Goodwill store celebrates internal renovations Goodwill celebrated the grand re-opening of its Snellville store on Thursday, April 7th, after undergoing internal renovations. The Goodwill team has been working to renovate many of its locations including Northlake, Perimeter, Pleasant Hill, and West End to revamp the shopping, donating, and working experience for everyone who supports the nonprofit.  The Snellville store and donation center, located at 2340 Ronald Reagan Parkway in Snellville, was established in 2014 and has been serving the community ever since. Residents of Snellville and the surrounding areas have had a place to shop and donate their gently used clothes, furniture, books, and technology for some time now. As of April 6, Goodwill invites guests to shop the newly renovated store, which features fresh paint colors, new wall graphics, flooring, and energy-saving LED lighting. There is also a ‘new goods’ section dedicated to newly packaged goods such as snacks and drinks. This section is constantly changing with new, special-value items. “We want to amplify the shopping, donating and working experience for everyone,” says Elaine Armstrong, vice president of marketing. “The Northlake store and donation center has been a community favorite for a long time. Now, it’s been revamped and refreshed so that folks can continue donating and shopping, and we can continue serving our jobseekers.” Last year, Goodwill successfully renovated several other stores, including Cobb Parkway, Covington, Fayetteville, Hickory Flat, Northside, Jonesboro, Douglasville, Conyers, and Powder Springs. On February 16, the nonprofit celebrated the grand re-opening of its oldest retail location in West End and plans to continue refreshing other locations in the coming months. When you shop at Goodwill, you’re supporting the nonprofit’s mission to Put People to Work. When items are sold in stores or online, those profits are used to fund skills training programs and job placement services. Last year, Goodwill helped over 16,000+ North Georgians secure jobs, with plans to help even more people get a job, a better job, or a career this year. With continued donations and support, that mission stays possible.   This is sponsored content.

Today’s the Last Day! Please RSVP by clicking here. The gala will be held at the Atlanta History Center at 6pm on Thursday, March 30, 2023, and includes a cocktail reception, live entertainment – with a special performance by the Atlanta Women’s Chorus, dinner, live auction and more. Please join us and Honorary Chair Ambassador Andrew Young as we celebrate Lucy C. Vance. Former Families First board member Monica Kaufman Pearson will serve as emcee! There are a few sponsorships and tickets still available, but the deadline is today!  Click here or the above flyer for more details and to make your purchase.  You may also email us at marketing@familiesfirst.org for more information.   Warmly, Paula M. Moody Paula M. Moody, LCSW, MS Chief Executive Officer Families First

Representatives from the Metro Atlanta Chamber and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce recently joined Fiserv, a leading global provider of payments and financial services technology with a significant presence in the Atlanta area, to present three Atlanta-area small businesses with $10,000 grants in recognition of Hispanic Heritage Month.  The business owners who received grants included: Joel Ferrer of Chef Joel Coco Cabana LLC, a restaurant delighting guests with unique cuisine, showcasing Chef Joel’s classically trained background and Cuban heritage. Vanessa Higgins of Clean Tu Casa, a cleaning, organizing and personal errand service company serving homes, small offices and short-term rentals in Metro Atlanta. Alejandra “Luz” Pelaez of UP Advertising, a multicultural advertising and digital marketing agency specializing in reaching the Hispanic market, ensuring companies communicate authentically. In interviews following the grant presentations, the recipients discussed the impact the grants will have on their businesses. Chef Ferrer highlighted plans to invest in upgraded technology, while Vanessa Higgins underscored that the grants will enable her to create jobs and Sebastian Uribe of UP Advertising noted an anticipated increase in sales.   