Holiday giving, celebrating service, and ways to support Rising Ground’s work are featured in our December newsletter.

Read the full enewsletter online here.

Thanksgiving turkeys taking flight, preparing runaway and homeless young people for winter, and our holiday gift drive can be found in our November newsletter.

Read the full enewsletter online here.

Help Us Make the Holidays Brighter for Children & Families!

Our annual Holiday Gift Drive is in full swing! This drive is our biggest of the year and has an enormous impact on the children, young people, and families Rising Ground supports. For many, the toy or gift card they receive from Rising Ground is their only gift.

Providing toys to families with young children eases some of the financial burden the holidays places on them and this year the need is greater than ever. We aim to provide holiday cheer to over 3,500 children and youths. 

How to Help

You can contribute by purchasing toys and gift cards from our Amazon Wish-List. This list includes pre-selected appropriate gifts for different age groups.

We also accept toys purchased independently of the Amazon list.  If you have any questions about this year’s Holiday Gift Drive – including guidelines for what age groups we are buying toys for and what is appropriate – or know or companies or organizations that may wish to donate, please contact Sharon Pyle by email at SPyle@RisingGround.org or by phone at 212-437-3551.

Together, we can make the holidays brighter for children, youth, and families supported by Rising Ground throughout the city!

Thank you!

OPEN Impact Real Estate, a woman-owned commercial real estate services company specializing in nonprofit and corporate impact organizations, is proud to announce that Rising Ground Inc. has signed a 15-year lease for 27,147 square feet at 111 Livingston Street, Brooklyn, NY.  The new lease comprises the entire 20^th floor and part of the 19^th floor, respectively, and represents a significant milestone in Rising Ground’s ongoing mission to support children, families and communities throughout the New York City area.

Rising Ground, an established human services organization, has chosen 111 Livingston as a new home for its multi-program Brooklyn hub, where it will continue its impactful work in a modern, efficiently designed space.  The move comes at a tenant-favorable time in the Brooklyn office market, allowing the organization to secure a custom-designed space without out-of-pocket costs for construction, thanks to the landlord’s full, turnkey installation.

Stephen Powers, Lindsay Ornstein, Alexander Smith and Kendall Elliott of OPEN represented the tenant, Rising Ground Inc., in the transaction; ownership was represented in-house.  111 Livingston has a 24/7 lobby attendant and an on-site cogeneration plant that provides its own electricity, ensuring both convenience and reliability.

Although the terms of the lease remain undisclosed, asking rents at the building are in the upper $40-per-square-foot range.  Rising Ground is set to occupy the new space starting in Spring 2025.

“This strategic relocation is the result of a comprehensive portfolio analysis, consolidating Rising Ground’s administration staff into a singular Manhattan location while transitioning its Brooklyn space into a purposefully designed environment that supports both existing and expanded programs,” said Smith. “111 Livingston ensures that Rising Ground can continue its critical work, with a professional space that remains highly accessible for staff and visitors.”

Rising Ground’s new Brooklyn hub at 111 Livingston will serve as an essential center for the organization’s family and youth support programs. The design will include both administrative offices and client-facing spaces, ensuring the facility meets the needs of the community in a bright, modern environment.

This lease is another step in Rising Ground’s long-term commitment to the Greater New York City area, following their recent expansion with a 30,000-square-foot administrative headquarters at 1333 Broadway, and plans to consolidate additional Bronx locations moving forward. Earlier this year, Rising Ground settled into renovated program offices in Harlem, increasing its capacity to support more workers in a welcoming environment. It also has an expansive Queens hub in Jamaica and retains a presence in Westchester County. Rising Ground’s hubs are among its 143 locations where it will deliver more than $213 million in human services this year.

“We are delighted to sign this new, long-term lease for 111 Livingston in downtown Brooklyn,” said Rising Ground Chief Operating Officer, Lissa Southerland. “Over the past year we have invested resources to strengthen our organization and our capacity to deliver the highest quality of services, and this new space will allow us to continue to help Brooklyn children, adults, and families rise above adversity and find positive paths forward. We are grateful to OPEN Impact Real Estate for understanding our needs and successfully securing spaces that fit our needs.”

IMAGES: To view and download high-resolution images of 111 Livingston, please click this link: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ahj51b0c9rjywyluoei63/111-Livingston-St-Brooklyn-NY-Primary-Photo-1-HighDefinition.jpg?rlkey=san3vw1nyt9juixxnuf763kky&st=kagbgzkp&dl=0

Stephen Powers headshot

Alex Smith headshot

Kendall Elliott headshot

OPEN Impact Real Estate (OPEN) is a certified woman-owned business that delivers a comprehensive range of commercial real estate brokerage and advisory services independently and in partnership with JLL.  As a woman-owned enterprise, OPEN is committed to delivering a comprehensive suite of services tailored to empower socially conscious, mission-driven organizations.  Renowned as the foremost expert in leveraging physical spaces as a catalyst for change and advancement, OPEN services a host of corporate clients and boasts the largest nonprofit practice in New York City, extending its impact across the United States.

