December, 2011

Dear Friends, 

As we move closer to the end of another good year, we reflect on the accomplishments of our efforts and prepare for a new year of opportunities.  NEAT’s 2011 was spent together, focusing on the issues that matter most to North End families. 

In just the past few months, we have seen the opening of the Willie Pep Skate Park, which happened because of a tenacious group of North End youth; we helped residents of Portland Street successfully submit a plan to make a park out of a formerly blighted building.  Inside, you can read about more of our successes.

As our small staff and big community of residents, volunteers, and members celebrate a good year nearly done, NEAT wants to ask for your support.  If you can give money to fund our initiatives, that would go a long way to guaranteeing our continued success. 

But if your budget is tight, too, that’s okay.  These are tight times.  That doesn’t mean you can’t be a part of the positive change around you.  You can.  Just get involved -- in your neighborhood, at your school, on your block.  Get to know someone who lives nearby.  Do something kind for a person in need.  Small gestures can go a long way.  We’ve built an organization on them. 

Finally, thank you.  If you’ve come to a NEAT meeting, a North End Farmers Market, or if you’re already helping a neighbor with a small deed, thank you for supporting your community.

Sincerely,

Stacey Barka

NEAT's Successes in the Community

Will Ezell

In 2008, a Will Ezell and his friends wanted a skate park. As members of NEAT’s Teen Dream Society, they were learning organizing methods and working to register people to vote in the 2008 election. As a next project, they decided to start working toward building a skate park. 

Together with NEAT, Will and his friends worked with the Middletown Parks Department and gathered their neighbors and friends at countless meetings, planning sessions and site visits. This year, their hard work paid off with the opening of the Willie Pep Skate Park on deKoven Drive. 

The project was recently awarded the Asset Builder of the Year Award to helping to develop leadership skills in Middletown Youth. 

“I feel like it took a long time but it paid off because we actually got a skate park. It isn’t as big as we wanted, but we were limited and it is definitely more than we had. Now, we have a place to be…we’re not kicked out of everywhere. People think that just because we skate, we’re bad kids. We’re not. We worked hard for this to happen. And, it’s bringing kids from all over… skaters are coming and seeing that it’s not a bad neighborhood. The park is improving the reputation of the neighborhood. Before kids thought that ‘It’s the hood, there is nothing there for me’…there actually is something therefore you now. It’s not just the hood. It’s worth traveling for.”

Tony Anthony

Tony Anthony, whose family owns a home in the North End, was a regular volunteer and shopper at the North End Farmers Market this season.

Tony participated in the Farmers Market’s Double Dollars program, which gave him more money to spend on fresh food. The program was new this year and, in four months, served 800 low-income families, matching the money, dollar for dollar, that they spend at the farmers market. He thought the market was new and interesting and was excited because “the food comes from the dirt, from the fields.”

Tony also brought his grandkids to the market with him. They participated in the North End Kids Market, which gave them a weekly allowance to spend at the market and teaches kids about nutrition, budgeting and agriculture.

“The way times are, these programs are really helpful for the community. You gotta get what you can get. You guys are creating opportunity.”

And Tony gives back. He always shared the produce that he bought. When he spotted the staff struggling to set up a tent, he was there to help. Tony makes the market work for his family, but he’s also helping to make the market work for everyone.

Pooja Salwan

Pooja Salwan and her family moved to the North End just one year ago. Since then, the family has participated in the Community Music Initiative (CMI) run by NEAT. 

CMI events run twice a month and include a mix of drumming, singing, and a community lunch – including Pooja’s popular spicy rice and vegetables. Her boys, Rajeev and Rakesh, have made a splash as well, playing their clarinet and saxophone and sharing fun musical tricks like the singing wine glass. 

Pooja said that growing up in northern India, music was all around her. Her father was a tabla player (a type of Indian drum) and she wants her sons to be exposed to music as much as possible. NEAT’s CMI events bring music and community into her life in a way that reminds her of her childhood. She enjoys connecting with new friends and seeing neighbors at these events, while sharing music as a group.

She said that “music is in my blood and is a way of life for my family, and the CMI events bring that spirit into our life.”

Carie Gouldsbrough

When a blighted house on her street began to affect the quality of life for her family, Carie Gouldsbrough got involved. Alongside her neighbors, she convinced the city to take it down. Ultimately, these actions brought a citizen-led revision of the city’s Blight Ordinance. The house was finally demolished this year and the city issued a request for proposals for what comes next. 

Carie felt strongly that the lot, though small, should become a community space. She was tired of seeing all of the kids on the street limited by the lack of play space. 

“I felt the need to get involved. I wanted to see something better for our neighborhood, for the kids on our street.”

Along with the staff at NEAT, Carie wrote a proposal to make a community garden on the site, which would also serve as a memorial to Alondra Hernandez, a child who lived in the adjacent house and tragically passed away last year. 

Eventually, Carie’s proposal was accepted by the city and NEAT will be building a new community garden on the site in the Spring of 2012.

Want to Give a Gift of Stocks?  Here's How. 

A generous donor recently gave a gift of stocks to NEAT, a first for us!  In response, we've set up a fund with the Middlesex County Community Foundation to accept stock and other donations through theirLive Local, Give Local campaign.  The fund is called the NEAT Fund and can accept donations of stocks and other securities, credit card, check or cash.  You can still donate through NEAT, but this gives you one more way to give.  We appreciate your support. To find out how to donate securities, click here.

Donors

NEAT thanks all of its donor supporters over the years. Your support allows us to continue our hard work.

The North End Action Team is a 501(c) (3) organization and contributions are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.