The grants were awarded as part of the Fiserv Back2Business program, a $50 million commitment to support minority-owned small businesses. In addition to grants, Back2Business connects diverse small businesses with critical resources, including complimentary small business coaching, leading technology solutions such as Clover and community partners. “We’re proud to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month by supporting these inspiring businesses and all the small businesses that play a crucial role in Atlanta’s economy,” said Vivian Greentree, Senior Vice President and Head of Global Corporate Citizenship at Fiserv. “Providing funding and resources to help small, diverse businesses thrive is a key tenet of the Back2Business program and it’s wonderful to see the impact this program has made in cities all over the country, and especially here in our own backyard in Atlanta.”  “It is an honor to partner with Fiserv and the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce to celebrate and support entrepreneurs in the Hispanic community during Hispanic Heritage Month,” said Alex Gonzalez, Chief Innovation and Marketing Officer at the Metro Atlanta Chamber. “Through the Back2Business grants, Fiserv is providing access to capital and resources to help these three Hispanic-owned businesses grow and thrive.” In addition to facing difficult business conditions such as rising costs, supply chain challenges and labor shortages, Hispanic-owned small businesses have their own unique set of challenges. “Fiserv recognition and support of the Hispanic community, providing valuable grants and services at a critical time for small businesses through Back2Business, is key to assuring equitable opportunities for our community and to being seen as the vital force that we are for the economy and the great state of Georgia,” said Verónica Maldonado-Torres, President and CEO, Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. “When one group thrives, we all thrive as a society, and that is our goal at the GHCC – to match businesses with the resources, tools and opportunities to inspire them and help them reimagine the next for their company.”  In addition to Atlanta, Fiserv has sponsored the Back2Business program in cities including New York, Milwaukee, Miami, Chicago, Detroit, Tulsa, Oakland, Washington. D.C. and Omaha. To date, Fiserv has presented nearly 1,500 grants to small businesses through the program.   This is sponsored content.

A historic building in Downtown Atlanta recently got a new look both inside and out. Theatrical Outfit, located in the Balzer Theater at 84 Luckie Street NW, recently unveiled its renovated street façade and new lobby featuring a full bar and spacious seating area. The modern look for this Downtown mainstay marks a new chapter in both the theater’s history and the legacy of the building itself. In 1934, Herren’s Restaurant opened in the space and became a popular spot for Downtown shoppers and businessmen. During a time when fine dining was only available at private clubs, Herren’s was one of the only options available to the general public. In 1962 amid the Civil Right movement, it was the first white restaurant in the city to desegregate and serve patrons regardless of race. Herren’s was popular throughout the following decades but eventually closed in the late 80s amid urban flight and the opening of Lenox Square, which drew shoppers away from the city center. The building on Luckie Street remained vacant until 2002 when Bill and Peg Balzer, celebrated patrons of the arts in Atlanta, purchased the site and donated it to Theatrical Outfit. During the conversion of the building in 2005, construction focused on sustainability and environmentally responsible building practices, and it became the first theater in the country to receive LEED certification. The nonprofit has produced performances and programming in the space ever since, presenting five shows each season and providing a range of community engagement and educational programming. The building’s renovations, which included a full HVAC overhaul, were made possible in part thanks to a gift from the Lettie Pate Evans Foundation, with additional funding raised through Theatrical Outfit’s Heart of the City campaign.   “It’s been amazing to witness the deep commitment of Theatrical Outfit’s family of donors,” said Gretchen Butler, former managing director of the nonprofit. “Theatrical Outfit is excited to continue bringing conversations that matter to the heart of Downtown Atlanta for years to come.” While the look of the building has come a long way, there’s a thoughtful reminder of the location’s past in its new lobby. Behind the bar, Herren’s name appears on a recreation of the restaurant’s sign, serving as a symbol of the building’s legacy as it moves ahead into its next chapter.  Theatrical Outfit’s latest performance Tiny Beautiful Things runs through April 23rd. To learn more and buy tickets, visit TheatricalOutfit.org. 

