Giving Tuesday, the charitable cousin of Cyber Monday and Black Friday, is almost here!
This Tuesday on Nov. 29, donate to one of the many Brooklyn-based nonprofits and service organizations that have shown up for the communities of Brooklyn through thick and thin with free resources including accessible career building, legal representation, home repairs, mental health services, anti-gun violence initiatives and so much more to ensure that the future of the borough remains bright.
Giving Tuesday is the global day of giving when individuals and organizations are called on to help the nonprofit organizations serving as the backbone and strength of every community.
Started in 2012 by the 92nd Street Y and the United Nations Foundation, Giving Tuesday has become a response to commercialization and consumerism spurred by Black Friday and Cyber Monday and demonstrates how every act of generosity counts.
Brooklyn Community Foundation is running the annual #BrooklynGives campaign, which encourages Brooklynites everywhere to “Give Where You Live,” and raise $1 million for local nonprofits. Many of the nonprofits on our list are part of the campaign, which means your donation to them will be matched dollar-for-dollar. So far, over $300,000 has been raised.
Now, without further ado, are 20 of BK Reader's favorite nonprofits and service organizations to donate to:
Arab-American Family Support Center
AAFC is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit that provides culturally sensitive, trauma-informed, multigenerational social services to Arab, Middle Eastern, North African, Muslim and South Asian immigrants and refugees.
Its staff speak 36 languages and has a variety of free programs including an anti-violence program, a mental health initiative, an emergency relief fund and more to ensure new immigrants are set up for success and wellness.
Donate here.
Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation
The Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation is a Central Brooklyn nonprofit that aims to close the racial wealth gap in Central Brooklyn's lower income neighborhoods by helping people become financially savvy and independent.
The nonprofit offers free assistance in financial planning, tax preparation, applying for affordable housing, career readiness, skills training for youth and so much more for Brooklynites. It also operates the Billie Holiday Theater and partners with for-profit developers to ensure that Central Brooklyn rents are affordable to the people who live there.
Donate here.
Prospect Park Alliance
Prospect Park Alliance is the non-profit organization that sustains Prospect Park, also known as 'Brooklyn's backyard.' The Alliance provides staff and resources that keep the park green, clean and accessible. Green space in Brooklyn can be hard to come by, and the park is essential to the air quality and noise levels in the borough.
The Alliance also funds free movement, education and community workshops and activities.
Donate here.
Stoop Stories
Stoop Stories is a Brooklyn-based documentary storytelling project designed to "connect, support and celebrate" Brooklyn's neighbors, especially those most vulnerable to systemic inequities.
The project tells impactful stories from people's favorite stoops, park benches, fire escapes and more to celebrate Brooklyn life and call attention to systemic issues. Stoop Stories, which relies entirely on donations, grants and partnerships, employs local writers, photographers and filmmakers. In the new year, Stoop Stories will include more events and programs.
Donate here.
Bridge Street Development Corporation
BSDC is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit on a mission to provide civic and economic opportunities to the residents of Central Brooklyn. The nonprofit's motto is “Building on Community Strength,” which describes its commitment to uplifting and preserving Brooklyn's best assets: It's people, its small businesses, its institutions and its culture.
BSDC's free, accessible programs fall under four categories: housing development, community engagement, economic development and senior services at Quincy Senior Residences. BSDC also coordinates Open Street programs on Lewis Avenue and Tompkins Avenue in Bed-Stuy.
Donate here.
Carroll Gardens Association
Carroll Gardens Association is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit that preserves and develops affordable housing, enforces quality housing management practices, promotes small business economic development and provides and links residents to social services and resources to improve the quality of their lives.
The Association, which was started by grassroots organizers in the '60s, is on a mission to foster a community where residents and families of all income levels in Southwest Brooklyn’s neighborhoods can thrive.
Donate here.
BK Reader
BK Reader (hello, it's us!) provides free, daily, online news that boosts groundbreaking local initiatives and provides helpful information and resources for neighbors. An informed, activated public is the cornerstone of democracy and we at the BK Reader deliver tirelessly. Consider supporting us to ensure we can continue to provide for the best borough in the best city in the world.
Donate here.
Noel Pointer Foundation
The Noel Pointer Foundation, a Bed-Stuy-based nonprofit, provides free music classes and education to more than 30 different New York City public schools in addition to programs at its Bed-Stuy headquarters.
Each summer, the Foundation serves an average of 200 low-income students in their strings program, and has provided opportunities to perform with iconic groups and artists including Mos Def, Mark O’Connor, Strings of Brooklyn, the Brooklyn Philharmonic and Brooklyn Conservatory of Music.
Donate here and get some fun swag in return.
Envision Freedom Fund
The Envision Freedom Fund is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit that is working to dismantle the criminal legal and immigration systems through advocacy and legal representation. It also operates as a bond fund, and according to its website, is the largest immigration bond fund in the country.
