Reading neighbors have selected five initiatives that aim to facilitate healing through art, empower young athletes, and save lives. A total of $25,000 was awarded this month to the community engagement projects set to address the needs and wants of Reading residents and more. Barrio Alegría and The Wyomissing Foundation partnered for a fourth year to identify and fund initiatives that aim to get members of the community actively improving their own lives, the lives of others, and building important life skills.
The support comes from what are known as FARO Grants. In Spanish, “faro” means lighthouse, which speaks to the mission of finding and empowering efforts that aim to spread light in the community and act as a guide for those who want to better their communities. The FARO Grant process also gets neighbors active by being at the forefront of deciding which projects they want to support.
“Our neighbors are not merely bystanders in the improvement of their city; they are drivers of that change,” said Paola Disla, the lead fellow of Barrio Alegría’s community development pillar. “Our committee of neighbors and active community members know best what they need and what they want to see in their city.”
The grants are specifically geared toward groups and individuals who are often overlooked in institutional philanthropy but who have an idea for recurring programs that can be catalysts for positive change in the city of Reading.
All of the awardees are either nonprofits with an annual budget less than $250,000, or simply people with a unique, engaging project. Selected proposals that are not from nonprofits are teamed up with a fiscal sponsor. The grants do not fund one-day events or celebrations. All funding for the projects comes from The Wyomissing Foundation.
Valeri Harteg, community impact and operations coordinator for The Wyomissing Foundation, expressed gratitude for those involved in the process.
“The Wyomissing Foundation is committed to engaging community members with lived experience of issues and life in Reading in the grantmaking process, and we are deeply grateful to Barrio Alegría for partnering with us to make this happen for a fourth consecutive year through the FARO Community Grants Program,” Harteg said. “To this year’s grantees, we extend our congratulations and look forward to learning from your work and to celebrating the impact that your projects will have on the Reading community.”
Barrio Alegría convened a committee to review the applications that were submitted earlier this year. That committee mostly consists of Reading residents and facilitated by Harteg and Daniel Egusquiza, executive director of Barrio Alegría.
This year’s FARO grant recipients are:
Nemesis Fitness (with fiscal sponsorship from the Reading Skatepark Association) receiving $5000 to bring our local community together through a series of free, themed fun runs that make fitness accessible, enjoyable, and inclusive for everyone. Both the series of fun runs and weekly runs break down barriers to exercise by providing a cost-free way to improve physical and mental health while creating a sense of belonging and unity among attendees..
Block 2 Bank Fishing receiving $5,000 to empower urban youth and families through fishing and environmental stewardship. Our mission is to provide safe, positive opportunities that foster a love for nature, community engagement, and personal growth.
StrongPulse receiving $5,000 for Breathe Again: To give the people of the community the hands-on CPR training and certification can help prevent more fatalities in the inner-city during strokes and heart attacks.
TCA Don’t Quit Foundation receiving $5,000 for to promote self-expression through creativity, helping individuals of all backgrounds discover the healing power of art. Our team has experience organizing impactful events, workshops, and community outreach initiatives focused on fostering connection, creativity, and mental health advocacy.”.
Then 2 Now Foundation receiving $5,000 to strengthen community ties by empowering and supporting the youth for a more vibrant, inclusive future. Using a summer girls’ basketball league, receiving mentorship from professional female athletes, and collaboration with a local college..
Previous FARO grants went to fund opportunities to young baseball players to build instill discipline and play on an international stage through Latin Fusion Baseball; young women visited Historically Black Colleges and Universities through the Sisterhood of Reading; regular poetry workshops in Downtown Reading through Berks Bards.