Atlanta Land Trust (ALT) broke ground at their new development site, The Trust at East Lake. Partner organizations, community development leaders, and Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens joined to celebrate this fresh approach to tackling the city’s affordable housing crisis. Working with city leaders, developers, and planners to secure and preserve affordable housing options for residents of Atlanta, the trust will create a 40-unit townhome development in the city’s East Lake community.   Reinvestment Fund, a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) with a growing Atlanta office, is one of the partnering organizations helping bring the project to life. In partnership with Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partners (ANDP), Reinvestment Fund will deploy a $3.6 million revolving construction loan.  Reinvestment Fund invests capital in projects that are both targeted and transformative. As a part of their CDFI model, the organization supports mission-driven organizations and entrepreneurs with big ideas who face barriers to accessing capital from traditional lenders. They believe that access to quality and affordable homes is critical to building sustainable, healthy communities. To support community-led affordable housing projects, Reinvestment Fund offers a broad toolkit of products and flexible solutions to actively support a variety of approaches to increasing affordable housing—from Low Income Housing Tax Credits to naturally occurring affordable housing (NOAH) to land trusts and other subsidies.  The Trust at East Lake manifests several commitments Reinvestment Fund pursues as their mission to build strong, healthy, and more equitable communities. Since 2018, ALT has developed over 30 homes using its permanent affordable housing land trust model. The model works by reducing displacement that can accompany gentrification and providing a framework that supports residents to attain and sustain homeownership. Following this model for the new development, homeowners will be empowered to successfully own a home and build wealth from the investment, while ALT preserves investment for future families. In addition, half of the affordable housing units will be restricted to households earning less than 80% of the area median income.   As a CDFI, Reinvestment Fund has the experience and expertise to support organizations, like ATL, that work within this market to preserve affordable homes for historically marginalized populations and communities of color. On the groundbreaking, Khaliff Davis, Managing Director of Structured Finance at Reinvestment Fund, stated, “Addressing our city’s housing affordability crisis requires fresh approaches to building and owning homes—approaches that value stability over volatility. Knowing that our investment enables attainable ownership for families in this generation and future generations through ALT’s permanent affordable housing model is truly exciting and affirms our values.”  Successful deployment of capital for affordable housing projects requires time and attention to project details. CDFIs, often referred to as “financial intermediaries,” are uniquely equipped to channel capital to areas with the most need and support projects that reflect community demand in ways traditional banks and financial institutions fall short. Moreover, with 35+ years of experience in affordable housing finance, CDFI’s like Reinvestment Fund play a critical role as reliable capital partners—even more so during a global pandemic and the resulting market turbulence.  Reinvestment Fund’s fundamental approach is to align with key community partners, like ATL, who put into action what they hear expressed by the communities they serve. On how he envisions this partnership moving forward, Davis continued, “ALT has shown a genuine interest in seeking input from those affected by their work and ensuring community representation in governance through their board so that all their decision-making is informed by what communities need most. Reinvestment Fund places a premium on the level of community building ALT aspires to and seeks to support this work into the future. Together we will continue to reimagine how community development vitalizes economic growth and opportunity for all.” Creating long-term and meaningful steps to address inequities in the housing sector takes a village. Reinvestment Fund works with public, nonprofit and private partners to identify practical interventions and investment approaches to improve the quality of local residential real estate markets and, in turn, strengthen communities. You can learn more about Reinvestment Fund’s work in Atlanta here. This is sponsored content.

By Roberta Moore, The Conservation Fund Jake’s Woods in Clinton, Georgia is a little-known treasure just an hour and a half southeast of Atlanta. Anyone who loves nature, biodiversity, and outdoor recreation, or recognizes the importance of historic preservation, should be excited about its recent protection. The 28-acre Jake’s Woods property is a multifaceted hidden gem. The property gets its namesake from Jacob Hutchings, a stone mason who hand-quarried this wooded granite boulder field in the 1800s, both as a slave before the Civil War and as a free man and business owner after Emancipation. He acquired the quarry property during Reconstruction, went on to own and operate a successful masonry business, and became one of the first Black legislators in the Georgia General Assembly who fiercely advocated for equal voting rights. The granite blocks that Jacob quarried from these woods can be found all over Jones County, including in cemeteries, as street curbs and even as the steps of the former Clinton courthouse. After his passing in 1909, Jacob’s family