A Reservoir Hill neighborhood center received a $2 million financial gift from MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving as part of its Open Call for community-led, community-focused organizations working with people experiencing the greatest need in the United States.
The St. Francis Neighborhood Center (SFNC) received $2 million. The money will bolster the Center’s programs, which aim to disrupt systems of inequity. The SFNC was founded in 1963.
A 501(c)(3) nonprofit community-based organization in Reservoir Hill, SFNC’s mission is to end generational poverty. For over 60 years it has provided resources like holistic intervention programs for youth and families in Reservoir Hill and Penn North for free.
When in March 2023, Yield Giving launched an Open Call for community-led, community-focused organizations whose goal is to empower individuals and families to improve their well-being, they received 6,353 applications and planned for 250 awards of $1 million each. In Fall 2023, after advancing to the second round of review, the donor team decided that in light of the incredible work of the organizations, as judged by peers and external panelists, they would expand the awardee pool and the award amount.
Yield Giving was established by philantrhopist and author MacKenzie Scott, who helped found Amazon with her then-husband Jeff Bezos. Since her divorce from Bezos, Scott has pledged to give away most of her wealth.
“This amazing act of philanthropy is coming at an important time for the youth and families we serve,” says Torbin J. Green, Executive Director of SFNC. “We are always growing and adapting our programming to meet the needs of our community, and this award will create even more stability and resources for the benefit of Baltimore City. I ask anyone who wants to see us in action to reach out for a tour of our current programs and ongoing construction.”
The Center is in its final phase of renovation, which will triple its capacity, including more classrooms and multi-purpose space for its out-of-school youth programs and increased collaboration with its many partner organizations across the Baltimore region.
SFNC will host an annual fundraiser on May 3, 2024 to celebrate the community center’s past, present, and future. Jonathan Moore will deliver keynote remarks. He is founder and CEO of RowdyOrb.it — a crucial partner with SFNC in their efforts to close the digital divide as Reservoir Hill’s first Smart Center.
“We are excited that our partnership with Yield Giving has resonated with so many organizations” said Cecilia Conrad, CEO of Lever for Change. “In a world teeming with potential and talent, the Open Call has given us an opportunity to identify, uplift, and empower transformative organizations that often remain unseen.”
