Today, Brooklyn Communities Collaborative (BCC), a nonprofit that promotes health equity across Brooklyn communities, announces $963,670 in grants through its Strong Communities Fund to ten community-based organizations (CBOs) working to address the maternal health crisis in Brooklyn. BCC takes a participatory approach at every step of the grantmaking process, working closely with grantees to ensure successful implementation, and making funding more accessible to smaller organizations working on the ground in Brooklyn communities.
Grantees are selected by a multi-disciplinary, community-led review committee composed of nonprofit leaders, maternal health care providers, and community members committed to improving maternal health in Brooklyn. Grants will be distributed to the following organizations:
Anne Kastor Brooklyn Free Clinic: $24,000 to expand community outreach and educational opportunities, as well as medication access across Brooklyn.
Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health: $124,039 to leverage local community assets to address the maternal health crisis in Brooklyn, and particularly in Bedford Stuyvesant, Crown Heights, East New York, Brownsville, Flatbush, Coney Island and Sheepshead Bay.
Brooklyn Perinatal Network: $250,000 to invest in studies of upstream and downstream factors impacting the availability and access to community and social services that address health related social needs.
Caribbean Women’s Health Association: $125,000 to strengthen community outreach, workshops, and counseling services surrounding sexual health, birth control, and chronic disease management.
Christopher Rose Community Empowerment Campaign: $75,000 to support a program expansion to include engaging fathers, grandmothers and supportive family members/network.
Expecting Relief: $50,000 to expand their maternal relief pre- and post-natal services within the communities of East New York, Brownsville, Williamsburg and Bushwick.
Little Essentials: $50,000 to provide diapers, clothes, and other essential items to families across Brooklyn with low incomes.
Neighborhood Technical Assistance Center: $48,320 to support Project Imhotep, a holistic community-driven community outreach campaign for Black mothers across Brooklyn.
Seeds in the Middle: $50,000 for prenatal movement and yoga classes, breathing classes, emotional support services, and a fresh food pantry.
The Alex House Project: $167,311 to continue providing career opportunities, comprehensive doula services and mental health, case management and psychotherapy/education sessions.
“Each of these organizations plays a critical role in their communities, and we are proud to support the development and expansion of programs that will help to address the maternal health crisis in Brooklyn,” said Shari Suchoff, Executive Director of Brooklyn Communities Collaborative. “We extend our gratitude to the SCF Grant Advisory Committee for their diligent work and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation for making this program possible.”
“For too long, Black and Brown mothers in Brooklyn have been disproportionately impacted by the maternal health crisis,” said Brooklyn Borough Resident Antonio Reynoso. “We cannot secure better outcomes for mothers and infants without first addressing this disparity and identifying the parts of our borough that are most vulnerable. By investing in CBOs that work directly with the most impacted communities, Brooklyn Communities Collaborative is empowering smaller organizations to tackle this crisis and improve maternal health in their own neighborhoods.”
BCC and its community partners identified the maternal and infant health crisis, a key indicator of overall health, as an urgent need throughout Brooklyn. Several communities throughout Central Brooklyn and East Brooklyn see high rates of maternal and child mortality. In New York City, Black women’s mortality rate related to pregnancy and childbirth is nine times higher than white women.
“These grants recognize the important role that CBOs play in addressing health disparities that contribute to the maternal health crisis throughout Brooklyn,” said Naima Beckles, MA, LCCE, CLC, an educator, consultant, doula, founding director of For Your Birth and member of the SCF Grant Advisory Committee. “BCC’s community-centered approach to grantmaking ensures that the small, hyperlocal organizations on the ground addressing the maternal health crisis can continue to do this essential work.”
This funding marks the third round of grants distributed by BCC’s Strong Communities Fund. Since its inception in 2020, the Fund has provided a total of almost $5M to CBOs serving Brooklyn neighborhoods and residents. This maternal health-focused round of grants is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s ‘Building Local Alignment Initiative,’ which uses a participatory grant-making process to target solutions and support re-granting through three intermediary organizations across the U.S.