PITTSBURGH, PA (July 7, 2021) The City of Pittsburgh’s My Brother’s Keeper (MBK) initiative has announced it has awarded 16 mini-grants to local community groups and projects that are focused on violence reduction and intervention efforts throughout the city.
The mini-grant program offers up to $3,000 in funding to organizations that support neighborhood-centric violence prevention, intervention and street outreach activities that communities have called for and in response to a recent uptick in violence.
The sixteen organizations and programs that are receiving the MBK mini-grants vary by size, scope, location and approach. They are:
- AR3
- Homewood Community Sports
- Iron Cross Ministries
- Larimer Consensus Group
- Lawrenceville United
- Mad Dads
- Mount Washington Community Center
- Neighborhood Resilience Project
- Operation Better Block
- Ozanam
- Pittsburgh Hardball Academy
- POORLAW
- South Pittsburgh Coalition for Peace
- The Foundation of Hope
- Voices Against Violence
- West End P.O.W.E.R.
“Community organizations know how to effectively approach violence reduction and prevention on a community level in their neighborhoods, and we know that $3,000 can go a long way to uplift and further these kinds of activities and initiatives,” said Mayor’s Office Deputy Chief of Staff and Chief Equity Officer Majestic Lane. “We are grateful for their important leadership and partnership to provide community-based resources throughout the city.”
“We are so grateful to have heard from so many organizations and programs for this opportunity and while we could not at this time fund every idea, we are pleased to support this round of awardees. There are more resources and opportunities on the way in the coming weeks and we will continue to communicate them to all applicants and to the broader community,” said Josiah Gilliam, My Brother's Keeper Coordinator. “The stakes are high and we are leaning in with all of the applicants and the ecosystem of supports in the hopes to build peace, prevent violence and save lives. All of our young people and families deserve the chance to live in peace and the opportunity to thrive. I want to thank everyone working in this space for their efforts.”
MBK will fund the mini-grants with support from the Heinz Endowments and the POISE Foundation. Additional MBK Grant opportunities will be made available later in the summer.
