NFF Dollars at Work

We bring capital where it’s needed most for social good. Here's a look at loan closings from the past few years in the following sectors:

Latest Loan Closing

Beech Interplex: Revitalizing a cultural landmark in Northern Philadelphia

$250,000 acquisition loan (April 2022)

Since 1990, Beech Interplex (Beech) has provided a variety of services and programs for residents of Cecil B. Moore Community, a historically disinvested 26-square block area in North Central Philadelphia. A part of Black-led, mission-driven community development firm Beech Companies, Beech Interplex advocates for stronger neighborhoods through community and commercial development segment. Beech believes in taking a holistic, collaborative approach to neighborhood revitalization that encourages the active participation of residents in order to improve the quality of life in their communities. Through job placement, education, and rehabilitation services, Beech’s work of promoting homeownership and rental opportunities in the Cecil B. Moore community spans three decades and has helped improve living conditions for at least 60,000 Northern Philadelphia residents.

In 1944, renowned African American printmaker Dox Thrash purchased a three-story brick structure located at 2340 Cecil B. Moore Avenue. Known today as Dox Thrash House, it holds rich historic and cultural significance in the community. Financed through NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will provide a portion of the funding needed to acquire the Dox Thrash House and purchase a vacant lot adjacent to Beech Interplex’s current Dox Thrash development – investments that will ensure this historic building remains an anchor in the community for years to come.

Learn more about NFF’s loan products on the financing page of our website.

Charter Schools & Education

With rising tuition costs and low graduation rates, traditional college options leave many young people – especially those from communities of color – with no degree, no path into a meaningful career, yet a huge burden of debt. The overwhelming majority of the tech workforce is white, male, and from middle to upper-class backgrounds. This produces both an equity issue and a creativity issue.  Marcy Lab School responds to this by offering a free, one-year software engineering fellowship to students who might not be able to afford a four-year college. Graduates learn how to code, contribute to and lead teams, and remain confident and composed under stress. They enter software engineering jobs that pay $70,000 or more per year. Most importantly, they leave the program knowing that their backgrounds and identities add value to every room they enter.  Marcy Lab School has seen an increase in demand for its programs and would like to expand in response. This loan will support Marcy Lab School's expansion into a larger facility, allowing it to offer its programs to 20 more students, a 33% increase.  
Based in Philadelphia, PA, Graduate Philadelphia provides advising, coaching, re-enrollment, and perseverance support to adults who live and/or work in the Philadelphia region and have previous college credit but have not yet earned a degree. As a direct response to the needs of lower-income job seekers and incumbent workers, Graduate Philadelphia’s work addresses historic, pervasive inequities related to postsecondary attainment, living-wage employment, and relationship capital. Recognizing that the needs of its clients do not revolve solely around attaining degrees, Graduate Philadelphia complements its core degree completion programs with a portfolio of short courses, micro-credentials, and workforce certificates. Graduate Philadelphia receives a significant portion of its revenue from contracts with the City of Philadelphia; however, these payments are given after the organization offers services and are often delayed, creating cash flow issues for the nonprofit. Offered through NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will smooth over these cash flow challenges by bridging the period between when they offer services and when they receive payment. An additional source of revenue for the organization is contracts with colleges and universities; however, COVID-19 forced Graduate Philadelphia to cancel recruitment events where they networked with colleges and universities, and their revenue decreased as a result. A portion of this loan will also bridge the period until these events resume at their former frequency and contracts with colleges and universities return. With this capital on hand, Graduate Philadelphia can continue to provide the education and workforce development services that so many Philadelphians depend on to achieve their long-term goals.
KIPP Philadelphia Public Schools is one of 28 regions of KIPP’s national, non-profit network of college preparatory, public charter schools educating elementary, middle, and high school students. Since 2003, KIPP Philadelphia has built a track record of preparing students in educationally underserved communities for success through college and in life. From a founding class of 90 students, KIPP Philadelphia has grown to serve more than 2,600 students in grades K-12 through five schools, with plans to expand to an additional five schools over the next several years. MIS Capital LLC is a mission-driven developer that provides real estate planning, economic development research and asset regeneration services on behalf of impact-focused organizations. MIS Capital's mission is to develop successful and sustainable projects that deliver lasting impact within their communities. This loan will allow KIPP Philadelphia to move their elementary school to a property in West Philadelphia that has remained vacant since 2013. MIS Capital will renovate the entire property, preserving the historic façade and brickwork while making necessary updates to infrastructure like pipes and ventilation and completely redesigning recreational facilities. When this development is complete, KIPP Philadelphia will begin renting the property and opening it to students, with the ultimate goal of purchasing the building and giving its elementary school a permanent home. This development is part of a larger expansion that will allow the KIPP Philadelphia network to nearly double in size, serving an estimated 4,480 students by 2030. Partners: BlueHub Capital, Cinnaire, National Trust Community Investment Corporation, Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation, Reinvestment Fund, Truist Community Capital
KIPP New York (KIPP NY) is a network of 16 charter schools serving 6,400 K-12 students in the boroughs of Bronx, Brooklyn, and Manhattan. KIPP NY is a member of the Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP), a non-profit network of public charter schools that have supported early childhood, elementary, middle, and high school students since 1994. This loan will help finance the acquisition of the site for KIPP NY's newest high school campus in the Mott Haven neighborhood of the Bronx. When the school opens in 2024, it will begin offering a high-quality education to approximately 300 students; by the time it reaches full capacity in 2028, it will serve over 1,000.   Partners: BlueHub Capital, Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) 
Acceleration Day and Evening Academy (ACCEL), Alabama’s first tuition-free public charter school, serves high school students in grades 9-12 from Mobile, Baldwin, and Washington Counties. ACCEL provides flexible, accelerated academics and critical wraparound supports to Mobile area students who are at risk of dropping out or have already dropped out of high school. Due to high demand for its programs, ACCEL requested and was granted a modification to its original charter that allowed it to add grades 6-8. This loan will allow ACCEL to expand into a nearby facility – and serve an additional 200 students who might not otherwise have access to a high-quality education. Partners: BlueHub Capital, HOPE Credit Union
SEED is the nation's first and only network of public, college-preparatory boarding schools designed for students who need – and deserve – a 24-hour learning environment to achieve their full potential. NFF’s loans in this New Markets Tax Credit project will support the construction of a brand-new SEED campus in South Los Angeles on a property that has remained vacant since the 1992 Rodney King civil unrest. This campus will form part of a larger community development that includes affordable housing and a major public transit hub. SEED LA will serve 400 high school students, focusing on youth who are homeless or housing insecure, have an immediate family member who is incarcerated, or have interacted with Los Angeles County Children and Family Services. In addition to a high-quality education, SEED LA will provide wrap around services for youth who face barriers inside and outside the school, with the goal of creating a safe environment where those students can achieve academic success and thrive beyond the classroom.  Partners: Chase Bank, Capital Impact Partners (CIP), Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF), Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), Weingart Foundation
Citizens of the World is an intimate network of high-achieving, community-based public schools. Their mission is to provide a high-quality education to a diverse community of students that reflect the abundant socioeconomic, racial and cultural diversity of their surroundings, developing their abilities, confidence, and sense of responsibility for themselves and their community. This loan will support the construction of a new, permanent location for grades 3-5 on the school’s Mar Vista campus. It will allow the school to bring the 5th grade back to the elementary campus and provide a students with a modern and updated site, adding art, enrichment, play, lunch and library to the space, and creating a more secure campus. In addition to bringing these activities into the same facility as the classrooms, this expansion will grow the school’s total capacity – meaning that Citizens of the World will be able to offer an exemplary education to more students.   Partners: Civic Builders 
LIFE Academy, a startup charter school in Montgomery, Alabama, provides students in grades K-8 with a holistic education rooted in trauma-informed learning, student connectedness, culturally relevant curricula, and authentic community partnership. This low-interest loan from NFF’s Resilient Communities Fund – NFF’s first ever loan in Alabama – will allow LIFE Academy to purchase and renovate the former St. Jude Educational Institute and Catholic Hospital, a key stop on the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail and the birthplace of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s two children. A campus with such a prominent role in the civil rights movement will be a powerfully symbolic location for a school serving a city whose public school students are 75% Black. Owning – rather than renting – this historically significant building will help the school save money in the long term and serve  its community for years to come.  Partners: BlueHub Capital, Hope Credit Union 
Compass Rose Education (CRE) is a network of tuition-free, public charter schools that combine academic success with personal growth so that K-12 students across Texas can navigate life’s big opportunities. Its rigorous, college-preparation-focused curriculum has enabled its student population, nearly 90% of which are from low-income households and 90% of which are students of color, to academically outperform those from the school district in almost all state tests. NFF and BlueHub Capital are each providing CRE with $3.6 million in refinancing a loan which supported the renovation of a building that holds CRE’s first San Antonio campus and 850 students. Together with a previous $1.1 million loan to CRE and a $1.4 million loan to CRE’s developer and landlord Building Hope, NFF has invested about $6 million into CRE’s efforts to bring high-quality education to students across Texas.  Partners: BlueHub Capital
Building Hope builds the capacity of charter schools nationwide by providing unparalleled facilities, financial, and operational services so that schools can focus on and devote more resources to educating students in underserved communities. NFF and BlueHub Capital are each providing Building Hope with a $1.4 million facility loan to finance the construction of a new charter school: Compass Rose Journey. The Compass Rose charter school network has a proven track record for providing its students – 90% of whom come from low-income households and 90% who identify as BIPOC – with a high-quality education. The Journey campus will be the third Compass Rose charter school in the San Antonio area and will enroll up to 740 students. Partners: BlueHub Capital