In 2024, OPEN formed a partnership with leading commercial real estate and investment management company JLL.  OPEN Impact serves as JLL’s exclusive WBE partner in the Tri-State region and is a national WBE partner of the global real estate firm. For more information, please visit www.openregroup.com.

Our October newsletter features details on how you can help families this Thanksgiving and also help runaway and homeless youth stay warm this winter, and much more! 

Read the full enewsletter online here.

Help Our Neighbors Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

As we approach the season of gratitude, we are reminded of the importance of community and support. This Thanksgiving, Rising Ground is once again organizing a food drive to help NYC families in need and we would love your support.

With increasing food costs, many families will struggle to provide a festive meal. Our goal is to collect non-perishable food items, such as canned goods, pasta, rice, and holiday staples like stuffing and cranberry sauce. We also distribute frozen turkeys directly to families at community events in the Bronx, Queens, and Brooklyn.

We invite you to join us in spreading kindness and ensuring that everyone can enjoy a warm Thanksgiving meal. Here are ways you can contribute:

1. Organize a group/corporate food drive of non-perishable goods.

For more information about organizing a group or corporate food drive, or to donate bulk frozen turkeys (min. 20), please contact Sharon Pyle by email at SPyle@RisingGround.org or by phone at 212-437-3551. Rising Ground can arrange pick-up of your donated items.

View List of Food Items

2. Make a monetary donation.

Donations made through our website to the Thanksgiving Food Drive will be used to help us purchase necessary items, including additional frozen turkeys, to ensure we can help as many families as possible.

Together, we can make this Thanksgiving a time of abundance for all members of our community!

Empowering individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) to pursue their passions and achieve independence is at the core of Rising Ground’s mission. This summer, a new partnership between Rising Ground and the US Tennis Association saw five people who are part of our I/DD employment support program employed at the US Open.

As Senior Vice President for I/DD Services, Ryan Garofalo, says in the video linked below, this was a remarkable opportunity, and we congratulate Cesar, Emmanuel, Kasiem, Jiholys, and Quaiza on being part of this international sporting event that saw over 1 million visitors!

Read more at usopen.org.

When 25-year-old Chanel opens the refrigerator of the Bronx apartment she has lived in for the past year, she sees more than its contents. When she looks at the vegetables and meat products, she thinks about the guidance she has received on buying groceries and budgeting for food. As she assesses the use-by dates and checks her produce for signs of spoiling, she thinks about the food safety instruction she has been given as well as the general tenant safety information about window guards and smoke alarms. She also thinks about the time in the not-so-distant past when she did not have her own refrigerator or a home. She thinks about where she had been and how far she has come.

Chanel is supported by Rising Ground’s Rapid Re-housing program that helps young adults aged 18 to 24 quickly exit homelessness into permanent housing. Funded by the US Department of Housing Urban Development (HUD) and regulated by New York City’s Continuum of Care, Rapid Rehousing provides up to two years of rental assistance and support services that are tailored to the needs of each young person. Rising Ground receives referrals from the New York City’s Department of Youth and Community Development and Department of Homeless Services for young people who have either been in the city’s shelter system or living on the streets. Rising Ground is also a provider of HUD’s Youth Homelessness Demonstration Project (YHDP) that offers up to three years of rental assistance with the “homeless” definition expanded to include young people who have been couch surfing. Combined, the Rapid Re-Housing program and YHDP offer assistance to over 120 young people a year.

In a city with a notoriously difficult apartment market, Director Karim Lewis says the programs have established relationships with seven affordable housing companies and also private landlords, including roommate shares. Following an assessment on whether living alone or with a roommate is most suitable, a housing specialist helps the young person to evaluate and select an apartment and assist with the steps of signing a lease. Once housed, the young person receives support from a Case Manager and a Youth Peer Advocate (YPA). YPAs are professionally credited young people aged 30 and under who have experienced homelessness. They serve as a personal advocate for the young person as they transition from survival mode to stability, and provide emotional support.

“Often we assume it is very straightforward when someone gets housing – that they are going to be happy and that everything will be great. However, there are a lot of emotions that could come up when someone moves from homelessness to housing, even if it is something positive.”

Zaqanah Stephens and Onyx Walker are two of the YPAs at Rising Ground.

