Update on our Nonprofit Technical Assistance Grant (NTAG) program.
Flatlands Community Center
We are excited to share the completion of a recent Nonprofit Technical Assistance Grant (NTAG) project, an award of $5,000, towards the restoration of the Flatlands Community Center’s original three-panel stained glass windows. The Flatlands Reformed Church and Community Center has been in continuous existence since 1663 and serves as one of the last remaining links to the first Dutch settlers on Long Island.
Flatlands is located near the junction of Kings Highway and Flatbush Avenue and the organization provides community programming for its Flatlands neighborhood. The repaired westward-facing panel of three windows was reinstalled and re-leaded back in place in late November of 2022.
Weeksville Heritage Center
We were onsite to check in on progress at the Weeksville Heritage Center in Brooklyn last week. The historic site and cultural center documents and encourages engagement with one of the largest free African American communities in pre-Civil War America. In addition to celebrating Black culture and community, the Weeksville Heritage Center serves as a hub to improve access to affordable healthy food and lifestyle options through programming and educational support for local residents.
Work is nearing completion at the Weeksville Summer House thanks to our grant of $8,500 that helped fund its restoration. The structure is adjacent to the historic Hunterfly houses and serves as a connection to early Weeksville residents who sustained themselves on food grown and harvested on their own land. The grant will repair damaged screens and woodwork, repair the roof and paint the interior and exterior of the one-story structure. The restored building will house workshops and programming to improve access to organic ingredients and healthy food preparation for the local community this spring.
New Amsterdam Musical Association
In January, we awarded the New Amsterdam Musical Association (NAMA) with a $15,000 grant towards the restoration of their brownstone façade in Harlem. Established in 1904, NAMA is the first official and oldest organization of African American musicians in the United States. The association is closely connected to the Harlem Renaissance and jazz movement from the 1920s through the 1950s. NAMA has been headquartered out of a Neo-Grec rowhouse with Queen Anne elements in Harlem since 1922, a place renowned as a home for many jazz musicians. Today the venue provides music classes, workshops, and performances for the local community to foster an appreciation for music. The headquarters is a contributing building in the recently designated Central Harlem-West 130th-132nd Streets Historic District.