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Community Improvement

The Kensington Corridor Trust (KCT) is a Philadelphia-based organization grounded in the belief that neighbors have the power to affect change in their own neighborhood. Through local partnerships and community programming, the KCT’s goal is to keep assets and wealth in the control of the community. By reactivating real estate, fostering local entrepreneurship, and reinvesting capital into the neighborhood, the KCT’s mission is to build local wealth among residents and include community members in a values-aligned approach to development that protects the communities that make up the neighborhood today. One way that the KCT does this is by purchasing and operating commercial and mixed-use properties on Kensington Avenue on behalf of the neighborhood. These spaces are then developed and reactivated for community ownership and use. Financed through NFF’s CARE Fund, which offers 0% interest loans to community-centered nonprofits led by and serving people of color, this loan will finance the acquisition of two properties into the trust – an important step towards the organization’s long-term goal of restoring control of Kensington’s buildings to Kensington residents. As they grow, KCT will be able to provide more spaces that foster economic equity and thriving communities.
New Kensington Community Development Corporation (NKCDC) uses real estate development, community engagement, and direct services to meet the housing needs of Philadelphia’s Kensington, Port Richmond, and Fishtown residents. NKCDC aims to revitalize these communities by acquiring and developing high-quality affordable housing for lower-income residents and creating public green spaces that all residents can enjoy. By offering free homebuyer courses, small business consulting, and more, NKCDC provides resources to community members most at risk of being displaced. NKCDC’s executive director, Dr. Bill McKinney, is from the Kensington neighborhood and is committed to addressing displacement and the impacts of the opioid epidemic on residents. As it grows, NKCDC has identified a commercial corridor of 19 properties on Kensington Avenue to activate and revitalize as a part of its North of Lehigh Revitalization Plan. Offered through NFF’s CARE Fund, which offers 0% interest loans to community-centered nonprofits led by people of color, this loan will finance renovations for three existing corridor properties. With support from this loan, NKCDC will be able to activate more community spaces and provide critical health services to even more residents.
Greenline Access Capital (Greenline) is an emerging nonprofit microlender founded with the goal to address a persistent gap in access to capital for financially underserved men and women. The lack of bilingual microlenders in the region has structurally barred Spanish-speaking immigrant entrepreneurs from accessing capital. Greenline helps fill this gap by offering all of their services in both English and Spanish. Their services will include character-based microloans, technical assistance, and access to a lending network and mentorship for historically underserved entrepreneurs in the Greater Philadelphia region. The loans they offer will help entrepreneurs start, grow, or stabilize their businesses, will range in size from $500 to $25,000, and will not require a minimum credit score – a historic barrier to access for immigrants, low-income people, and people of color trying to start businesses. NFF is new to offering start-up capital to nonprofits. However, Greenline is an excellent initial candidate for this type of loan; we were impressed by the organization’s clear mission, detailed business plan, tenure within the communities they aim to serve, and strong case for how they’d use this loan. Provided through NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will support the salary of Greenline’s first loan officer and help them invest in the infrastructure they need to effectively serve their borrowers. We’re proud to partner with Greenline to invest in Philadelphia-area entrepreneurs who will now have the capital they need to launch businesses in their communities.
Over the last two decades, Urban Tree Connection has transformed the West Philadelphia neighborhood of Haddington alongside community leaders, catalyzing residents' demand for green space and locally produced fresh food. They have redeveloped 29 vacant lots, totaling more than 86,000 square feet of land for communal growing and gathering, sustainable (chemical free) food production and distribution, and multigenerational health and wellness education. This includes a ¾ acre urban farm – Neighborhood Foods Farm - which produces over 6,500 pounds of chemical-free produce annually. UTC has been at the forefront of urban farming and land reclamation movements in Philadelphia, helping pioneer key tools for legal reclamation of abandoned properties.  Neighbors, once isolated from each other, increasingly connect through the gardens created on these formerly abandoned lots, as well as through the diverse array of educational and community programs that UTC offers. These personal connections have, in turn, empowered neighbors to continue to transform their community. Today, Haddington residents are increasingly realizing the potential for growing food on abandoned lots in their neighborhood and are active partners with UTC in developing a community based local food system aimed at making affordable, healthy, Haddington-grown food available to every neighbor.  Offered through NFF’s CARE Fund, this loan will replace a collateral-dependent loan with a 5% interest rate with an unsecured, zero-interest loan. This will free up cash that would have been spent on interest on credit to invest into Urban Tree Connection’s infrastructure and the community it serves. It is also a first step towards one of Urban Tree Connection’s long-term goals: a partnership with a financial institution that shares the organization’s commitment to racial and economic justice. 
East New York Restoration Local Development Corporation (ENYRLDC) works to increase career and business opportunities in the Brooklyn neighborhoods of East New York. The organization’s goal is to foster a solid foundation for economic development by supporting small businesses, job development, and efforts to keep communities clean, green, and environmentally informed.    Last year, ENYRLDC began constructing an outdoor adult fitness center in an East New York community after learning from seniors in the community that they lacked the adequate facilities. At the same time, the organization saw an increase in demand for its existing programs: community cleanups, green programs, a job development center, job fairs, and placing/cleaning trashcans in identified stress corners in East New York. Their responsiveness to community need coupled with city contract payout delays placed an increasing amount of strain on the organization’s cash flow – strain that the executive director alleviated by making a personal loan to the organization. Financed through NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will both pay off that personal loan and bridge the financing ENYRLDC needs to complete the fitness center while city contract payouts continue to be delayed. Effectively, this loan will ease cash flow pressures on the organization while supporting the health and wellness of East New York communities. 
Since 1974, Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition (NWBCCC) has worked to unite diverse people and institutions to fight for racial justice and economic democracy in the Bronx and beyond. Through the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP), NWBCCC works with landlords in the Bronx to invest in the structural health and safety of their buildings. At the same time, part of its community organizing work, the organization uses active outreach and leadership development to empower Bronx residents to take action around issues including educational and restorative justice, health justice, energy democracy, equitable economic development, and affordable housing. In 2021 NWBCCC served 5,000 people, 95% of whom qualified as low-income. Financed through NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will bridge delays in payments on its government contracts with New York State and New York City. This loan will provide the organization with the space to build up its reserves through philanthropic sources – reserves it can draw from for future working capital needs and use to respond nimbly to the evolving needs of Bronx communities.
The Good Rural was founded to promote emotional, academic and economic success for urban and rural communities across the United States. The extremely high cost of living in San Francisco means that many families in the city can't consistently afford or access healthy food. Therefore, in its first year of organization, The Good Rural is focusing on addressing food insecurity: providing access to food to food-insecure children and families; launching educational programs to promote food security through existing resources; and fostering resources that address the root causes of food insecurity.   This brand-new organization has already secured startup funding from the City of San Francisco; however, this funding is reimbursement-based, meaning that it needs a loan in order to have cash on hand as it begins operations. This loan from NFF will allow The Good Rural to pay rent, hire several full-time employees, and establish its programs while it awaits reimbursement from the city. It will also allow the nonprofit's founder breathing room to apply for the grants it needs to have cash on hand for years to come.  
BuCu West’s mission is to create destinations that promote and support entrepreneurs, small businesses, cultural organizations, and residents in an authentic, energetic, and colorful environment. For more than two decades, BuCu West has helped transform southwest Denver’s Morrison Road Corridor into a neighborhood that supports and attracts business development through investment in local business leaders, artists, youth, leaders, infrastructure, and heritage. In 2016, BuCu West purchased its first space to house the Kitchen Network: one of Colorado’s largest specialty food incubators which served primarily businesses owned by women and people of color. Offered through NFF’s Metro Denver Nonprofit Loan Fund, this loan will help BuCu West finance a significant expansion of the Kitchen Network into the kitchen space at the former Johson & Wales campus in Denver, allowing it to grow from serving 150 to 300 food businesses each year.

