The Northern New Jersey Community Foundation (NNJCF) announces a grant has been awarded to City Green through support from Visions Federal Credit Union to address food insecurity in the area. The NNJCF, a not-for-profit organization headquartered in Hackensack, New Jersey, improves community life through its work in the arts, civic engagement, and education. The organization also works in the areas of the environment, philanthropy, and public health.
The grant award is part of the foundation’s environment focus area, the Climate Action Mobilization Project (CAMP). CAMP mobilizes a response to regional crises of economic disruption and the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as climate change. The project also responds to the need for coordinated, multi-community resiliency planning and action.
Food Security Through Community Gardening
City Green, a nonprofit organization based in Clifton, New Jersey, received the $1,500 award to carry out its Farm and Market program. The grant aids the organization’s activities to connect with local governments and community organizations in northern New Jersey. The award also supports increased access to, and affordability of local, farm-fresh food ensuring nutritious food is available for all. Furthermore, the award supports City Green’s commitment to its pantry partners, including CUMAC, Father English Food Pantry, St. Peter’s Haven, and the Paterson Veteran’s Assistance Food Pantry. Furthermore, the organization continues its work with the LocalShare gleaning program.
National Community Foundation Week
The Foundation’s volunteers cleaned a City Green garden.
The NNJCF joined community foundations nationwide to celebrate National Community Foundation Week from November 12-18, 2021. In 1989, former president George H.W. Bush established National Community Foundation Week. This week raises awareness about the important role philanthropic organizations like the NNJCF play. These organizations foster local collaboration and innovate solutions to address persistent civic and economic challenges.
During that week, the NNJCF’s staff and board members volunteered at City Green’s garden in Paterson. They highlighted the serious issue of food insecurity in the region. This volunteer opportunity expanded the Foundation’s efforts to develop and encourage community gardening, as a source of food security in northern New Jersey. The Foundation’s volunteers cleaned and cleared trash and dead foliage from the garden. They also planted daffodil bulbs to attract pollinators in the spring to the garden’s fruits, vegetables, and herbs.