The Envision Freedom Fund uses its funds to release immigrants from immigration detention and provides them with vital transition services, in addition to advocating for decarceration.
Donate here.
Family Legal Care
Family Legal Care is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit tasked with providing legal representation, education and planning services for families in need of family law services, which include issues like divorce and child custody. Family Legal Care provides free legal services to more than 250,000 local families a year, according to its website.
Legal documents can be worrisome and difficult to understand, which is where Family Legal Care steps in. Its offerings include a Family Law Helpline, pro bono legal consultations and legal education in 9 languages so that Brooklynites know their rights and have access to the information they need.
Donate here.
Green City Force
Green City Force is not just any career-training organization — GFC provides career training for young people from low-income housing specifically for jobs that power an enviromentally-concious and inclusive economy.
Participants develop a passion for sustainability and drive large-scale environmental and health initiatives in public housing and other frontline communities. Graduates go on to jobs or college, directly or through alumni initiatives that build towards green jobs via social enterprise contracts or advanced training developed with employers.
Donate here.
HousingPlus
HousingPlus is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit that works on a housing-first model to provide houseless female veterans and their families with residences as quickly as possible, in order for rehabilitation, mental health and career services to be more affective.
HousingPlus operates three permanent housing sites with programs and case-management for female veterans and their families in Brooklyn. Through a trauma-informed model that caters to the group's specific needs, HousingPlus currently serves 69 female vets, including 22 mothers and 33 children.
Donate here.
Jeremiah Program Brooklyn
The Jeremiah Program is a nationwide program, and its hub in Brownsville is on a mission to disrupt the cycle of poverty for single mothers and their children by providing them with career, education and family planning and coaching, so that moms don't have to choose between supporting their children or themselves.
Donate here.
Kings Against Violence Initiative
KAVI is on a mission to prevent and eliminate interpersonal violence from the lives of young people through advocacy, peer leadership and community mobilization in Central Brooklyn. The organization's approach is public-health-based and its free youth programs provide mental health services and education to underserved teens in schools and hospital-based settings.
Donate here.
Mixteca Organization
Mixteca is a community-based organization located in Sunset Park, established in 2000 by a group of concerned community members to address critical needs in health, education, social and legal issues facing the burgeoning Mexican and Latin American immigrant community in Brooklyn.
Spanish-speaking immigrants can receive education, social-emotional support and leadership skills training from Mixteca in addition to English Second Language classes, immigrant rights workshops, free meals, rent and burial assistance and more.
Donate here.
Neighborhood Housing Services of Brooklyn (NHS Brooklyn)
NHS Brooklyn is a nonprofit organization that creates and preserves affordable housing by providing opportunities for homeownership education, financial assistance and community leadership. NHS Brooklyn helps locals avoid foreclosure, repair their homes, protect from floods, disposal, get home insurance, get tenant legal support, buy their homes and so much more.
Led by Brooklyn residents and guided by local needs, NHS Brooklyn works to support people in underserved neighborhoods in Brooklyn.
Donate here.
New York State Youth Leadership Council
The NYSYLC is the first undocumented youth-led organization in New York. The NYSYLC works to give undocumented youth the tools and space to create change in their communities. The Council's offerings include workshops in leadership development, grassroots organizing, educational advancement and self-expression.
The NYSYLC organizes the Dream Team Network which is a coalition of school and college clubs led by undocumented students and also provides support for students in accessing higher education.
Donate here.
Power of Two
Power of Two is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit that provides strategic, short-term support for low-income parents with newborn children to improve their families' lives through the first 1000 days of parenthood.
According to Power of Two, The first 1000 days of a child’s life is a time of rapid change and monumental growth where strategic support of families can have an impact on the lives of children and their communities. Offerings from Power of Two include in-home parent coaching, assistance in connecting new parents to community resources and advocacy opportunities for alumni to raise their voices for parent and family policy issues.
Donate here.
The Center for Law and Social Justice
The Center for Law and Social Justice works tirelessly to provide legal support, political education and resources to empower Black New Yorkers and other communities of color fight for justice. This Giving Season, donations will be used to support the CLSJ Advocacy Academy program, an amazing course that teaches committed individuals and community-based organizations how to effectively champion the issues that matter to them and their communities.
Donate here.
The Center for Black Literature
The mission of the Center for Black Literature expands, broadens, and enriches the public’s knowledge and aesthetic appreciation of Black literature by people of the African Diaspora. The Center builds an audience for the reading, discussion, research, study, and critical analysis of Black literature through a variety of programs and partnerships. CBL was also established to institutionalize the National Black Writers Conference (NBWC), founded by John Oliver Killens in 1986 at Medgar Evers College, CUNY. To
To donate to CBL's events, go here.