stewarded and passed down his property for generations. Over the past decade, The Old Clinton Historical Society, aware of the Hutchings family legacy, had been in conversation with the family about permanently protecting Jake’s Woods as a means of preserving and sharing Jacob’s story. Then a few years ago, the Hutchings family and the Historical Society reached out to The Conservation to work with Jones County and other partners to conserve the land in perpetuity for all to enjoy as a county park. Florence Walker, the great-great-granddaughter of Jacob Hutchings, said she was “so thrilled to see this property preserved as a public greenspace and as another addition to [her] family’s legacy.” She is also excited for the public to enjoy these woods as much as she has. Not only does the property preserve Jacob’s unique history and legacy, but the enormous granite boulders that remain scattered across the property make it an ideal landscape for rock climbing and bouldering — a rare amenity in central Georgia. It offers a large, varied boulder field for climbers of all abilities to send rad new routes or try climbing for the first time. The recreation potential here will support a growing natural tourism economy for Jones County, Clinton and the nearby town of Gray. The effort also secures a much-desired public greenspace for local community residents. In addition to its unique topography, the Jake’s Woods property supports wildlife habitat and diverse plant species that thrive in rich woodland habitats, including Sweet Betsy (Trillium cuneatum). The Conservation Fund identified the property’s recreational potential and value as a multi-purpose greenspace when originally approached, and encouraged Jones County to secure and restore the site with the support of many partners and funding from the Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Program. We collaborated closely with the Hutchings family to purchase their property in June 2022 and transferred the land to the county in February 2023. The environmental, cultural and economic benefits of this conservation effort cannot be overstated. As a rock climber and a proponent of recognizing and sharing untold histories, I’m honored to have supported the Hutchings family and the county to make their goals for Jake’s Woods a reality. I envision the property becoming a day-trip destination for folks throughout the Southeast interested in hiking, mountain biking and rock climbing. It will also attract tourists interested in Georgia history as it’s surrounded by historical places, spaces and artifacts preserved and documented throughout Clinton. The park is not yet open to the public. The County is expected to complete the construction of trails and park amenities in 2024 and open the property by summer. In the meantime, we will continue working with a consortium of partners including the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Middle Georgia Regional Commission, Access Fund, Southeastern Climbers Coalition, Atlanta Preservation Center, Old Clinton Historical Society, the Hutchings family, and volunteers from the local community to implement our shared vision for the greenspace.   This is sponsored content.

Launched in October 2020, Operation HOPE‘s 1 Million Black Businesses initiative (1MBB) Initiative is making great headway with its streak of impressive growth and action-driven impact. Today, there is a disconnect between policymakers and organizations who serve on the frontlines to support Black entrepreneurs. In an effort to improve outcomes, HOPE seeks to serve as a Sherpa to help connect the dots in many ways, including teaming up with the city of Charlotte, North Carolina. As reported by WCNC, the city and HOPE “plans to provide tools and resources to these small business owners so they know how to form a winning path toward expansion. This partnership takes Charlotte Black businesses, who were also less likely to receive prime city contracts as of last year, in a hopeful direction. “As a city, we truly believe in the power of diversity and inclusion, and fully support our small and minority-owned businesses,” Charlotte District 2 City Council Member Malcolm Graham said, per WCNC. “We know we can do more to build up our small business climate, especially in areas that have been traditionally underrepresented by city government. In partnership with Operation HOPE, we’re excited to create meaningful impact and leverage 1MBB in Charlotte.” This move is just part of the Initiative’s aim to start, grow, and scale one million Black businesses by 2030 to provide a successful path to wealth creation for the Black community. Participants can take advantage of coaching and educational services, access to expert volunteers and more. According to Smart Asset, Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia recently ranked second among the top 15 places for Black entrepreneurs—Black-owned businesses make up 27.59% of all businesses in the area. However, a previous Charlotte study shows disparity high for Black businesses. The Charlotte Observer previously reported on census data from 2021 that showed more than 3,000 minority-owned businesses and around 3,500 women-owned businesses in Charlotte. The city also had more than 13,000 non-minority-owned businesses at the time, according to the data. “We are grateful to the Mayor and leaders throughout the City of Charlotte for taking action to help build entrepreneurship and fuel economic prosperity for every community,” Operation HOPE founder, chairman, and CEO John Hope Bryant said. “Together, we will support existing and aspiring entrepreneurs–through education, access to resources and capital—to reach our goal of creating one million new Black business owners by 2030.”   This is sponsored content.