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Health

The mission of Community Health Initiatives (CHI) is to provide outstanding healthcare for New Yorkers — regardless of their ability to pay. A Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), this community-based organization offers free and low-cost healthcare for New York residents who may otherwise lack access to quality medical care. From preventive to behavioral health services, CHI takes a holistic approach to the care it provides. As a full-service clinic, CHI delivers comprehensive care to community members who need it most. In response to growing demand exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization recognized that it needed to expand its facility. The larger site will house additional exam rooms along with a physical therapy area, nurses’ station and clinical work area, urgent care practice, triage and consultation rooms, and additional administrative spaces. NFF's loans will both finance the new center and bridge government grants that will provide the remainder of the financing required to furnish the space.
Kids First Health Care (KFHC) partners with schools and other community organizations to bring primary and preventive health services to youth ages 0-21. Most of the youth KFCH serves are enrolled in Medicaid or Child Health Plan Plus and nearly 20 percent are uninsured. After COVID-19 mandated school closures across the country, KFHC shut down its school-based sites. For the past year and a half, they have been seeing patients solely out of their headquarters – a small facility with just two exam rooms. As schools reopen and KFHC once again begins seeing patients while they're in school, they will use this loan from our Metro Denver Loan Fund to expand into a new location with six exam rooms – vastly expanding the amount of youth they'll be able to serve. In partnership with a dental clinic at the same site, they hope to evolve this building into a hub for all of their community's healthcare needs.
St. John's Episcopal Hospital offers emergency and ambulatory care to the densely populated, culturally and economically diverse, and medically underserved population of Far Rockaway, Queens and surrounding areas in New York. NFF and Capital Impact Partners each provided $5 million source loans for a $30 million project to construct a community clinic across the street from the hospital that will allow St. John's to expand the provision of primary care, mental health, and specialty care services on the Rockaway peninsula. This project will also free up much needed space at the hospital for critical inpatient services so that St. John's can continue to provide people of all faiths with comprehensive services - from preventive to rehabilitative - regardless of ability to pay.  Partners: Capital Impact Partners, CityScape Capital Group, New York City Regional Center, and Chase

Bartz-Altadonna Community Health Center provides patient-centered, high-quality, trauma-informed healthcare services to people in Antelope Valley, regardless of ability to pay and with intensive outreach to people experiencing homelessness. A $2.5-million facility loan from NFF will help Bartz-Altadonna Community Health Center purchase a new building for their expanded behavioral health services and administration offices. With more space available, the Center can offer even more support to people who are seeking mental health services – a critical offering particularly during the pandemic.

Odessa Brown Children's Clinic (OBCC), operated by Seattle Children's Hospital, is building out a newly constructed pediatric health clinic for families in Southeast Seattle to provide medical and dental care, as well as physical therapy, mental health, and nutrition counseling. The clinic also integrates other services, such as literacy training, legal advocacy, and parent support groups so that families can access everything they need to thrive in one place. NFF's $10 million in NMTC sub-allocation will support the new $53.4 million clinic. OBCC is co-located in a building with an early childhood care center and five floors of mixed-income housing (financed separately). The project is part of the Othello Square neighborhood redevelopment, which includes a charter school, workforce development, and affordable housing. OBCC will continue to be a trusted medical provider for local residents while offering even more to families in the community.

