GatherFor
We believe that in community, we have everything we need. So we organize neighbors in teams that support one another like family.
What if when you needed folks to watch your kids, help repair your home, or spot you for rent, you knew you could count on your neighbors? That's the world we're working to at GatherFor. We organize folks living in the same neighborhood into teams of 4-5 called “Neighbor Teams.” These Neighbor Teams:
- check-in via calls and visits with each other each week
- meet in person once a month, and with $300 from GatherFor, to host any kind of in-person gathering they’d like
- build a culture of taking care of each other using the GatherFor workbook
- participate in a susu, in which they contribute $50-$100 each month into a common pot matched by GatherFor, with the whole pot then being given to one member of the team each month to use however they need (providing between $500-$1000 / month in financial support to each Neighbor)
- share local resources with each other through telegram groups
- join workshops open to the whole GatherFor community to learn about topics like finding housing in New York, navigating domestic violence, obtaining US citizenship, navigating conflict, telling a good story, or starting a business
- join other Neighbor Teams in the neighborhood for monthly Town Halls (with free food and child care) to discuss best practices from each team and to inform strategy for GatherFor in the Neighborhood
We’re piloting the approach with 50 residents of Brownsville, Brooklyn, who speak about their experience in this 90-second video: https://vimeo.com/530636958.