By Charles Redding, MedShare CEO & President April 27, 2023, is World Health Day and the 75th anniversary of the founding of the World Health Organization (WHO). In 1948, many countries of the world came together and founded WHO to promote health, keep the world safe, and serve the vulnerable populations so everyone, everywhere could attain the highest level of health and well-being.    Despite significant advancements in healthcare delivery and outcomes since the founding of WHO, many countries and communities, like San Juan de la Maguana in the Dominican Republic, continue to struggle to provide quality primary care due to the lack of adequate health care infrastructure. San Juan de la Maguana is a small town located in the mountains, almost 240 miles west of Santo Domingo. With a rural population of more than 40%, San Juan’s economy is powered by agriculture and livestock, and is considered the island’s “Granary of the South”. For an average person from this area, something as simple as monitoring their insulin levels or blood cholesterol can turn out to be a major challenge. Patients have to drive more than 40 minutes to one of the two hospitals which have the capacity to analyze medical samples. And river flooding frequently prevents access back to the hospital to pick up results. A simple task for those who live in urban areas ends up becoming life-threatening for those who live in isolated, rural areas of the island, especially for the elderly, pregnant women and people with reduced mobility who need to monitor their health periodically. For this reason and more, one of MedShare’s partners, Solid Rock International (SRI), founded The Christian Clinic for Integral Health. The clinic exists to provide people who live in the San Juan community with general health care, including surgery and dental care. Many SRI medical teams work in the clinic to provide specialty surgeries that are not normally available. The main objective is to provide quality health care to all in need, including discounted or even free services to those unable to pay full cost. Solid Rock International additionally supports a second clinic in the town of El Cercado, which serves as home base for the Child Nutrition Program. In 1998, The Christian Clinic for Integral Health in San Juan de la Maguana faced disastrous flooding from Hurricane George. The entire clinic was covered by over five feet of water and mud that severely damaged the structure and surrounding property. As a result, the clinic sits on an uninhabitable flood plain with a high risk of future flooding, has maintenance issues beyond repair including a leaky roof, mold growth, and a buckled floor. Additionally, it does not comply with government standards and is at risk of being shut down at any time in spite of being desperately needed to provide care for the community. In 2014, in cooperation with Dominican non-profit partner ACPSI (The Christian Association for the Promotion of Integral Health), SRI decided to construct a new non-profit hospital that will fulfill the original vision of serving the poorest of the poor while providing opportunities to expand available services to the southwestern region of the Dominican Republic. Beginning in 2019, MedShare was honored to work with SRI on the construction of the new hospital by providing: Consultation: SRI initiated discussions with MedShare to validate plans and seek advice on design and procurement of equipment. Hospital Design: MedShare sent its Director of Biomedical Engineering & Technical Services to the Dominican Republic to conduct a pre-assessment, further refine our scope of work, and advise on hospital design, layout, equipment, and utility requirements. Equipment/Supply Donations:  MedShare has provided over a half of million dollars of state-of-the-art equipment and supplies for the new hospital, including beds, exam tables, operating room tables and furniture. MedShare’s commitment ensured that the clinic received the most up-to-date equipment and will provide training on the proper use and maintenance of the equipment once the hospital is fully operational. The new facility is a 56-bed, 46,000 ft2 clinic projected to provide over 100,000 patients services annually with close to 40 specialty surgeries. The hospital is planning to offer new services, with some of them becoming available to the San Juan community for the very first time. Some of these new services include: Ambulance Services         Blood Bank                  Emergency Care Emergency Obstetrics       Endocrinology               Gastroenterology Intensive Care                 Neonatal Intensive Care       Ophthalmology Orthodontics                   Orthopedics                          Physical Therapy Radiology Urology Access to medical care is something that can be easily taken for granted. In the Dominican Republic, good healthcare is not only difficult to find, but it is more often than not denied to the poor. Seeing this facility first-hand and the joy of the people in this community only reinforced my belief that quality healthcare should not be a choice, but a basic human right.  I look forward to returning once the clinic is fully operational and bring others with me to view this “miracle” for this community.   This is sponsored content.

