FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ‘Amani is Filled with Beautiful People’
Greetings,
“My heart is filled with so much gratitude and pride about the neigh- borhood and the work that we do.”
I hope you and your families are safe, healthy and well. As I approach my third anniversary as the Executive Director of Dominican Center, I find myself consistently reflecting on my time working in Amani. My heart is filled with so much gratitude and pride about the neighborhood and the work that we do. Amani is filled with beautiful people who are raising their hand daily to make their neighborhood a better place, and there is a strong sense of community and relationship building. Alongside resident leaders, DC has the privilege of quarterbacking partnerships and working with stakeholders from across the city. The pages of this newsletter will highlight the amazing work that’s happening. Our work spans many different focus areas – safe- ty, food access, housing, education and more. But there is one area that rises to the top for me and that is housing. What is the value of a safe, healthy and stable home? The value of a home is immeasurable…it’s a basic need and a human right. Yet an overwhelming portion of the housing stock in Amani has fallen into disrepair. But there’s hope. Through our Block-by-Block initiative we are working alongside partners and resident leaders to restore the housing stock and make sure that people are living in homes that are up to city code. This year we have an exciting story to share about our housing work. And there’s so much more I’m excited about too. Here a few highlights: • We strengthened our efforts to curb reckless driving and excessive speeding with a traffic cir- cle. We will continue this work with a Community Challenge grant from AARP. • We marched with dozens of supporters and partners at the Amani Youth Council’s fourth an- nual March Against Gun Violence. • We’re expanding our support of safe and healthy housing in Amani. 600 volunteers flooded Amani for Block Build MKE, serving 11 homeowners with repairs, renovations and beautification efforts. And our work on the Block by Block initiative is
– Maricha Harris
supporting homeowners with critical repairs like roof replacement. •We raised $41,000 at our annual Green & Grow- ing fundraising event to support our mission and work in Amani. We’re looking forward to celebrat- ing with you in our 30th year! As we approach Autumn (one of my favorite seasons) and the final quarter of 2024, the needs of our community continue to be great. For the remainder of the year, we will be expanding our hydroponics farm, and we will be working with our partners to host holiday food distributions – providing meals for approximately 200 families in November and December. The holidays can be burdensome, so we are working to provide as many supports and resources as we can to our families during this year’s holiday season! Our work continues to be possible because of supporters like you! Thank you to everyone who is helping us in this work – whether you’re a partner organization or a donor who gives your time, tal- ent or treasure – you are greatly appreciated! We look forward to continuing to serve alongside you as we work in tandem with residents to revitalize the neighborhood.
Yours in service,
Maricha Harris, DC Executive Director
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