FEATURED
Read about The Spirit of Silver Spring in the Voice
Neighbors Campaign featured in the Gazette
Neighbors Campaign featured on Channel 8 News
Neil Pierce on The Neighbors Campaign
IMPACT Silver Spring was listed as one of the top non-profits in Suburban Maryland by the Washington Business
Journal
IMPACT Silver Spring was featured in the December issue of The Washingtonian
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2009
IMPACT Awards
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Pioneer Award
Mixed Unity
Abdul Muslim,
Emmanuel Pena,
Fernando Rivere,
Hawa Toure,
Herson Bautista,
Jennifer Williams,
Jessica Zavala,
Juan Hinojosa,
Logan Talbott,
Mitchell Lazaro,
Sandrine Emambu,
Shade Ogunfowora,
Tony Nguyen,
Yeimy Portillo
Neighborhood IMPACT
Amanuel Asefaw,
Mohamed Benfadil,
Lillian Buie,
Kathy Chavis,
Massiel Cruz,
Antonio DuVaul,
Annie Lee,
Susan Leitch,
Carolyn Manhart,
Navid Nasr,
Vanessa Pinto,
Ana Puentes,
David Robinson,
Douglas Scott,
Kerrin Torres,
Lesly Villatoro,
Kyja Wilburn
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Explorer Award
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Health and Human Services Neighborhood Safety Net Team
Uma Ahluwalia,
Betty Lam,
Joanne Barnes,
Felicia Turner,
Sue Gordon
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Builder Award
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Parent Educators
Ana Alvarado,
Maria Chevez, Assegedech Demeke,
Ruth Guzman,
Negatua Hailemariam,
Zoveyda Hermoza,
Yordanos Negash,
Gloria Portillo,
Maria Rodriguez,
Anabel Sosa,
Min Cai,
Allison Green,
Jennifer Myers,
Damaris Encanacion,
Liza Moreno,
Grace Ameyaw,
Renee Luker
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The Spirit of Silver Spring
On Saturday, May 30th,
several thousand community members and local business, political and community
leaders came out to Ellsworth
Drive to celebrate neighbors helping neighbors at the annual Spirit of Silver Spring. Entertainment included young Korean percussionists
performing traditional drumming, salsa
and merengue lessons, an 80's rock cover band, and Batala, a
Brazilian, all-women percussion group who lead a procession of drums
down Ellsworth Drive,
drawing crowds of people out of stores and restaurants to the main stage where
banners were waving for the 2009 IMPACT Award Recipients.
Frankie Blackburn, County Executive Ike Leggett, and County
Councilmember Valerie Irvin spoke up to thank and honor the community for its
resilience and for demonstrating a spirit of mutual support during these hard economic times. The event highlighted The Neighbors
Campaign, a unique partnership between county government and nonprofit partners spearheaded by IMPACT Silver Spring to help
connect residents in need with emergency direct services.
The event also provided a chance to honor winners of the IMPACT Awards,
including Mixed Unity, a group of teens who organized this past winter for positive action
and to speak out against violence in the community; the 2009 graduates of
Neighborhood IMPACT, a nine month leadership development program for rental
community residents; Montgomery County's Health and Human Services Department
lead by Director Uma Ahluwahlia , for their innovative approach to reaching out
to diverse neighborhoods in need of emergency services; and IMPACT Silver
Spring's Parent Educators, a partnership of immigrant parents and Montgomery County
Public School teachers and para-educators who joined together to help run an
after-school literacy and math program.
Special thanks to sponsors of the Neighbors Campaign: Downtown Silver Spring, The Montgomery County Government, Washington Adventist Hospital, The Montgomery County Community Foundation, The Gazette, The Silver Spring Voice, The Apartment and Office Building Association of Metropolitan Washington, Holy Cross Hospital, Pepco, and Family and Nursing Care.
To view photos from the event taken by Marnie Brown, click here.
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IMPACT Program Graduation
2009 IMPACT Program Graduates, friends and family gathered on Thursday, May 28th, to celebrate and honor this year's graduates of IMPACT's leadership development and training programs.
During
the graduation, attendees enjoyed a performance by Liz Lerman Dance
Exchange as well as a children's group performing traditional
Salvadorian dance.
The Neighborhood IMPACT Leadership Development program trained renters and community workers to
take collaborative action to make positive changes in their communities. This year's Neighborhood IMPACT had 16 members who met over a period of nine months and engaged in action teams to take steps toward these changes.
Some of the projects these graduates took on included creating support systems for rental communities, facilitating art classes for resident children, planning a fashion show for seniors, the renovation of a formerly unsafe bus stop, hosting a series of Neighbor Circle meetings, establishing a homework club, engaging neighbors in a physical fitness program, partnering Maryland National Capital Park Police with the Montgomery County Department of Recreation, improving recycling practices, and reviving an inactive Parent Teacher Association.
The Parent Educator Program focused on the parents of our communities,
helping them gain the skills necessary to help not only their own children,
but all children succeed academically.
This program was offered through a partnership with five elementary schools in Silver Spring where the eleven Parent Educators were trained to work for the Partners in Learning program, the Commonweal Foundation's after-school literacy and math teacher program. Here, the Parent Educators developed skills to advance student learning while building their individual and group leadership capacity. The program also focused on workforce development for all participants.
Special thanks to First Baptist Church for providing the space, and congratulations to our graduates!
To view photos from the graduation by Marnie Brown, click here.
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