A Worker from a Young Age In 1933, Dorothy Bolden began working as a domestic worker for a white Atlanta family near her Vine City home in the Westside community. She was nine years old. Every day after school, she’d work at the family’s home, caring for their baby, washing diapers and cleaning the house. In 11th grade, she dropped out of school and began working full-time as a domestic worker. She would begin at 8 a.m. and finish in the early evening, just after dinner. Despite working nearly 12 hours a day, she only earned $3 per week. For Bolden, domestic work was the only lifestyle she knew. When she was born in 1924, her mother was a maid and washerwoman. Before she began working on her own, Bolden and her brother would deliver the laundry their mother washed for other families. The work was grueling. From the beginning, Bolden longed to leave the domestic workforce, but was limited by an injury she suffered at age three, which left her eyesight severely damaged. She attempted to attend design school and work in a mailroom, but her poor vision made it near impossible. She ultimately landed back as a domestic worker. Unfortunately for many Black women at the time, this was a vicious cycle. Domestic work was one of the few careers readily available to them due to a litany of restrictions caused by segregation. It was unrightfully viewed as an unskilled job, resulting in low wages, long hours and poor treatment. At the age of 16, Bolden experienced poor treatment firsthand. Her employer demanded she stay late one evening to wash dishes and tidy up the house. With nightfall just around the corner, she refused and left. On her way home, she was confronted by two Atlanta police officers who promptly arrested her for talking back to a white woman. She was jailed and eventually bailed out by her family at great financial expense. Family, Misfortune and Motivation A few years later in 1944, Bolden met Abraham Thompson and the two were married. The couple had nine children together— three passed away at a young age and the other six lived on to adulthood. Bolden took a few years off from work to care for her family, but economic conditions were unfavorable and forced her back into the domestic workforce. This time around, with years of experience under her belt, she was able to command a higher rate with some larger homes paying her as much as $90 per week. Still, the pay did not satisfy the exhaustion. Each day, she would wake up at 4 a.m. to travel to the white neighborhoods she served, then return home in the evening to prepare meals and care for her children. While she claimed to like the work to some degree, the exhaustion it caused and the mistreatment she suffered at the hands of families she served were taking a toll. One day in 1955, Bolden was watching TV when she saw the news of Rosa Parks in Alabama refusing to give up her seat. The exhaustion she saw in the fellow labor worker’s eyes inspired her to move for change, and that’s when her mission began. A Quest for Change Bolden quickly dove into the world of activism, volunteering with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and her impact was immediately noticeable. She played an integral role in school desegregation, voter registration and housing reform. Bolden was still unsatisfied, arguing that desegregated schools and housing was pointless when Black women working as domestic workers couldn’t even afford clothes for their children to attend the schools. That’s when she turned her attention and activism toward the cause closest to her heart, supporting her fellow domestic workers. Having grown up in Vine City and working tirelessly to build an activism network in the community, she turned to her new neighbor on Sunset Avenue and asked for some guidance on how to form a union for her fellow workers. That neighbor was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. King had heard of Bolden’s work with local organizations and encouraged her to move forward with the formation of a union, saying he knew she had the ability to do it herself. So she did. Forming a union required her to meet with her constituents. With years of domestic work experience herself, she knew there was little to no time for them to meet outside of work hours, so she met them at the one place she knew they’d be every day— the bus. For months, Bolden would ride buses at the same time domestic workers were traveling to and from their jobs. She championed her cause, urging domestic workers to join her in forming a union – and they agreed. A Union is Born In 1968, more than 70 domestic workers elected Bolden as president of the newly-formed National Domestic Workers of America, one of the first of its kind in the country. While the organization had national in its name, it primarily served women in the Atlanta area. The union’s first goal was to train the domestic workers in skills, including cooking, shopping, child care and elder care. Though most workers already possessed the skills, Bolden and the union provided a formal training program, which helped them argue that the workers were now professionally trained and worthy of higher pay and better treatment. The union’s impact was noticeable; domestic workers were now receiving reasonable pay and there was a clear shift in the overall environment of the career, with many workers feeling more confident and proud of their work. Soon, similar organizations began to sprout up around the country, and the government took notice. In 1970, the union announced the first Maids’ Honor Day, during which employers nominated their employees to be recognized at a local gala to celebrate their hard work. Two years later, then-Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter announced the day would be recognized as a state holiday. Bolden stood next to him …

