Our Grants

Current Impact Grants

BTB

Beyond the Ball

Located on the West Side of Chicago, Little Village is a vibrant and culturally rich community that has historically welcomed newly arrived migrants. However, Little Village has been challenged with high rates of gang violence, which has caused underutilization of it public spaces. Beyond the Ball (BTB) works to unify the Little Village community around public spaces, engage and support newly arrived migrant families in these spaces, and ensure that violence and gang activity don't prevent residents from enjoying and benefiting from outdoor spaces. BTB’s Public Space Work efforts are focused on its Project Play and Our Little Village programs. Project Play is held once a week July-August, and offers a variety of activities to participants including soccer, volleyball, playground games, lotería (Mexican bingo), arts and crafts, and gardening. After sunset, BTB plays a movie on the soccer field for a community movie night. BTB’s Our Little Village program takes place during the year and consists of various maintenance projects throughout the neighborhood and community clean and green days. BTB staff engage community residents in picking up garbage, removing graffiti, ensuring amenities are functioning properly, building raised beds for gardening, planting native species plants, and planting and maintaining new trees.

 

REACH

Refugee Education and Adventure Challenge

Refugee youth face challenges of balancing the expectations of two cultures, and juggling work and school, all while addressing the results of interrupted schooling, survivor guilt, or separation from family members. They also face academic failure, bullying, gang intimidation, and violence. A connection to the outdoors and to others can be a channel to American culture and language. When integrating into a foreign culture, nature and green spaces can provide comfort, safety, a place to gather, and a platform for meaningful activities, intercultural communication, and cooperation. Refugee Education and Adventure Challenge (REACH) works to support refugee youth and families by inspiring leadership, academic success, and connections among refugee youth through active dynamic learning outside the traditional classroom.

REACH listens and attends to what refugee parents are experiencing with their children by employing activities that help bridge cultural gaps, broaden access to safe places, promote life skills development, and connect refugee youth and families to transformative learning experiences in blue and green spaces. Its Summer and Weekend Adventure Camps curriculum focuses on adventure sports and nature education activities with adventure-based English instruction. REACH also shares expert knowledge to build awareness and interest in recreational activities and resources available to newcomer communities through outreach to external groups that are also collaborating with newcomer populations in Cook County. 

Working Bikes

Working Bikes

Working Bikes strives for a world where everyone has access to bicycle transportation and works to strengthens local and global communities by giving donated bicycles new life and redistributing them as tools for self-determination. Its "Welcome, Let's Roll. Bienevidos, vamos a rodar" initiative addresses the integration challenges faced by new arrival populations (particularly youth and families) in Chicago through the transformative power of bicycles. Facilitated by Working Bikes and its network of community partners, the program provides access to bicycles, repair services, and mechanical education. By empowering new arrival families with the means to navigate their city, engage in community activities, and build confidence, this initiative fosters social inclusion, physical activity, and overall well-being, contributing to their successful integration into the Chicago cycling community. The program operates through a multi-faceted approach, which includes educational workshops on bike maintenance and safety; community integration rides organized for new arrival families to participate in, fostering socialization and exploration of the city; and invitations to existing community rides.

YMCA of Greater Seattle BOLD & GOLD and SOS Outreach

The nonprofit sector is creating significant impacts through intentional program design and direction. Unfortunately, many of these efforts are isolated and programs operate in a silo, limiting growth and learning. YMCA of Greater Seattle’s BOLD & GOLD and SOS Outreach are convening a nationally focused learning community to increase youth access and engagement in the outdoors. The goal of this strategic alliance is to unite programs across different organizations in order to maximize efficiency of implementation, increase funding to the sector, and to, ultimately, make it easier for families to access programs.

The learning community will convene at a retreat to identify shared goals, focus on how to work with other collaborative initiatives, and to set metrics for measuring progress. It is also an opportunity to further dive into best practices alignment across organizations and national partnership potentials to extend the reach and location of shared programs. Virtual meetings will be held throughout the year to provide shared space for learning and for support across organization efforts and work.

The long-term goal of the learning community is that outdoor recreation is seen as a leading contributor to youth development nationally and that all participating organizations learn from each other to further enhance their programs and impact.