REBUILDING THE VILLAGE INC.
HISTORY
TIMELINE
On Saturday March 19, 2016 Patrick Johnson and community leaders in the African American community in Utica convened a meeting of the African American and Latino communities to discuss issues of concern throughout the community and to foster unity and better understanding and communications. The meeting was held at the Edward Hanna Recreational Center on Memorial Parkway and it was attended by approximately fifty people of all walks of life in the Black and Brown community.
The meeting was time consuming, but very productive because each attendee was given three to four minutes to address their most pressing concerns about the quality of life for residents in our communities. Of course, there were myriad problems addressed but the most frequent concern was the lack of a strategically located community center to provide youth services, senior services and respond to the many other needs of the community.
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Subsequent to the March 2016 meeting there were several other meetings held throughout the year. Committees were formed to address the poverty and social, economic, health and educational racial disparities in the city of Utica. Thus “Rebuilding the Village” was born.
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Rebuilding the Village began operating as an entity in 2016 with a core of volunteers. The Oneida Square Project at the Corner Stone Community Church under the leadership of Reverend Mike Ballman acted as our fiscal conduit pending the organization receiving its own 501c3 status.
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Rebuilding the Village, Inc. was incorporated as a Not-for-Profit Corporation in October of 2017 and received it federal 501c3 status in June of 2018.
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While continuing to organize, work to provide vital services, and empower our community we also continue to work towards our goal of building an African America community center to be located in the Cornhill community in Utica.
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We are very grateful for the support that we’ve received, and continue to receive, from our allies; people of good will throughout the Mohawk Valley and beyond. We couldn’t have made it this far without their generous support.