By Arelious Cooper, executive director, Art in the Paint At Art in the Paint, our mission is to use art and athletics to promote a higher quality of life, mobilize communities and inspire equitable play. Since 2020, we have renovated more than 40 courts in nine cities and four countries. Our programs have impacted over 12,000 people, with $8.4 million worth of services and resources brought to communities worldwide. As the honorable Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens has stated, “Atlanta is a group project”. In 2022, we partnered with the Thomasville Heights community, the Atlanta Public Defender’s office, the Office of Cultural Affairs, Parks and Recreation, Park Pride, and SCAD ‘POP’ to renovate two outdoor basketball courts and a futsal (hardcourt soccer) court with a beautiful, fun, refreshing mural the community can be proud of.* As an organization dedicated to place-based impact, much of our contact with the community happens in-person in the neighborhoods we are impacting. While developing our courts, we regularly attend neighborhood association meetings, NPU meetings, and any other appropriate in-person community gatherings. With that input from the community, SCAD alumni Alexandria Hall designed a beautiful mural.  As wonderful and physically transformative as all of this is, it’s only the beginning. Art is the catalyst, not the end game. We’ve been reaching out to potential program partners to bring resources centered around STEAM, mental health, economic empowerment, gun violence prevention and of course, free basketball to the community.  So, why does free basketball matter? According to The New York Times, “data from multiple sources reveal a significant gap in sports participation by income level. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study found that 70% of children from families with incomes above about $105,000 — four times the poverty line — participated in sports in 2020. But participation was around 51% for families in a middle-income range, and just 31% for families at or below the poverty line.” Play equity is more than fun and games; it’s a social issue. Atlanta leads the nation in income inequality. In the area surrounding Thomasville Heights (zip code 30314), the average household income is just $25,920 per family. The average household income in the Buckhead and more affluent areas of Atlanta is around $148,480 per family. Children born into poverty in Atlanta have only about a 4% chance of breaking out of poverty, and courts in community parks may be one of the last “level playing fields” that they play on. Although basketball courts are the foundation of our model, Art in the Paint serves as a community multiplier and excels in bringing community members and other nonprofit partners together to facilitate change. Art in the Paint takes that statement to heart and works to involve as many connections as possible to the community to ensure rebuilding is effective and personal. If you’re interested in following or joining our journey, please reach out to us via email at artinthepaint@gmail.com on Instagram @artinthepaintorg, or check out our website www.planpaintplay.com. *Thomasville Heights is one of three communities in metro Atlanta where the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta is focusing its place-based work. Art in the Paint’s work in Thomasville Heights illustrates the transformative impacts that can happen when the arts intersect with community (place).   This is sponsored content.

As COVID-19 continues to evolve and impact the lives of people around the world, the need for additional effective treatment options continues to be at the forefront of global efforts to combat the disease. Emory University has entered into an agreement with Pfizer Inc. to advance research that may serve to help address this need and potentially save patients’ lives.    Under the terms of the research collaboration, option and license agreement, Emory University’s Schinazi Laboratory, led by distinguished researcher Raymond Schinazi, and Pfizer will work together to identify and evaluate potential antiviral compounds for the treatment of COVID-19.  As part of the collaboration, Pfizer will provide funding to the Schinazi group and collaborate on research to advance the preclinical development of these compounds. If successful, Pfizer will have the option to exercise exclusive rights to the leading clinical candidates and be solely responsible for further development activities. “We are thrilled to work with Pfizer, whose research and development efforts have led to significant advances in vaccine and drug development for COVID-19. Together, we have an opportunity to progress the discovery of a novel drug or drug combination to continue to fight against this formidable disease,” says Schinazi. “COVID-19 has had, and continues to have, a devastating effect on patients, communities, and economies throughout the world, and we believe it is vital to continue to invest in promising research that may help mitigate its impact,” says Charlotte Allerton, chief scientific officer, anti-infectives and head of medicine design, of Pfizer. “We’re pleased to be working with Emory University and the Schinazi Laboratory with the shared goal to bring forth scientific breakthroughs for people in need.”   “At Emory, our scientists are global leaders in the development of innovative, lifesaving treatments, and Dr. Schinazi and his team have the deep experience needed to make breakthroughs in combating the viruses around us today,” says Emory University President Gregory L. Fenves. “This agreement with Pfizer will put us on a path to potentially help serve COVID-19 patients like never before.” Emory has been a global leader in drug discovery and development for severe life-threatening infections. Schinazi and his team have a long track record in the discovery and development of antiviral agents for treating infectious diseases. His work has identified agents used widely in the treatment of HIV, hepatitis B and C, and COVID-19 that have saved millions of lives globally. “This collaboration could offer us another tool to benefit people most vulnerable to COVID-19,” says Ravi Thadhani, executive vice president for health affairs at Emory University. “Reducing the rate of severe illness and hospitalizations would also benefit the clinicians and hospital staff who have been under enormous strain for the past three years.”   This is sponsored content.