Partners: Urban Research Park CDE, LLC, Craft3, and Chase

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Homelessness & Housing

The mission of New York State Tenants and Neighbors (Tenants & Neighbors) is to organize a unified coalition of tenant organizations that educates tenants, builds community support, and strengthens tenant rights across New York State. With gentrification rapidly displacing residents in low- and moderate-income communities across the nation, the need for grassroots tenant organizing grows more important every day. By providing education and leadership development sessions, Tenants & Neighbors equips tenants with the resources necessary to advocate for affordable housing. Throughout its nearly 50-year history, Tenants & Neighbors has worked to ensure that its clients have access to the support they need to thrive. In 2021, Tenants & Neighbors served nearly 2,000 clients, 97% of whom qualified as low-income. Tenants & Neighbors depends on contracts with government agencies for a portion of its funding. Government payments to nonprofits are often delayed; however, the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these delays. Supported by the Trinity Church Wall Street Grantee Loan Fund, this loan will make sure that Tenants & Neighbors has consistent access to working capital for its essential programs while it waits for that funding to arrive. Smoothing over this cash flow issue will help the organization maintain and grow programs that help tenants build economically just neighborhoods and futures.
The Center at Blessed Sacrament (The Center)'s mission is to be an organization devoted to healing and centered on individual wellness and community, to advocate for those in Hollywood without shelter, and to develop and implement solutions that lead to resilience and housing. Its housing programs alone serve more than 400 people each year; count its wellness and outreach programs, and that number swells to 2,000 people. From rapid and recovery housing to art classes to community "coffee hours” with people living on the street, The Center's programs build community in Hollywood for housed and unhoused people alike. The Center depends on contracts with government agencies for a large portion of its funding. However, agencies typically pay those contracts after nonprofits conduct their programs, not in advance. In addition, the Center's primary funders have delayed paying their contracts due in part to COVID-19 and in part to internal transitions at those agencies. Bridge financing like this loan fills these gaps by ensuring that organizations like The Center have enough cash on hand to pay their staff, keep the lights on, and offer their essential programs. With support from this financing, The Center can continue offering hundreds of homeless Angelenos the housing and wraparound services they depend on to achieve their aspirations.
Since 2017, Sustainable Futures Project has operated shelters that provide safe housing for dozens of unhoused families in South Los Angeles. When they don’t have stable shelter, families experience barriers to accessing other critical supports like employment, mental health care, and legal services. Together with close partner Special Services for Groups, Sustainable Futures Project helps families overcome these barriers and move from survival to stability. Sustainable Futures Project is looking to operate more wraparound services and plans to open childcare and Office of Diversion and Reentry (ODR) programs. This loan will provide Sustainable Futures Project with some of the cash they need to rent and redesign facilities and hire staff to run these programs. At the same time, Sustainable Futures Project is working with NFF consultants to budget for these new programs – and track their actual spending against their planned budget. As they grow, Sustainable Futures Project will be able to provide more comprehensive services to families who wouldn’t otherwise have stable places to live.
PATH Ventures is a permanent supportive housing (PSH) provider that specializes in the development of housing for formerly homeless individuals and families. Their mission is to end homelessness for individuals, families and communities by building and operating affordable rental homes paired with on-site services that support residents in regaining long-term stability, independence, and health. They currently operate 16 PSH properties with 985 units of housing – including California’s first ever development through Project Homekey, a state-funded effort to convert unused hotel space into PSH. Affordable and permanent supportive housing developers like PATH Ventures often struggle to access the flexible capital they need to develop housing at the scale required to curb the United States’ homelessness and housing affordability crises. NFF’s Accelerating Permanent Supportive Housing Fund responds to this by providing $10 million in unrestricted capital for nonprofit developers in the Los Angeles area – developers like PATH Ventures. Offered through this fund, this loan provides flexible capital that PATH Ventures can use to support the LA area projects in pipeline – projects that will house more than 1,000 people in a region where affordable housing remains in short supply. Stable, secure places to live will help these people overcome their immediate challenges and work towards achieving their long-term goals.
Since 1971, Bayview Hunters Point Foundation (BHPF) has offered affordable housing, employment assistance, healthcare, and educational programming to people experiencing homelessness in the San Francisco neighborhood of Bayview. The organization provides a continuum of homeless services ranging from outreach to case management to permanent housing support. Their goal is to help people access the support they need to transition from homelessness to permanent housing and to achieve their aspirations: medical treatment, rehabilitation, stable, supportive housing, benefits, and employment. The organization has experienced increased demand for its services since the onset of COVID-19: it served approximately 12,000 people last year and is preparing for continued growth. BHPF relies on contracts with the City and County of San Francisco for much of its revenue. However, these contracts are paid after BHPF offers services instead of before, creating cash flow challenges for the organization that only increased with rising demand. Offered through NFF's zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will bridge those delayed payments, helping the organization focus on stability while allowing it to scale its programs to more people who need them. As the organization grows, it will help thousands more people move from homelessness to stable housing and support their long-term goals.
Impact Services’ mission is to empower people in need to attain the hope, motivation, and skills necessary to reach their fullest human potential and highest level of personal and family self-sufficiency. The Philadelphia neighborhoods where Impact Services works have been highly impacted by the overlapping traumas of multi-generational poverty, opioid addiction and the heroin trade, and a high level of violence. In response to these issues, Impact Services offers employment assistance, reclaims abandoned industrial spaces, develops affordable housing, and works to stabilize the lives of individuals and families. The organization's specific programs include workforce and community development programming for a range of low-income and disenfranchised populations, a loan fund that supports local businesses, and community engagement efforts that organize neighborhood events, clean-ups, and more. NFF’s loan will support a phased redevelopment of Impact Services’ historic campus, which will be financed with a mix of Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, Historic Tax Credits, New Markets Tax Credits, grants, and loans. The resulting campus will include an existing 57-bed shelter for veterans who are experiencing homelessness, a multi-purpose community gym facility, 47 units of affordable housing, program space for Impact Services, and several floors of commercial space for office or community purposes. With this redevelopment, Impact Services will be able to expand its programs to even more Philadelphia residents, giving many people the support they need to overcome obstacles and achieve their aspirations.
The mission of The WIN Project is to reinvest in neighborhoods by providing families with access to decent, safe, and affordable housing. Since 1999, The WIN Project has built strong partnerships, particularly with the City of Compton, and has developed more than 20 projects of low-income or affordable housing, securing low-cost homes for the individuals and families most likely to be affected by rising housing prices in the Los Angeles area. Financed by NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will support predevelopment costs – such as architecture, engineering, and pre-construction management services – for a new affordable housing development in Compton, California. This development will offer five Compton families places to live in an area where low-cost housing is desperately needed.
The mission of Bowery Residents’ Committee (BRC) is to restore hope and dignity by offering opportunities for health and self-sufficiency to vulnerable New Yorkers. BRC serves more than 10,000 individuals each year through dozens of programs spanning outreach to unsheltered New Yorkers experiencing homelessness, transitional housing and shelter, permanent housing, substance abuse treatment, mental and physical health services, workforce development, and senior services.  NFF’s loan will facilitate BRC's development of a 120-bed shelter in the Inwood neighborhood of Manhattan that will support mentally ill men experiencing homelessness through a person-centered, clinically sound model. This new residence will provide safe, emergency shelter and assist clients as they transition into more independent, permanent housing.   Partners: Citi Community Capital, Leviticus Fund 
Breaking Ground, formerly known as Common Ground, helped to pioneer the concept of supportive housing as a long-term solution to homelessness. Seeking to put unhoused New Yorkers on a path towards a stable home, Breaking Ground begins with street outreach, connects people with transitional housing at Safe Havens across the city, and ultimately provides permanent housing supported by ongoing case management. It also strives to prevent new instances of homelessness by providing affordable housing to working New Yorkers who earn significantly less than the annual median income.   Funding for affordable housing is often earmarked for specific projects or specific phases of a project – most frequently the construction or rehabilitation of a building. However, if developers can't secure funding for predevelopment – the phase when they need to secure permits, survey land, and make other preparations before construction – they can't develop housing at the pace they would like. Offered in partnership with Corporation for Supportive Housing, the $1 million loan from NFF will support the construction of a new supportive housing development and health center in Jamaica, Queens for formerly homeless and low-income senior citizens – giving 170 people a safe, affordable place to live.  
Richmond Neighborhood Housing Services (RNHS) provides affordable rental housing and services to support first-time homebuyers, focusing on low-income Black women in and around Richmond and Oakland, CA. Founded by a dedicated group of residents who believe that affordable housing shouldn’t stop at renting, RNHS has worked to reverse systemic segregation, redlining, disinvestment, and blight. In partnership with local residents, businesses, financial institutions, and government agencies, RNHS offers low-income households and people of color the tools they need to achieve financial equity.   RNHS has received a federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) in support of its efforts to develop and rehabilitate affordable homes across the East Bay. However, without access to debt, the organization would need to divert money from their development pipeline to maintaining their existing properties, slowing the rate at which they could build or rehab new ones. Financed through NFF’s CARE Fund, which offers 0% interest loans to community-centered nonprofits led by people of color, this loan will ensure that RNHS has sufficient cash flow to both continue its existing services and develop new affordable homes for Bay Area families.  
HousingPlus provides community-based housing and comprehensive services to support women working to overcome poverty, addiction, and trauma and help them achieve their aspirations. Using a trauma-informed and strength-based approach, HousingPlus offers safe housing where women can access mental health therapy, substance abuse counseling, education referrals, employment support, and other supportive services. They then work with each woman to develop personalized goals toward achieving housing stability, economic self-sufficiency, and independent living. Currently, the organization houses approximately 176 families and single women across New York City. Offered through the Trinity Church Grantee Loan Fund, this no-interest loan will bridge an 18-month delay in government contracts and help HousingPlus with seasonal cash flow needs. The COVID-19 pandemic led HousingPlus to implement enhanced safety protocols and expanded technology access for staff, increasing the organization's 2021 expenses; at the same time, they had to cancel fundraising events, shrinking their revenue. This loan will ensure that HousingPlus can overcome these challenges and continue to provide essential supportive housing – at a time when housing insecurity is on the rise and its services are desperately needed.

