Neighborhood Support
Neighborhood Support focuses on the wellbeing and resilience of the people who live, work, learn, and govern in Lower Manhattan.
In 2021, Trinity Church Wall Street launched Neighborhood Support, which uses a place-based approach to address child, family, and community wellbeing. The Neighborhood Support team combines on-the-ground assistance with targeted investments to support solutions developed in partnership with those who live, work, learn, and govern in the community. Our geographic focus is Lower Manhattan, defined by the neighborhoods south of 14th Street.
Our work focuses extensively on meeting the basic needs of our communities, providing educational enrichment and support to District 1 schools and Title I high schools in Lower Manhattan, supporting the emotional wellbeing of the community, and encouraging joy.
Over the course of 2022, Neighborhood Support conducted and released a Needs Assessment and Policy Brief informed by residents, community leaders, business owners, and other key stakeholders to better understand the pressing challenges facing Lower Manhattan. These two reports help ground and guide our work.
Together with our Neighborhood Council, an advisory group comprised of community members, Neighborhood Support continues to center community voice in every programmatic endeavor. We are honored to be journeying alongside these exceptional individuals to think together about the contributions we can jointly make to strengthen our neighborhood.
Neighborhood Council Members
- Thomas Armstrong, Trinity Church Wall Street congregation member
- Darren Block, Executive Director, Greenwich House
- Mary Cannon, Resident & Community Outreach Volunteer, Jacob Riis Houses
- Gisele Castro, Executive Director, Exalt Youth
- Wellington Chen, President & CEO, Chinatown BID/ Chinatown Partnership LDC
- Jenna Chrisphonte, Director of Civic Alliances, The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center
- Minerva Diaz, NYCHA Resident
- Barbara DiGangi, Director of Families Thriving, University Settlement
- Tareake Dorill, Founder and Executive Director, Dorill Initiative Inc
- Alejandro Epifanio, Executive Director, Loisaida
- David Garza, President & CEO, Henry Street Settlement
- Frank Gonzalez, Founder, Loisada Realty; Lower East Side Community Concerns
- Donald 'Don' Hong, Executive Director, UA3
- Jaime Inclan, Founder & Director, Roberto Clemente Center
- Samara Karasyk, President & CEO, Hudson Square BID
- Kelsey Louie, Chief Executive Officer, The Door & Broome Street Academy
- Chui Man Lai, Manager of Community Affairs, NYP-Lower Manhattan Hospital
- David McCorkle, Social Worker, St. Marks in the Bowery
- Alison Overseth, CEO, Partnership for After School Education
- Cecilia Scott-Croff, Executive Director, BMCC
- Tiffany Winbush, Lower Manhattan resident
- Eva Wong, Director, Mayor's Office of Community Mental Health
Early Care and Education and Afterschool Services Policy Brief
This policy brief describes the landscape for ECE and afterschool programs in New York City and Lower Manhattan, identifies barriers to accessing and operating these critical services, and provides recommendations for improvements.
Lower Manhattan Needs Assessment
In partnership with the Center for Community Resilience (CCR) at GWU, this needs assessment highlights potential starting points to address immediate community needs in Lower Manhattan, as well as building long-term efforts to address inequities.
Neighborhood Support Downtown Fund
Small gifts to make a big difference.
The Downtown Fund is used to support nonprofit organizations in lower Manhattan that are focused on addressing child, family, and community well-being specifically in the areas of education, health, social capital, and economic assets. Gifts ranging from $500 to $10,000 are awarded, with applications reviewed on a rolling basis.
Neighborhood Support Grants
In 2023, Trinity's Neighborhood Support team launched a grants program to make deeper investments into the emotional well-being of our community.
To qualify for this new grants program, your organization must be both located in and serve communities and individuals who live below 14th Street in Manhattan.
