Stories of hope + resilience - NH Charitable Foundation

By Lois R. Shea, Senior Writer and Communications Officer | December 11, 2020

The latest issue of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation’s Purpose newsletter — which showcases the heroic work of New Hampshire’s nonprofit sector during extraordinary times — is available online, with hard copies arriving in mailboxes soon.

In our cover story, we meet the farmers of Fresh Start Farms, a project of the Organization for Immigrant and Refugee Success, who are helping to feed our communities: Growing fresh, healthy produce and finding ways to get it to people who especially need it — including elders and struggling families.

Download and read the full PDF version of Purpose where you will also find stories about:

New Hampshire nonprofits’ heroic response to the COVID pandemic,
How the YWCA has been working to eliminate racism and empower women for a century,
How generous people are responding to help communities in need,
New Hampshire’s first Spanish-language news service,

And so much more.

Thanks for reading.

Read Purpose Fall/Winter 2020 (PDF)

Community Impact News, COVID-19 Response, Statewide

We were so excited to welcome more than 500 people to five community events this fall to celebrate “A New Hampshire for All.” New connections were made, new ideas and collaborations sparked, old connections rekindled. We are grateful to everyone who joined us. See below for photos, videos and links to transcripts of the remarks of our guest speakers.

Mindy Cambiar, executive director of Hundred Nights. (Photo by Cheryl Senter.)

Leading with respect, dignity and compassion for people experiencing homelessness

Our greatest challenge continues to be reducing the stigma about people experiencing homelessness. People become homeless for many reasons such as a lack of affordable housing, mental illness, substance abuse disorders, catastrophic illness, natural disasters, unemployment, or working low-wage jobs. They are individuals of all ages, colors, and abilities. They are all human beings, worthy of respect, dignity, and compassion.

Phil Wyzik, CEO of Mondanock Family Services. (Photo by Cheryl Senter.)

Advancing mental health care to strengthen community

A community mental health center is a private not-for-profit with a public mission. We provide a core array of services to the general public — like emergency crisis services — and the treatments and programs that kids or adults need should they have a disabling mental health condition. We do things that no other healthcare provider can do.

Gene Martin, executive director at the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute. (Photo by Cheryl Senter.)

Data and research to inform, make a difference

As the executive director of the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute — a nonpartisan, independent policy research nonprofit organization — and a father to two young children, I spend a considerable amount of my professional and personal life thinking about how decisions made in Concord affect lives in communities across this state.

Yasamin Safarzadeh of Kimball Jenkins. (Photo by Cheryl Senter.)

Thriving through mentorship and the arts

Kimball Jenkins is a community arts center which utilizes the tools of the creative economy to foster healing and growth for New Hampshire in order to secure a more inclusive and fulfilling future for our peoples. We are redefining what the arts can truly do for our neighborhoods.

Tanisha Johnson of Community Action Partnership of Strafford County (right) with Sandeep Bikram Shah, senior program officer (left). (Photo by Cheryl Senter.)

Address individual needs – and build systemic equity

When I was asked to come and chat about what it looks like for New Hampshire to be a New Hampshire for all, where everyone belongs, I was excited because if you know me, you will know I have a lot to say on that topic — because we are not there just yet.

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