Nonprofits are a vital part of the Chattanooga community — they’re the glue that holds so many parts of our lives together. From feeding hungry children and empowering minorities to fostering a more artistic lifestyle, nonprofits do the work to make living more comfortable, more rich with opportunity.
Donating and/or listening to leaders + members of local nonprofits is a great way to enrich lives and put your focus back on the community.
Our intern Brianna did great research into what some local nonprofits are doing right now.
Check them out, and if you’re able, donate money or time to the cause(s) of your choice. 👇
ArtsBuild
Mission: ArtsBuild seeks to strengthen Chattanooga’s community through the arts. They invest in arts organizations, arts programs + art education. ArtsBuild works on this mission through grant-making, education initiatives, and advocacy.
Current Operations: In the midst of the pandemic, ArtsBuild is meeting via Zoom three times a week and has continued working to support the arts by assisting local artists. They recently created an Artist Emergency Fund to help self-employed artists in the area who are struggling due to COVID-19.
Quote from President James McKissic: “More than anything, though, we are motivated and inspired by the incredible work that the local arts sector is doing to support people and communities through the pandemic.”
Bridge Refugee Services
Mission: Their goal is to provide opportunities for refugees to rebuild their lives after suffering persecution so that they can become productive + contributing members of the community.
Current operations: Bridge is continuing essential operations, but their offices are currently closed to walk-ins and donations can be made in-person by appointment only. You can still donate online and via postal mail. Volunteer assistance is limited.
Quote from Associate Director Marina Peshterianu: “Bridge continues to support, educate and empower refugees who call Chattanooga their home. This population is no stranger to adversity, so our goal is to provide them with the right tools and resources to overcome these new challenges. We support them and they inspire us!”
Girls Inc.
Mission: Girls Inc. has a mission to inspire, prepare, and empower girls to be “strong, smart and bold” leaders in their communities. Girls Inc. has served over 28,000 Chattanooga girls with school, after-school, and seasonal camps. The nonprofit also advocates for legislation + policies to increase opportunities and rights for girls.
Current Operations: When things began slowing down due to the pandemic, Girls Inc. made their Spring Break camp virtual via Zoom and Facebook. Currently, Girls Inc. is providing a bi-weekly virtual series for girls in the community that includes activities like cooking classes from the Junior League, read alongs with TVA, and a mental health series. They have also provided self-help kits with essential + nonessential items to families in the community.
Quote from Chief Development Officer Cindy Rix: “Girls Inc. recognizes the need for the girls in our community now more than ever. As a result of the pandemic, the social distancing and homeschooling, the youth in our community are going to need us now more than ever.”
GreenSpaces
Mission: GreenSpaces works toward advancing the sustainable living, working, and building in Chattanooga. GreenSpaces offers educational and technical classes, public outreach campaigns, and works with businesses + builders to encourage and help with greater sustainability.
Current Operations: GreenSpaces has altered its services to host all regular events via Facebook rather than in-person. They are also reaching residents without access to the internet via methods such as USPS mail and are working with Southface to provide matching funding for energy efficiency improvements at other local nonprofits in order to lower their operating expenses. GreenSpaces is working to release an Integrated Community Sustainability Plan to improve the resilience of the community and address challenges in energy, water, mobility, ecosystems, + material waste.
Quote from Executive Director Michael Walton: “GreenSpaces is committed to providing uninterrupted services and programming to our residents, just as we were prior to COVID19. While our methods have had to change, our belief that sustainable practices benefit everyone involved has not.”
La Paz Chattanooga
Mission: La Paz seeks to make Chattanooga a more inclusive city by empowering and encouraging the city’s Latinx population.
Current Operations: Since the beginning of the pandemic, La Paz has been working to advocate + provide information and resources for the Latinx community. In partnership with the United Way of Greater Chattanooga’s Restore Hope Fund and the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga’s Community Response and Resilience Fund, La Paz has also assisted over 140 families with pandemic relief funds. The nonprofit has also partnered with other organizations to provide testing, created the LatinX Relief Fund to help support vulnerable community members impacted by the tornado and pandemic, and provided interpretation support for 13 Hamilton County media conferences during this time.
Quote from Executive Director Stacy Johnson: “During the last nine weeks, the La Paz Chattanooga team has been working around the clock to ensure that Latinx families in Chattanooga and Hamilton County are informed and have access to the resources they need to cope with this crisis.”
United Way of Greater Chattanooga
Mission: United Way of Greater Chattanooga focuses on empowering individuals, families + community partners to improve education, stability and health systems in local neighborhoods. They work to solve the Chattanooga community’s most difficult problems together.
Current Operations: United Way has created a Restore Hope Fund to support the community’s responses and efforts during COVID-19. The fund is going towards helping individuals + households that are experiencing a loss in wages or other difficulties during this difficult time. United Way has also created a community task force of 100+ individuals and organizations who meet twice a week to coordinate efforts in response to COVID-19 and our community.
Quote from Vice President of Communications Chair Stephen Van Gorp: “Moving forward, we will be doubling-down our cross-sector efforts to develop solutions to the present and future issues that this crisis is causing for our community.”
Urban League of Greater Chattanooga
Mission:The mission of the Urban League is to enable African-Americans, other minorities, and disadvantaged individuals to secure economic self-reliance, parity, power, and civil rights. The local chapter is an affiliate of the National Urban League.
Current operations: While the facility is still closed to the public, there are a lot of virtual offerings available, like STEAM Summer Camp, which is free. They also offer free tax-filing, educational services, health programs, and workforce development. They are also calling on community leaders to help them in their fight for racial equality.
Quote from the Urban League of Greater Chattanooga: “During this time of civil unrest, it is our shared responsibility to engage in uncomfortable conversations that unite and bring us forward. We must reset our culture and way of thinking. Accomplishing this begins at the community level. We are calling on our community leaders, elected officials, corporate leaders and social institutions to join us in pursuing racial reconciliation. We must use this opportunity to listen, learn and grow together to make Chattanooga what it has the potential to be.”
Women’s Fund of Greater Chattanooga
Mission: The Women’s Fund of Greater Chattanooga’s mission is to enact social change that improves the lives of women and girls in the region. Located in one of the worst states for women (Tennessee is ranked 49 out of 50), the Women’s Fund hopes to change that number “from 49 to one” through advocacy, philanthropy, voices + collaboration.
Current Operations: Typically, the Women’s Fund would be wrapping up their time in Nashville for their busy legislative advocacy season at this time. The group has been working with the Tennessee Women’s Fund Alliance to assess needs and create ways to meet those needs collaboratively, and has also been working with the Women’s Funding Network to share a digital campaign designed to help victims of domestic violence reach out at this time. They also just recently launched their 2020 Nightingale Network Grant Cycle, which supports Chattanooga nonprofits that serve women + girls.
Quote from Director of Research and Policy Jeannine Carpenter: “Even with these changing times, our mission to use advocacy and philanthropy in pursuit of equity for women hasn’t changed — in fact, our community has witnessed first-hand why the issues that the Women’s Fund advocates for each year are so important to families and economic stability.”