By GEEARS Georgia’s legislative session is a frenetic, blood-pressure-raising marathon every year and at GEEARS, we’ve got to admit, we kind of love the sprint of it.  There’s a special kind of bond we early childhood advocates share during our 40 days (and some nights!) under the Gold Dome. We compare our throbbing feet and the number of espresso shots we’ve slammed. We agree that no matter how many cardio hours you’ve clocked, there’s a particular kind of breathlessness that hits everyone between the Capitol’s third- and fourth-floor staircases. We also agree it almost never pays to wait for an elevator, not when there are so many ever-shifting committee meetings to dash to; so many coffees, lunches, and interfaces in legislative offices to schedule; so many bill and budget iterations to sift through. Just after the scramble of Sine Die, when dozens of bills come to a vote in the wee hours of the night, it’s usually hard to enumerate all the tangible results of the session much less the big picture.  While we didn’t see all our legislative priorities advance, we have something heartening to report as we say goodbye to the 2023 session. It’s something we’ve been noting with excitement ever since the first strike of the gavel opened the legislature on January 9th.  There is a shift happening amongst legislators on both sides of the aisle—a growing awareness of, and passion for, the early years.  In particular, legislators seem increasingly cognizant of the direct pathway from high-quality early care and education to literacy during the elementary years.  Legislators are looking at, say, early childhood mental health legislation as just one critical piece of a puzzle that leads to physical and mental wellbeing, as well as academic success.  And they’re understanding both the lifelong impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and the preventative role high-quality child care plays. Sometimes during the 2023 session, we clearly saw the evidence of this shift in knowledge and values. On March 28th, for instance, Speaker of the House Jon Burns established a bipartisan House Working Group on Early Childhood Education “to better prepare children for success in the classroom from an early age.” There were also some exciting wins to celebrate for children and families, such as $2,000 raises for lead and assistant teachers in Georgia’s Pre-K; the extension of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits to pregnant women; the removal of the end date for the Family Care Act, which allows employees to use sick leave to care for family members; and funding for a home visiting pilot to support moms and babies in rural areas. But other times, we gauged this change by the questions asked in committee meetings and conversations with legislators—inquiries that show that GEEARS’ advocacy—our statistics and our stories—are truly hitting home.  In their committee work, for instance, legislators are not simply fixating on the bottom line of third-grade reading proficiency but also on the stepping stones that must be laid to get students there.  They’re referencing Georgia’s Pre-K program as a critical mechanism to set children up for success in school—and advocating for improved access for four-year-olds across the state.  And they’re pivoting to the fact that our current economy demands flexible, family-friendly policies such as paid family leave and financial supports like TANF.  GEEARS has been laying the groundwork for this shift for many years. We’ve met with countless legislators and testified before committees about the benefits of investing in quality child care and education, how to support early childhood mental health, the importance of whole family supports, literacy, and more. We’ve presented science, economics, and human stories, sometimes told by the affected families themselves. We’ve kept our relationships with legislators going throughout the years, always alerting them to new research, constituent stories, fresh evidence.  Once our Capitol-tromping feet have recovered and we’ve indulged in some much-needed post-session rest, we’re galvanized to keep those conversations going. When we’ve said goodbye to the adrenaline rush of session, our mission continues.  Click here for a more detailed recap of this year’s legislative wins, losses, and deferrals until 2024.   This is sponsored content.