterans into agricultural careers and farming. We do additional outreach to Women and Minority Veterans since most women Veterans do not recognize their service to the military due to trauma experienced while in the military.
How will the project celebrate the neighborhood’s diversity? Diversity can include different ages, races, cultures, socio-economic statuses, abilities, and more.
The project will celebrate the neighborhood’s diversity by inviting the entire community to participate, as an organization we ensure that we reach out to all members of the community. We do this by going onto the local Hispanic Radio Station once a month to provide outreach and advertise all of our outreach events, we also have a collaboration with an Arab non-profit to provide food for our afterschool programming. We also set up a table once a month at the Center for Family Health to make sure that we are reaching everyone across socio-economical lines. We are also partnering with organizations that service a multitude of people and ages. Our partners range from school pco organizations to elderly care facilities, to the City of Jackson. This allows us to reach so many community members.
How do you plan to spend the $1,000 microgrant? Please list and explain the items, services, fees, expertise, etc. that you plan to purchase.
We will spend the 1,000 microgrant for the following:
-Food for the event
-Insurance for the event
-SWAG for the event
Will your project require special permits?
No
Are you the owner of the property where the project/event will occur?
Yes
Rachel’s Notes
Reviewed on 4.5.23 Confirmed member status. Confirmed non-profit status. Not a neighborhood org. Hard to confirm if it’s in a neighborhood. https://www.whovision.org/single-project
ABOUT YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD’S NEEDS
Why does your neighborhood need this project?
Our neighborhood is so disconnected when it comes to diversity. The City of Jackson is so racially divided between black and white, and they are forgetting about all of the other races and diversity in the community.
What do you hope to achieve through this project? Be as specific as possible!
We hope to solidify The Welcome Home Organization (WHO) as a community hub that is welcoming to ALL. There is so much room for improvement in our community and we feel that this would be one of the first steps to combat the divisiveness and create great community connections and build a stronger foundation for our citizens.
What resources do you already have to make this project successful? Resources could include things like time, partners, expertise, donated goods/materials/space, matching funds, and more.
We have amazing partners, we have a greenhouse, and the space to hold the event. Our partners are diverse and bring so much to the table with how our goals and missions align. We have established donation of goods (food and swag), we have a collaboration for bounce houses for the children. The local Hispanic radio station host will be hosting the event, and we are continuing to apply for grants and donations. We are also coordinating with other non-profit organizations and local business vendors to set up tables and booths to provide resources for the community and to sell their products. We believe that this event could be an amazing opportunity for our community to grow together.
IMAGE UPLOADS
Image Caption 1 (if any): Our Gramma O’ Bowling Academy Captain, and our Golf Academy Captain inside of our newly built greenhouse.
Image Upload 1 (if any):
Image Caption 2 (if any): Our Director of Outreach and Advocacy, Jason Overmyer presenting the Sportsmanship Award to Joseph Byler.
Image Upload 2 (if any):
Image Caption 3 (if any): Our Meet and Mingle Outreach Event for Veterans and Military Families.
Image Upload 3 (if any):
Image Caption 4 (if any): Our youth Taylor, who got her new high bowling score 128.
Image Upload 4 (if any):
Image Caption 5 (if any): Some of our youth at the Harvey Sparr Bowling Tournament at Jax60 in Jackson, MI.
Image Upload 5 (if any):