Partner: LISC

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Human Services

The mission of Paving the Way (PTW) is to help people from all walks of life be as healthy and active as possible by providing social services that teach practical life skills for independence. Since 2006, PTW has met the immediate needs of people across Southern California’s Antelope Valley – particularly those impacted by homelessness, substance use, and the justice system. PTW served approximately 600 individuals in 2021 through job readiness training, parenting classes, a free community clothing closet, and a community re-entry program for formerly incarcerated people – 90% of whom qualified as low-income. While PTW has multiple funding sources, it is experiencing delays in payments of government contracts. And because the organization has grown exponentially in such a short amount of time – more than doubling its budget in the last year alone – it needs more capital to match this rapid growth. Financed through NFF’s CARE Fund, which offers 0% interest loans to community-centered nonprofits led by people of color, this loan will provide PTW with the money needed to bridge cash flow issues caused by delayed government contract payments. With more sustained, reliable funding, PTW can continue investing in critical programs for even more Antelope Valley residents – programs that support their growth and well-being.
ACHIEVEability provides comprehensive social services to low-income, single-parent, and unhoused families in West Philadelphia. The organization works to permanently break the generational cycle of poverty by offering higher education, affordable housing, and other supportive services designed to address the barriers that prevent people from achieving their aspirations. ACHIEVEability’s impact is clear – through their services, the organization serves nearly 3,000 residents each year.   ACHIEVEability plans to establish an in-house fundraising department that could sustainably bring in funding for the organization and accelerate its growth. Financed through NFF’s CARE Fund, which offers 0% interest loans to community-centered nonprofits led by people of color, this loan will provide ACHIEVEability with the money needed to expand their staff and bridge cash flow issues caused by delayed payments from government-funded contracts. With support from this loan, ACHIEVEability can build out a sustainable fundraising strategy that allows it to continue supporting West Philadelphia residents with essential services. 
Special Needs Network, Inc. (SNN)’s mission is to raise awareness about the unique ways that race, gender, and class impact people with disabilities – particularly African Americans, Latinx, and other BIPOC. By providing direct services, raising community awareness, and engaging in policy advocacy, SNN recognizes that the fight for disability rights is inextricably tied to the fight for racial justice and civil rights. SNN’s programs and campaigns bring change through legislation and policy as well as through direct collaboration with parents, caretakers, social justice organizations, and healthcare professionals. SNN’s Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities (CADD) is a full-service autism health and community center delivering comprehensive medical and developmental services in the historic Watts/Willowbrook/Compton neighborhood. As the organization continues to grow, its headquarters will be moving to the new MLK Community Hospital in South Los Angeles to further expand its programs and meet growing community needs. Financed through NFF’s CARE Fund, which offers 0% interest loans to community-centered nonprofits led by and serving people of color, this loan will support furnishings and necessary improvements for the organization’s new space. With support from this financing, SNN will be able to offer high-quality services to even more people with autism and other developmental disabilities.
Olive Support Services (OSS) provides critical family support and social services to people living across Southern California’s Antelope Valley. The nonprofit’s services include parenting classes, domestic violence treatment services, life coaching, job readiness classes, and a youth tutoring and mentorship program. In addition to family programming, OSS works with recently incarcerated individuals by teaching job readiness and life skills in efforts to reduce recidivism. Specifically seeking out Antelope Valley households who identify as low-income and have limited access to social services, the organization serves more than 400 people each year. COVID-19 stay-at-home orders increased domestic violence across the country. At the same time that many survivors were stuck at home with their abusers, providers of shelter and safe services were required to cut back capacity to comply with social distancing guidelines. In response, LA County provided thousands of emergency housing vouchers for survivors of DV and their children. However, many landlords were reluctant to accept these vouchers, tightening the supply of housing available to survivors. In response to this unmet need, Olive planned to purchase a house that it can convert into supportive housing for domestic violence survivors with rental vouchers. Financed through NFF’s CARE Fund, which offers 0% interest loans to community-centered nonprofits led by people of color, this loan will help Olive Support Services make this down payment – and continue to provide compassionate care to survivors.
The I Did Something Good Today Foundation (IDSGT) is a community-based nonprofit founded in 2018 to address the needs of Los Angeles County seniors facing social isolation. IDSGT meets the immediate needs of low-income individuals and older adults in LA County by helping them navigate social service systems, personal finances, and housing. In addition, IDSGT offers a senior chat line and a wellness check phone call program to combat the social isolation many older adults experience. Since its founding, IDSGT has achieved incredible impact: it has taken over 44,000 calls on its chat line, made over 5,500 deliveries of food and basic necessities, and logged over 25,000 volunteer hours. Financed through NFF’s CARE Fund, which offers 0% interest loans to community-centered nonprofits led by people of color, this loan will provide IDSGT with approximately a year of operating cash flow, enough liquidity to overcome the paralyzing impact of the pandemic and allow the Foundation to continue to provide essential services for seniors.
Multicultural Community Family Services (MCFS) provides a variety of programs and services to ensure the well-being of immigrants and community members in the Philadelphia area. After moving to the United States to escape a civil conflict in her native Liberia, founder and executive director Portia Kamara recognized that many immigrants struggled to access the services they needed in a country where the language, culture, and systems were unfamiliar. So she founded MCFS in direct response to their needs – initially focusing on immigrants from across Africa, but soon expanding to serve all immigrants and community members who needed support to achieve their aspirations. The organization established programs including community health, education, advocacy, immigration support, professional development, and youth soccer. Over the past two decades, MCFS has grown into an organization that supports more than 1,000 families each year. A large portion of MCFS’ revenue comes from reimbursement-based contracts for its home healthcare program. However, when the onset of the pandemic led to a suspension of one of its major contracts in 2020, the organization faced a challenging financial position. NFF determined that a zero-interest CARE Fund loan would be perfect for this client; it would reduce MCFS’ monthly expenses by replacing an existing loan with an interest-free one and support renovations that would allow the organization to fully move its operations into its new headquarters, reducing its occupancy expenses. This investment will free up more of MCFS’ finances to recuperate from financial losses that were beyond its control – and to invest in the communities that depend on their services.
The Central Family Life Center (“The Center”) is a multi-service agency serving the North Shore of Staten Island through programming focused on education, training, counseling, job placement, and leadership. Its 10,000 square foot facility is the only minority-led community center of its kind in Staten Island, and it houses many critical social services programs for the borough's diverse residents. It recently acquired a second property to house its growing team and operates a mobile trauma unit that provides response teams that quickly address any violence prevention needs in the community. The Center is almost entirely reliant on government contracts – contracts that are paid after it runs programs and are often delayed, creating significant cash flow issues for the organization. Offered through NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will bridge the gap between when The Center spends money to run programs and receives money from government contracts, ensuring that it can continue to provide timely payments to the staff running critical social services and violence prevention efforts across Staten Island.
Sacred Heart Community Services (SHCS) has provided essential services to individuals and families across California's South Bay Area for nearly 60 years. They envision a community united to ensure that every child and adult is free from poverty. From an organization founded specifically to provide food for those who were going hungry, SHCS has grown into an innovative and well-respected nonprofit that both responds directly to the needs of the community it serves while advocating for policies and action that address the root causes of poverty. Their programs include food and clothing drives, rent and utility support, employment assistance, youth education, and support with taxes and applications for government benefits. SHCS has experienced substantial growth in the past several years, and its current facility can no longer accommodate its staff and programs. NFF partnered with Community Vision and Partners for the Common Good to provide a $5 million loan to SHCS. Along with over $2 million of its own capital and approximately $2.74MM in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) equity from US Bank and Partners for the Common Good, this financing will allow SCHS to renovate and own a larger space for its use and the 60+ organizations in its growing network. With a larger home base, SCHS can support its current expansion as well as future growth – ensuring that even more community members can access their services and supporting thriving communities for decades to come. Partners: Community Visions, Partners for the Common Good, US Bank
The mission of Monument Impact is to ensure that immigrants, refugees and low-income residents of Concord, CA and surrounding communities have the voice, tools, and relationships they need to achieve an equitable share of the region's social and economic wealth. To this end, they offer programs that include workforce development (technology classes, training for small business owners), Healthy Community (bilingual Spanish-English programming that promotes physical activity and healthy living), and community engagement (leadership development courses, legal support for immigrants, and a free shuttle). In response to increased demand from the communities it serves during the COVID-19 pandemic, Monument Impact expanded some programs and established entirely new ones, including financial aid and assistance for renters who had seen lost or diminished income. As the pandemic has continued, this demand has kept growing. Offered through NFF's zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will support Monument Impact as it grows its financial aid, vaccine outreach, and new civic engagement work; it will also give them needed flexibility as they seek out a larger space. These programs respond directly to the unique needs of the communities Monument Impact serves, offering critical services at a time when these communities can benefit from them most.
For 40 years, Jenesse Center has raised awareness about domestic violence and advocated for people's basic right to peace in their homes and relationships. In addition to housing women and children at emergency and transitional shelters across Los Angeles, Jenesse Center provides supportive services that include mental health counseling, life skills courses, computer training, job referrals, after-school programs and tutoring for children, and legal support. Jenesse Center also works to break the generational cycle of violence by educating young people about healthy relationships.  In response to growing demand for its services – especially during the pandemic – Jenesse Center purchased two connecting buildings in South Los Angeles to expand the services they offer in the community. The new buildings will contain a drop-in center where survivors can seek help, the Permanent Housing Assistance Program, and workforce development services. This loan has provided Jenesse Center the financing they need to purchase this property, ensuring that even more people impacted by domestic violence can access the support they need to move forward. 

