Meet Residents Where They Are

In an unprecedented move that demonstrated their commitment to resident driven initiatives, the Victoria Foundation staff and trustees attended a community dinner with members of the Fairmount Heights Neighborhood Association (FHNA) and representatives from the Urban League of Essex County. The event was held at the Most Blessed Sacrament Friary, a historic monastery located on 13^th Avenue in the Fairmount neighborhood.

The dinner provided an opportunity for Victoria Foundation Trustees to learn about challenges and successes in Fairmount. From education and safety, to health and housing, the participants engaged in robust dialogue on what it meant to live in Fairmount. In addition to discussing neighborhood conditions, members of the FHNA shared their vision, hopes, and dreams for the neighborhood with members of the nonprofit and funding community.

As part of a multi-year funding commitment, the Fairmount Neighborhood is one of two Newark neighborhoods that are part of the Victoria Foundation’s neighborhood-focused investments. Through this initiative, the Foundation seeks to test out a different approach to community development investing: place-based and resident-driven.

This new neighborhood-focused strategy puts residents at the center of the community development process with resources, technical assistance, and training needed to plan and execute community programs and initiatives. Members of FHNA were excited about this new strategy, and ready to work together to build a stronger Fairmount. FHNA president Dorian Johnson expressed his desires for the new Fairmount initiative by saying, “It is my hope that we as neighbors help one another and work together to enhance the quality of life in our neighborhood to ensure a bright future for our children.” Often times funders don’t get to interact with members of the community, but the Victoria Foundation’s new approach seeks to break all conventions in order to effect positive and sustainable changes to the Fairmount and Upper Clinton Hill neighborhoods.