Providing resources to the Greater Fulton community of Richmond, Virginia

The Board and Staff of the Neighborhood Resource Center (NRC) are sad to announce the passing our beloved founder, Ms. Mary Lou Decossaux.

Mary Lou dedicated her life to be a voice and champion for the disenfranchised. She held positions with various local government entities, non-profit agencies, and was the founding organizer of the Richmond Coalition for a Living Wage. This coalition succeeded in persuading the City of Richmond to pay a living wage to all city and school direct employees. This accomplishment earned her the moniker, “The Living Wage Lady”.

Mary Lou’s legacy and biggest accomplishment is her vision for the Greater Fulton community to own a place where neighbors work together to reach their personal and community goals. Our Neighborhood Resource Center is that place. The NRC strengthens individuals and communities by providing opportunities for neighbors to build relationships, access resources, and develop the skills to enhance their lives and determine the fate of the community.

While we are sad to have lost our champion, we rejoice in the knowledge that, through the NRC’s continued commitment to empower and support the Greater Fulton community, she lives on in each of us.
Please join us at the NRC on Saturday, January 7, 2012, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., as we celebrate the life of our own Mary Lou Decossaux. In lieu of flowers please make a donation to the Neighborhood Resource Center.

Neighborhood Resource Center
1519 Williamsburg Road
Richmond, VA 23231
www.nrccafe.org (804)864-5797

PHOTO CREDIT: BRUCE PARKER/TIMES-DISPATCH

The Neighborhood Resource Center is in the second year of our Youth Job Training Program, where we support first-time youth workers by combining job experience with job training. The goal of the program is to help inspire the first job success among many for our neighborhood’s youth. By combining training and work experience, the Neighborhood Resource Center strives to help our youth build strong, foundational skill sets they will use into adulthood throughout their careers.

Our newest program participant is Jeremiah Sweeney, a 16-year-old young man from the Fulton Hill neighborhood, who will serve in his first job as the NRC’s first dishwasher (that’s a lot of firsts!). Jeremiah works in the kitchen with our Chef Blue, Monday through Thursday, washing dishes and cleaning up from the meals and cooking classes we offer local children in our afterschool program. We reserve Fridays for job reflection and training.

Under the program, Jeremiah’s job training covers all of the topics outlined in the United States Department of Labor’s Work Readiness Assessment, including:

• Taking initiative
• Quality of work
• Communication skills
• Response to supervision

Additionally, Jeremiah is fully trained to work in a commercial kitchen.
Thus far this summer, Jeremiah’s training has proved a tremendous success. He has already received his ServSafe® certificate, verifying his knowledge of food safety, cleaning and sanitation, according to standards set by the National Restaurant Association. He will be able to use this certification in future employment opportunities to demonstrate his commercial-kitchen work readiness. In the process, Jeremiah has proved to be a quick learner, while demonstrating his ability to work largely unsupervised. He arrives to his job on time, sets up his sinks and gets right to work. He maintains a clean, sanitized and organized kitchen — a huge asset to any chef.

Jeremiah hopes to one day become a chef or an automotive mechanic — and from our experience, he will certainly excel at both careers. At the end of the summer and program, Jeremiah will have completed his first job experience with continuous feedback, prepared a resume, and had hands-on practice filling out job applications and interviewing. NRC is looking to expand this program into the school year, providing youth employment and job-training year round.

On June 9, NRC Youth members unveiled their first Farm Stand at our community center made from a donated tent, handmade signs colored with markers and folding tables. Upon setting up shop, they offered the following boxes of bright, fresh produce for sale to the neighborhood:

• Carrots
• Collard greens
• Eggplant
• Cucumbers
• Cabbage
• Lettuce
• Squash

All of the produce was beautiful and affordably priced, with a suggested donation of $1 for a bunch of carrots or head of cabbage, and $2 for several summer squash. And, as soon as the stand opened, the children experienced a highly successful start, serving up customers that included neighbors and parents, alike.

The Farm Stand project has been in the works since early spring 2011, when Shalom Farms came to the NRC with a proposal to partner in a youth-led farm stand. Their idea was that if NRC youth would set up and run a farm stand, they would provide locally grown produce, free of chemicals or pesticides, for them to sell. Well, the idea was a big hit! And the youth have since been in charge of sorting, bagging and pricing produce; building the stand; making signs and handling sales. In the process, they are learning key business and economic aspects, including farming practices and details about produce, as well as how to start and run a business.

Additionally, all of The Farm Stand’s proceeds go right back into benefiting the NRC youth. At the end of the growing season, they will use the funds to engage in a cultural or educational event, or start a new NRC program of their choosing.

The Farm Stand is open every Thursday from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. until October. So, be sure to stop by the NRC for fresh, local and delicious produce!

On June 4, Greater Fulton came together to celebrate the great work from community members who have been planting the seeds of Greater Fulton’s Future. This celebration brought out the excitement from local churches and community centers, and engaged the community for an enriching day of education, outreach and fun. We gathered at Powhatan Hill Park on Williamsburg Road and celebrated by sharing with residents the work that community members have already started, while also unveiling the vision to shape Greater Fulton’s Future. And to top off the celebration, we enjoyed live music, games for the kids, food, and face painting.

The celebration followed-up from ongoing meetings between residents who have been gathering since September and working diligently to craft a collaborative community vision agreement with community partner organizations, local representatives and city officials. As a result, seven work teams emerged from the community visioning process comprised of residents and community partners: Legacy, Economic Development, Education, Physical Infrastructure, Services, Housing, and Culture and Parks .

We are now moving into the initiative’s action phase, with many great projects in the pipeline. The following items are just a few of the many projects included in the Greater Fulton’s Future plan:

• Compiling an Oral History Project
• Creating a Fulton Memorial Park
• Connecting Parks to Residential Spaces via walking trails
• Expanding the Neighborhood Watch Program
• Increasing Tutoring Programs in Partnership With Richmond Public Schools
• Organizing more Neighborhood Clean Ups and Beautification Days

For more information on the initiatives, please visit or call the Neighborhood Resource Center at (804) 864-5797, or email the NRC, today.

Starting Thursday June 9, NRC youth will be selling fresh, affordable produce from a farm stand at the NRC! Proceeds will benefit the NRC youth leadership program, so come get some healthy local fruits and vegetables and support the youth!  Food stamps will be accepted.  The farm stand will be open from 5:00 until 6:30 Thursdays all summer.

On Sunday, May 22nd from 12noon to 2pm, the Neighborhood Resource Center will be hosting an afternoon reception / open house as an opportunity for our friends and neighbors to introduce someone new to the NRC. So grab a friend and come on by…there will be yummy food cooked by the NRC after-school kids and plenty of volunteers on hand to give you a tour. Visit the Montessori Preschool, take a stroll through the Children’s Learning Garden, listen to a recent tune written and recorded in the NRC studio and learn about the NRC’s new community organizing initiative, Greater Fulton’s Future. We hope you’ll join us!