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Social Justice

A non-profit research and development lab, Think of Us (TOU) is reimagining a system that considers the needs of people served by the child welfare system and positions young people as primary stakeholders in order to shift the way that things are being done from the inside out. TOU’s founder and executive director, Sixto Cancel, is a former foster youth whose personal lived experience drives his passion for this work. Think of Us strategically engages projects across tech, research, and government to create solutions that bridge the gap between policy, practice, and people. In 2021 TOU served approximately 15,800 foster youth by providing housing, financial assistance, and other community resources to help meet their immediate needs beyond traditional case management services. TOU has seen an increase in demand for its programs and services and would like to expand in response. However, it is experiencing a delay in payments on its contract with California State. Supported in part by the Hilton Foundation, this loan from NFF will help alleviate cash flow pressures related to government reimbursement timing so that TOU can focus more of its efforts on expanding its programs and connecting foster youth to resources that help them gain control over their futures.
The Immigrant Defense Project was founded 20 years ago to combat an emerging human rights crisis: the targeting of immigrants for mass imprisonment and deportation. As this crisis has continued to escalate, the IDP has remained steadfast in fighting for fairness and justice for all immigrants caught at the intersection of the racially biased U.S. criminal and immigration systems. IDP fights to end the current era of unprecedented mass criminalization, detention, and deportation through a multipronged strategy including advocacy, litigation, legal advice and training, community defense, grassroots alliances, and strategic communications. Advocating for immigrants grows more important every day. IDP needs to hire staff to fill several open vacancies; however, a delay in a government-funded contract has forced them to freeze hiring for the bulk of the COVID-19 pandemic. Supported by the Trinity Church Wall Street Grantee Loan fund, this loan will bridge this delayed payment so that the organization can hire for these essential positions – including a development manager who could sustainably bring in funding that would allow them to grow.
TakeRoot Justice provides legal services, participatory research, and policy support to strengthen the work of grassroots and community-based groups in New York City to dismantle racial, economic, and social oppression. Their legal and policy work supports organizations that build leadership and power within New York City’s low-income communities, particularly communities of color, immigrant communities, and others who are traditionally excluded from policy-making. Their work has included: bringing lawsuits against negligent tenants on behalf of tenants; defending community organizations against legal action; providing legal services to individual community members; and supporting advocacy led by community groups. TakeRoot Justice receives 85% of its funding from government contracts. However, these contracts are reimbursement-based and often are delayed, meaning that the organization must acquire bridge financing to ensure it has enough cash on hand to run its critical programs and pay its staff. Further, the organization recently spun off from Urban Justice Center and became an independent nonprofit – meaning it doesn't have a larger balance sheet and financial history many lenders require. Offered through the Trinity Church Grantee Loan Fund, this bridge loan from NFF will provide the organization with several months of working capital – money that will sustain its operations until contract reimbursements come through. It will also support TakeRoot Justice's essential efforts to provide legal and policy support for the solutions that New York City's citizens need.
Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison (HL)’s mission is to support incarcerated people in making positive impacts on their own lives, their families and communities, resulting in lower rates of recidivism and poverty. They accomplish this by offering college education, life skills, and re-entry support to hundreds of currently and formerly incarcerated people each year. One creative method of re-entry support is a contractor training program through which individuals both receive certification and work on renovating a home that they live in themselves or another person going through HL’s programs. This program has helped build a strong sense of place among its alumni network. HL started its work more than 20 years ago with the support of Trinity Church Wall Street and other local churches and synagogues. Trinity Church Wall Street was its first funder and partner, providing support for everything from hosting alumni gatherings to supporting art shows for released students and participating in the creation of programs. Today, through the Trinity Church Grantee Loan Fund, NFF is providing HL with a loan to support the separate but affiliated organization New Beginnings, which employs formerly incarcerated youth to build homes for people re-entering society. The loan will also offer HL working capital while it recuperates losses from revenue-generating events cancelled during the COVID-19 pandemic. With this financing, HL can continue to invest in critical programs for currently and formerly incarcerated people – programs that support their smooth reentry into society and pursuit of their long-term aspirations. Partners: Trinity Church Wall Street
Why Not Prosper (WNP) was founded by and for formerly incarcerated women. The organization provides a continuum of programs that includes pre-release mentoring, housing for women that have reentered in Philadelphia and Harrisburg, and community services at a Philadelphia resource center. Why Not Prosper's programs help women gain employable skills, find and retain jobs, secure safe, decent, and affordable housing, avoid or end dependency on alcohol and drugs, reunite with children, and avoid a return to prison.    Why Not Prosper recently received a donation of several acres of land in Eagle Rock, PA, on which they plan to build a retreat center where they can both host programs and that they can rent out to generate revenue. They are launching a capital campaign to finance the development of this new site. Offered through NFF's zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will seed the capital campaign and support the salary of a full-time development director that will lead the campaign while seeking out additional grant funding for the organization. We hope this loan will allow Why Not Prosper to make the investments it needs to continue growing – and expand their programs to even more incarcerated and formerly incarcerated women.  
The mission of Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice (CURYJ – pronounced “courage”) is to unlock the potential of silenced young people (60% Latinx, 24% African American) that have been disempowered by the youth incarceration system. Specifically, the organization strives to end youth incarceration and support formerly incarcerated youth through advocacy rooted in leadership development, trauma healing, coaching, and community building. Throughout its 11-year history, CURYJ has worked to ensure that their organization represents and reflects those impacted by the pervasive systems they hope to combat; 90% of staff members are systems-impacted and 25% of staff are alumni of CURYJ programs.  Financed by NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will support the leasehold improvement of CURYJ’s new headquarter and community center. Its newly leased space will be part of the development of the Oscar Grant Youth Empowerment Zone in Oakland’s Fruitvale neighborhood, which will include 181 units of affordable housing. The newly leased space will house a social-enterprise cafe employing formerly incarcerated community members, a multipurpose space for community organizing, and program and office space for CURYJ staff and CBO partners. CURYJ envisions this space as a nexus for intergenerational healing through the unique combination of movement strategy hubs, direct service programming, and social-enterprise. 
Brooklyn Community Bail Fund (BCBF) is dedicated to challenging the racism and injustices of a criminal legal system and immigration deportation regime that disproportionately target low-income communities of color, drive mass incarceration and perpetuate inequality. Cash bail and pretrial detention criminalize poverty; while wealthy people who can afford bail can return home before their trials, those who can't afford to pay must face pre-trial detention or plead guilty to avoid it. Since 2015, BCBF’s Bail Operations program has paid bail – usually about $2,000 per person, but sometimes $10,000 or more – to secure the pretrial freedom of over 5,000 presumptively innocent individuals charged with misdemeanors, sparing them a collective 700 years of time in detention.   The COVID-19 pandemic has brought both new urgency and new challenges to its efforts to raise the funds required to free community members from the dangerous and unsafe conditions of ICE detention facilities. Thousands of New Yorkers are detained each year; at the same time, the average cost of paying their bail has risen by nearly 50%, from $7,500 to $11,800. Financed by the Trinity Church Grantee Loan Fund, this loan will allow BCBF to expand its pipeline of institutional and major donor support to meet this growing need, ensuring that thousands of community members can plead their cases from positions of freedom. 

