As the community quarterback organization of Renaissance Heights United (RHU), Renaissance Heights Foundation (RHF) is requesting help secure a $100,000 matching investment by December 31, 2023. The match has been pledged by Fort Worth Mason Heights for operational support and capacity building. We currently have slightly over $60,000 in pledged investments.
RHU represents a bold collaboration and a holistic approach to neighborhood redevelopment. To date, over $250 million has been invested into infrastructure with another $100+ million of planned development. Our work has focused on affordable housing options, a cradle-to-career education pipeline, and robust community health and wellness programs. Our goal is to provide economic empowerment opportunities while promoting the ideals of equity, improved health for youth and families, and upward mobility channels. Your investment will allow RHF to continue to build capacity to fully implement the master infrastructure development plan and to better engage the community and provide the resources and support they need to thrive.
Our success depends on a strong “quarterback” organization, Renaissance Heights Foundation, to work with and coordinate the collective efforts of our partners which include: Purpose Built Communities, Columbia Residential, Housing Channel, YMCA of Metropolitan Fort Worth, Cook Children’s, ACH Child and Family Services, Uplift Education, Childcare Associates Early Learning and Texas Wesleyan University. These partners provide the comprehensive housing, health, wellness, and educational needs to the residents of our community. The proximity to these resources reinforces the foundation’s commitment to community well-being and strengthens the vision for a thriving, connected neighborhood.
To empower Renaissance Heights residents by identifying and eliminating barriers to well-being and success through community partnership.
We work to align partners and resources from all sectors—including neighborhood residents—and set strategy for the overall effort based on the community’s vision. RHF works with our partners to encourage collaboration, establish shared metrics, and bring together knowledgeable allies and financial resources – for the benefit of neighborhood residents.
There are three primary areas that RHU will focus on during the next twelve months:
1. Establishing increased, formal efforts to engage residents and encourage a sense of community. The roots of poor health and poverty are complex. A siloed approach is inefficient and ineffective. To be successful, work must intentionally engage multiple sectors to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals, families, and communities. This will involve (1) forging new partnerships across sectors, (2) coordinating sectors (e.g., education, employment, housing, transportation, and health care) that influence improvements in health, prosperity, and equitable opportunity, (3) including members of the community as partners in cross-sector coalitions, and (4) leveraging public and private resources and existing community assets.
2. Coordinating the enhancements to Happy Park. Happy Park is an important community asset that serves as a link between multi-family residences, the senior residences and the single-family residences. Happy Park needs improvements to create a gathering place, centrally located in Renaissance Heights, that will improve quality of life by bringing people together and creating a sense of belonging in the community. Examples of specific enhancements include (1) playground equipment that will help kids develop sensory, motor, cognitive, strength, social/emotional, (2) a flexible lawn space for community events (i.e., movie night, yoga, yard games, etc.), (3) picnic and/or grill facilities, (4) exercise stations along the eastern sidewalks especially designed for Seniors, and (5) a dedicated walking/bicycle path which connects Happy Park with Cobb Park and encourages traffic between the two parks.
3. Deploy a Neighborhood Bike Shop-in-a-Box. The BSB model is now tried and true., and is a fully-contained, City of Fort Worth permitted, bike shop for free bike repairs, free bikes, and free bike helmets for the Beautiful Citizens of Fort Worth. The BSB is a "by the community, for the community" model, where volunteers are from the neighborhood. Renaissance Heights Foundation & Bike Gangs of Fort Worth is committed to making Renaissance Heights the most bike-friendly, community in Southeast Fort Worth by removing affordability and place barriers that keep individuals and families from access to bikes and good repair, whether for health, family fun, neighborhood access, or primary transportation. Our partnership, The Neighborhood Bike Shop-in-a-Box is a model that is delivering on this commitment.
Racial equity, health outcomes, and economic mobility are central to our approach and that of our Network.
Tackling such complex, deeply-rooted issues as intergenerational poverty, unsafe environments, high crime, and failing schools presents many challenges. Our solution—and the basis for the Purpose Built Communities model—is a coordinated holistic approach based on quality and focused on sustainability.
Organization name
Renaissance Heights Foundation
other names
Renaissance Heights United (RHU)
Causes
Economic/Financial Security/Poverty, Community Improvement, Housing, Shelter & Homelessness
Operating Budget
$100,000 - $249,999
Counties Served
Tarrant
BIPOC Serving
Black or African American, Hispanic or Latinx
BIPOC Leadership
Both the Executive Director/CEO and Board Chair
Equity Statement
Equity Statement
Address
2701 MORESBY ST