The first round of 2021 Community Partnership Fund Awards from the city’s Neighborhood Matching Fund will include thousands for community and arts groups across the city including powering the grand opening and expansion of social justice bookstore Estelita’s Library in the Central District.

The District 3 awards, listed below, are part of a roster of $826,000 granted across 20 projects in the city. Community groups receiving awards have pledged to match the money through local cash donations, volunteer hours, donated materials, and in-kind professional services.

District 3

$49,982 to Wa Na Wari for The BLOOM Food Justice Series to promote food justice and sovereignty in BIPOC communities. The project will recruit 12 BIPOC youth to participate in workshops and trainings with a curriculum spanning Indigenous knowledge systems, Black Liberation, urban farming practices, plant medicines, the healing arts, ways to combat environmental racism, and much more. BLOOM workshops, virtual talks, and public programs will be free and open to community. (Community match: $43,840)

 

$49,867 for Estelita’s Library for the Grand Opening and Expansion to their new location in the Central District. The project will focus on community engagement activities; a new deck and ADA public restroom expansion; landscape design and native plant installation; and creative programming including art curation, events and workshops on themes of social justice and community organizing. All programs will be offered free-of-cost to the community. (Community match: $53,660)

 

$45,022 for Multimedia Resources and Training Institute for Digital Storytelling in the Time of COVID-19 to capture and document the local COVID-19 pandemic experience. The project will engage eight youth interns and professional instructors to produce a documentary featuring stories from local underserved and underrepresented communities. The production process will also include facilitated panel discussions where community members can share their own stories and make connections with one another. (Community match: $28,850)

 

$50,000 for Ethiopian Women, Mothers, and Family for Women Coming OUT: A Post COVID-19 Celebration to recognize the resilience of Ethiopian women during the uncertainty of the pandemic and honor loved ones lost. The all-day event will celebrate the opportunity to gather again and will be held at the Powell S. Barnett Park on Sunday, July 18, 2021. (Community match: $54,075)

Estelita’s Library, a Justice Focused Community Bookstore & Library, is now located at 241 Martin Luther King Jr Way S after moving from Beacon Hill earlier this year.

The community-initiated projects were selected through an updated Neighborhood Matching Fund process, the city says.

“To ensure that more funds were prioritized for projects that serve or represent Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities, slight adjustments were made to the Neighborhood Matching Fund’s scoring criteria,” the announcement of the awards reads. “Additional points were allocated to projects that intentionally serve BIPOC communities and to applicants whose mission is to serve BIPOC communities or have a leadership team comprised of majority-BIPOC community members.”

The awards come as the city has increased spending on addressing inequities in the city including a $30 million package of spending in the Office of Civil Rights to shape a community driven social and service budget.

For information about NMF, visit seattle.gov/neighborhoods/nmf.

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