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Workforce Development

Sure We Can (SWC) is a nonprofit recycling center, community space, and sustainability hub in Brooklyn, New York where canners – people who collect cans and bottles from streets to make a living – come together with students and neighbors through recycling, composting, gardening, and arts. Founded by canners for canners, SWC addresses the economic, emotional, educational, and language barriers that limit canners’ full participation in society. New York City’s 1983 “Bottle Bill” allows people to generate a modest income by collecting and redeeming discarded cans and bottles. Canning is physically demanding, logistically complex, and often emotionally demeaning, yet for many non-English speaking immigrants and unhoused neighbors, it is the only available source of income. SWC helps canners make a living by redeeming returnable cans and paying these New Yorkers the full $0.05 refund per container, as required by law, and up to 20-25% added value for sorted containers, which is not required by law. In addition, SWC’s gardening, composting, and art initiatives facilitate civic engagement and spur economic growth by creating opportunities for canners and community members to gather. When canners deposit cans and bottles at SWC, the nonprofit pays them immediately. However, SWC occasionally experiences reimbursement delays from distributors, causing cash flow challenges for operations. Financed through NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will help SWC smooth over this cash flow issue, ensuring that it has enough money available to pay rent, staff salaries, and compensate the canners who need that money most. As SWC continues to grow with more than 400 canners now in its community – and millions of cans and bottles recovered each year – it will promote social inclusion, environmental awareness, and economic empowerment.
Mandela Partners was established in West Oakland to fill a gap in access to healthy food, good jobs, and ownership opportunities that was created through deeply rooted inequities – legacies of redlining and economic disinvestment and long-standing barriers to opportunities for entrepreneurs. They do this by weaving together several areas of work: sourcing from sustainable family farmers, creating accessible and affordable healthy food access points, supporting local food business creation and expansion, and increasing capital for BIPOC entrepreneurs. They envision a future where small sustainable farmers are invested in, local food enterprises are central to community wealth building, and residents are thriving. In looking toward future opportunities to better serve local entrepreneurs and community residents in a post-COVID-19 environment, Mandela Partners developed plans for a community kitchen that would increase the production capacity of current vendors and local food business owners, allow for test kitchen and hands-on workshop opportunities for burgeoning food entrepreneurs, and provide much-needed space for community-building events. Financed through NFF's zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will be used for renovations and kitchen equipment for the new space – investments that will support Bay Area food entrepreneurs and thriving communities.
The mission of Latino Leadership Institute (LLI) is to honor the heritage of leadership, advance Latino professionals to positions of influence, and prepare organizations to innovate for the workplace of tomorrow. LLI provides relevant, innovative, and results-driven Leadership and Inclusion Training to develop more effective leaders, cultivate inclusive teams, and improve innovation. LLI also offers DEI training to companies, organizes six-month fellowships for cohorts of Latino leaders, and convenes Latino professionals at community events.  Established in 2014 under the University of Denver, LLI recently spun off into a fully independent nonprofit. This loan will ensure that LLI has a runway of funding in its first few months as a new organization to build out the infrastructure it needs to scale its programs to more individuals and businesses.  
WorkLife Partnership is a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating socially sustainable communities and thriving workplaces in Colorado. Through partnership with employers, the organization provides direct services and training to employees to help them overcome barriers – programs like access to affordable childcare, budgeting and financial planning, rental and utility assistance, and mental health support. By directly responding to the individual challenges their clients face, WorkLife can help them build strong, sustainable careers. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, WorkLife launched its Small Dollar Loans Program in March 2020 to provide employees of corporate clients with safe and affordable loans for emergency expenses. This loan will allow WorkLife to expand this program, ensuring that even more of the people they support can access cash when they need it at rates they can afford.