“Often we assume it is very straightforward when someone gets housing – that they are going to be happy and that everything will be great. However, there are a lot of emotions that could come up when someone moves from homelessness to housing, even if it is something positive,” says Zaqanah, who has been a YPA for three years. “Housing instability can create a lot of trauma that surfaces when moving and around housing in general. You could feel afraid to be happy or not feel safe to be happy because you’re not sure if it is something that will be taken away from you. I work with the youth to get comfortable in their space and to trust that they can be independent.”

Onyx, who has been a YPA for two years, agrees trusting that the support is solid and sustained takes time and that understanding the young person’s reactions is key:

“There’s a saying, ‘it’s better to stick with the devil you know, than the angel you don’t know.’ I think for a lot of people that seems to be true, because change is scary. The whole thing is scary – you were just homeless and now you have an apartment, and this person is telling you to do something you’ve never done before. It’s terrifying for a lot of people. I think childhood struggles are a part of what is coming up during this transition. Current struggles are a part of it as well. As someone with lived experience, I understand how hard it is to shift your mindset from the survival mode.”

For Chanel, the support of her Case Manager, Demetrice Gore, helped her overcome her fears: “Don’t get me wrong, being housed definitely does take a lot of stress off of one’s shoulders, but having a case manager by your side helps to process the experience you’ve been through and make the transition easier. My case manager, Demetrice, has
been very supportive. First, she makes sure I am safe. She helps me understand the responsibilities of having an apartment. She has helped me understand that the things and the trauma I have been through don’t define me.”

In addition to a Case Manager, who makes regular home visits, and the YPA, the young people receive employment and income support services including financial planning and budgeting assistance. The youth also receive counseling and mental health
services when needed. Chanel says the scope of the support and the time spent making sure she is ready for independence was unexpected: “I thought this was only going to be a short-term, three-month thing. This is a government program and I thought they would just want to say that they got me housed and that I would just be another number for them. Now it is almost a whole year later. There’s a team of people that want to support me in becoming more stable, helping me grow, and helping me get beyond my trauma.”

Trusting the support offered to her has helped Chanel make her apartment into her home. She has brought clothing out of storage and bought furniture. She is focused on managing her finances to cover the expenses of one’s own apartment, paying off college and credit card debt, and broadly achieving stability in her life.

And then there is the pride she has in her well stocked, regularly cleaned fridge. She says she now feels secure enough to not overstock on food because she knows there is going to be another grocery shop, a safe place to keep her food, and a kitchen where she can cook her meals. She knows she has a home.

Pictured above: Rising Ground’s Rapid Re-housing team and Director Karim Lewis, back row, third from left, and also on the team’s shirts!

Rapid Re-housing Youth Peer Advocates Zaqanah Stephens and Onyx Walker
at the Neighborhood Mixer organized by the Runaway & Homeless Youth teams.

Being Pro-active About the Personal

For Rapid Re-housing Youth Peer Advocates, drawing on their lived experiences when working with young people is rewarding, especially when they can provide the emotional support that was not available to them when they were homeless. However, reliving their trauma on a regular basis can also take an emotional toll.

In addition to having support within the Rising Ground Runaway and Homeless Youth Services team, Zaqanah and Onyx find support through the Youth Action Board (YAB), a group that aspires to be agents of change using lived experiences of homelessness as a tool to assist NYC youth 16-24 years. Onyx, who is the current chair of the YAB, says sharing experiences and resources with others allows his personal efforts to support many others.

“Among our accomplishments is our work with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to create a youth mental health forum. They were already doing these forums, but they had not addressed the runaway and homeless youth population. They reached out to see if there was any way that they could get feedback from homeless young people or folks that have experienced homelessness before. We brought people together and
had a three-hour long conversation That was super impactful because we were really getting to the bottom of why is it that young people do not look into mental health services as well as how to make services accessible for them when they do.”

The YPAs recently joined colleagues from other Rising Ground runaway and homeless youth programs to organize a mixer for young people living in the same neighborhood, giving individuals who may have been feeling isolated by their new living situation an opportunity to meet other young people with shared experiences. The goal is to expand their network of support in the community.

“Being encouraged to fully explore what peer and youth advocacy can mean helped me to unpack many difficult emotions, have a sense of purpose, and has allowed me to realize that I’m able to do something about the challenges others face,” says Zaqanah. “Knowing that I have support at my work to fully invest in myself is
powerful and has made me able to do this work better and remain safe.”

This story features in the Fall 2024 edition of our Rising newsletter. View the full newsletter here.

Employment opportunities for people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities, back-to-school events across the city, Direct Support Professionals Recognition week events, and more can be found in our latest newsletter.

Read the full enewsletter online here.

Read about our Rapid Re-housing program, our new administrative HQ, program expansions, and more in the Fall issue of the “Rising” newsletter.

View the full newsletter here.