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Youth Development

The mission of Philadelphia Police Athletic League (Philly PAL) is to help reduce crime in Philadelphia neighborhoods by providing free after-school and summer classes for thousands of youth ages 6-18. A civilian-led, community-based organization, Philly PAL offers sports and educational programming that some children might not have access to otherwise. They do this by working with Philadelphia police officers and civilians to facilitate sports and other youth programs across 17 centers. Philly PAL has documented a strong correlation between youth involvement in these programs and reduced youth involvement with the criminal justice system. Philly Pal promotes healthy, thriving communities across Philadelphia by encouraging involvement in local community programs. Offered through NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this financing will help the organization maintain a healthy cash flow and support the ongoing maintenance of neighborhood PAL centers. With support from this loan, Philly PAL will have the working capital it needs to invest in the community centers and programs that create opportunities for thousands of young people in Philadelphia each year. As they grow, Philly PAL will be able to cultivate more environments for youth to play and thrive.
Brooklyn-based Flex Dance Program partners with renowned dancers in the community who provide free dance sessions for incarcerated youth. By creating and fostering an environment of creative self-expression, FDP provides opportunities for youth to develop their self-esteem and further their artistic expression through the healing world of dance.  As they grow, FDP is looking for ways to continue providing sustainable youth programming and compensate staff for their time. However, FDP has experienced delays in government and private funding that the pandemic has exacerbated – hampering their ability to serve more of the young people who depend on their programs as creative outlets. Financed through NFF’s CARE Fund, which offers 0% interest loans to community-centered nonprofits led by people of color, this loan will bridge these cash flow issues and provide FDP with money they need to pay their staff and curate creative spaces of growth and self-expression.  Learn more about NFF’s loan products on the financing page of our website.
Youth Empowerment For Advancement Hangout (YEAH) is a Black-led, community-based nonprofit that works with young people in West and Southwest Philadelphia who have been impacted by violence. YEAH’s mission is to create safe and authentic hangout spaces by providing culturally relevant engagement and implementing teen-led interventions that address the root causes of violence. By acknowledging teens as the experts in their own lives, YEAH works to interrupt the cycle of youth violence through engaging youth as leaders in resolving conflict, building community, and promoting economic opportunities. Since YEAH’s programs have grown significantly in a brief amount of time, they need to hire more staff. Offered through NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will allow YEAH to make necessary hires while it awaits expected grant funding – ensuring that the organization can grow sustainably and serve even more young people with its programs. With support from this financing, YEAH can continue engaging Black teens as leaders capable of building safer communities.
Sanctuary of Hope (SOH)’s mission is to provide a caring and multi-cultural approach to services that will help young people become self-sufficient and lead prosperous lives. This Black-led, community-based organization incorporates trauma-informed care into its model by creating an environment where long-term relationships with youth can flourish. With 100% of SOH’s clients qualifying as low-income, SOH addresses intergenerational poverty by promoting the value of higher education and housing stabilization to youth ages 16-25 who are child welfare or juvenile justice-involved, or who are experiencing housing and economic insecurity. SOH’s youth programs include short-term housing, academic counseling, and peer mentorship. While SOH has multiple funding sources, it is experiencing delays in payments of government grants and contracts. This bridge loan will help to cover delays in contract payments and reimbursements while SOH waits for that funding to arrive. Smoothing over this cash flow issue will help them maintain and grow programs that build models of self-reliance for youth and young adults.
Six words: keep youth out of jail for life. That’s the mission of Urban Youth Alliance, a faith- and youth-based organization in the heart of New York City. The organization’s late founder, Rev. Faith Brown, believed that love never fails – including for those of us in gangs or struggling with drug addiction. So in 1970 she founded Urban Youth Alliance to reach out to and support the people in our communities who many turn their backs on. Today, the organization achieves their mission through a multi-pronged approach: prevention, through conflict resolution workshops and employment programs; intervention, through programs that work with courts to offer alternatives to detention and incarcerations; re-entry, through dedicated case management and employment opportunities for returning youth; and youth-led community organizing and advocacy around criminal justice issues.   Urban Youth Alliance receives much of its funding from contracts with the City of New York. However, like many government agencies, New York City agencies pay nonprofits after work is conducted, not before – and COVID-19 exacerbated delays in these payments that already existed. Supported by the Trinity Church Wall Street Grantee Loan Fund, this financing will bridge some of these delayed payments, ensuring that Urban Youth Alliance can continue to run its critical programs until government funding comes through. With more sustained, reliable funding, Urban Youth Alliance can hire more staff, expand its programs, and keep more young people from entering the criminal justice system.  
$50,000 working capital loan The Thinkubator is an innovation and workforce development organization that works primarily with young people in the Bronx. They approach their work with a racial and economic equity lens through three major areas: education, research, and community. Through these programs, the Thinkubator prepares young people to succeed in the workplace and the world, tackle issues that inhibit community growth, development, and productivity, and develop the research and analytical skills to explore policy solutions to complex challenges. The Thinkubator was founded in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. After their first full year of operations, they are exploring how to leverage the significant momentum they have built by investing in revenue generation that will support their long-term sustainability. Currently, the Thinkubator’s CEO does most of the organization’s fundraising; hiring a full-time employee focused on development will allow the organization to deepen its existing relationships with funders and explore new fundraising relationships while freeing up the CEO to focus on other responsibilities. Offered through NFF’s zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will provide the Thinkubator with the resources it needs to pursue this hire – ensuring that this new organization and the services it provides to Bronx youth will be around for years to come.
Seeing Our Adolescents Rise (SOAR) connects middle and high school students with advisors, tutors, and community partners who help them define and achieve their goals. The activities they provide – mentorship, educational support, field trips, and community service opportunities – offer young people hands-on learning environments where they can work on their academics, explore new activities, and build life skills. SOAR primarily is funded by fee-for-service contracts from the City of Denver. This means that they are only paid after providing services to Denver youth, creating persistent cash flow constraints that the organization would like to overcome. This working capital loan will smooth over these cash flow issues, ensuring that SOAR has access to the financing it needs at any point in the year. With consistent access to cash, SOAR can focus more of its efforts on running successful programs for Denver area youth – and on planning for the future.
Casita Maria was established in 1934 as the first charitable organization dedicated to Latinx residents of New York City. Headquartered in the South Bronx, the organization provides cultural, art, and educational services to predominately Latino youth and families in the Hunts Point neighborhood. In addition, Casita Maria operates a state of the art cultural center that includes performance spaces, an exhibition gallery, dance and music studios, and a middle and high school. Every day, more than 1,000 students come through the organization's doors to learn, explore and develop their talents, and establish a lifelong love for the arts. All of these students come from low-income families whose access to arts programs has been restricted; the vast majority identify as Black or Latinx.  Casita Maria relies on contracts with New York City and New York State for a large portion of its funding. However, these contracts are frequently delayed – even more so since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Financed through NFF's zero-interest CARE Fund, this loan will provide Casita Maria with the working capital it needs to continue paying its staff and offering its extensive array of programs for young people. Since many schools went remote in March 2020, young people have struggled to access opportunities to connect with the arts and build social and emotional skills; we're proud to invest in Casita Maria’s efforts to support their students' creativity. 
Kings Against Violence Initiative (KAVI) works to prevent and eliminate interpersonal violence from the lives of young people through advocacy, peer leadership, community mobilization, and social justice. Recognizing that violence is an endemic public health issue among Central Brooklyn Youth, KAVI operates a range of violence intervention programs in school and hospital settings, including trauma recovery for families who have suffered through violence and trainings for young people on restorative justice and trauma-informed care.   In response to rising violence in the communities where it works, KAVI would like to bring on additional staff and peer facilitators to grow its programs. However, delays in payment from several of the organization's main funders are impeding KAVI's ability to plan this expansion. Offered through the Trinity Church Grantee Loan Fund, this no-interest loan will allow KAVI to bring on the staff it needs to at least double its operational budget, vastly expanding the number of young people it can reach through its violence prevention programming.  
Soul Shoppe helps kids have healthy relationships at school and at home by teaching them tools to self-regulate, support friends, and resolve conflict. In the organization's workshops and assemblies, Soul Shoppe facilitators create safe environments for students to talk about real problems they are facing. The organization uses a research-based, experiential learning model rooted in early childhood development practices that create a sustained climate of safety. After adopting a hybrid in-person/virtual model due to COVID-19, Soul Shoppe created a train-the-trainers program for school staff so that they can continue conflict resolution practices when Soul Shoppe staff cannot be physically present in schools. Financed through NFF’s CARE Fund, which offers 0% interest loans to community-centered nonprofits led by people of color, this loan will ensure that Soul Shoppe can launch its new train-the-trainers program and continue other work while it awaits repayment from school districts.

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Based in Boulder, CO, Women’s Wilderness is one of the only nonprofits in the world that provides direct outdoor experiences with a gender lens. They offer a variety of programs including backpacking, camping, canoeing, climbing, hiking, nature immersion, and rafting. They also have dedicated programs for people of color, LGBTQI+ individuals, and girls who have recently migrated to or claimed refugee status in the United States.  Women's Wilderness requested a $60,000 loan through the Metro Denver Nonprofit Loan Fund to finance a fleet of three vans. While COVID-19 is still a threat in the United States, these vans will allow the organization to maintain its current program capacity while still maintaining social distancing between participants. In the future, these vans will allow Women's Wilderness to increase the amount of women, girls, and LGBTQI+ people it serves with its outdoor programming. 

The YMCA of Memphis & the Mid-South works to strengthen community to make sure everyone has the opportunity to learn, grow, and thrive. In addition to its primary focus on youth development and healthy living for residents of all ages, the YMCA has also played an important role in the local COVID-19 response, providing school meals and childcare for essential workers. NFF’s $11 million NMTC investment and $1.5 million loan will support the construction of a new community center that will offer fitness amenities, after-school programs, and health and wellness activities.

Downtown Community Television Center (DCTV) is a nonprofit independent media arts center in New York City. Founded in 1972, it fosters diverse viewpoints and creates positive social change by providing professional training, state-of-the-industry resources, and by creating and exhibiting thought-provoking, impactful documentary films. DCTV is building a new, 74-seat public cinema devoted exclusively to documentary film screenings. Located on the building’s ground floor, the cinema will serve as an expansion of the existing DCTV Presents programming, where the organization hosts screening events that engage audiences in documentary films about important social issues. NFF provided a $1-million bridge loan and a $1.1-million construction loan toward the $5.2-million project.

Partner: LISC

YMCA of Metro Atlanta is building a new center in the Grove Park neighborhood, Woodson Park YMCA. The 18,545-square-foot YMCA facility will provide programming for 150 children annually with group exercise classes, and after school programming, including a STEAM curriculum and day camps. It will also create 65-90 accredited Head Start seats;feature a Federally Qualified Health Center that will provide primary care services on a sliding fee scale based on a patient’s ability to pay; additional space for general health and community planning; and 18 new jobs for the community. NFF provided $9-million in NMTC allocation for the $11-million facility.

Partners: SunTrust Bank, Atlanta Public Schools, and The Grove Park Foundation.

Finger Lakes ReUse prioritizes the maximum reuse of building materials, electronics, household goods, appliances, and furniture through a community-oriented warehouse, shopping, and educational center. These items are used to create living wage jobs and support mentorship opportunities. NFF provided a loan to help Finger Lake ReUse refinance an existing mortgage on one of its properties.

Co-investor: Alternatives Federal Credit Union

Community Connections for Youth (CCFY) brings together grassroots faith and neighborhood organizations to develop community-driven alternatives to incarceration for youth in the Bronx, using an approach that is restorative and strengths-based and that links young people, their communities, and their families in the juvenile justice reform process. In 2017, CCFY was awarded a 5-year, $10.3-million contract from the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, through the Criminal Justice Investment Initiative, to operate a “Youth Opportunity Hub” in Harlem. The hub gathers community-based organizations under one roof to provide a range of resources, services, and activities to support youth who have been involved or are at risk of involvement with the justice system. NFF’s $1-million line of credit will be used to prevent cash shortages as CCFY awaits reimbursement for this work and payments from other government contracts.

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