Taking Steps Forward; a call for help in creating the community we deserve. Tuesday @ 8pm
Posted Jun 19 2010 - 1:33pm by JonSTeps
So on the eve of the Long Island Food Not Bombs 4 year anniversary we invite you to join us for a very special meeting this Tuesday in Huntington @8pm and we’re also asking for your help on a very incredible project we’ve been working on.
As some of you may know we’ve been discussing creating a community run nonprofit dedicated to direct action. To be clear, Food Not Bombs on Long Island will always remain a collection of autonomous & independent chapters working in solidarity with each other. Our open and anti-bureaucratic ways are why we’ve been so effective and we have no intention of changing that. What we’re hoping to create is a sister organization that can help expand our methods beyond what we’ve been currently working on.
Imagine if Long Island had a radical/progressive community space that was actually run by the community; a space that was free and open to everyone. Imagine free afterschool programs in which the participating students formed their own classes. Imagine an organization that mobilized doctors willing to volunteer their services for free, for anyone. Imagine youth empowerment, gender empowerment, social, cultural, food, sexual and personal empowerment. Imagine an organization that would help Long Island Food Not Bombs grow even bigger. These are just a few possibilities that could come from this new project.
What we’re looking to create with this nonprofit doesn’t have just one form. We want it to embody the spirit of the community and act under the general consensus of all. We want it to be ours and yours and theirs without distinction – for the betterment of everyone.
So with that said, this Tuesday @8pm we’ll be meeting up at Urban Coffee (101 Broadway, Greenlawn, NY 11740) for the purpose discussing the nonprofit we’re creating and drafting it’s mission statement.
Creating this nonprofit will be a long, hard and expensive process but we truly believe its future benefit will be invaluable to the work we hope to achieve.
With that said, I’m going to ask you, my friends, for something I’ve never asked you for. We need money to get this process started. In fact, we need about $3000 dollars to get all of the paperwork processed correctly. If you could spare $5, $10, $50, $500 for this project it will help us in more ways than your can imagine. It’s an investment in a community that has already help 1000’s of families across Long Island & Brooklyn.
Unfortunately, since we do not have a bank account (because we don’t yet have our own nonprofit) all donations will have to be in cash, or in the form of a check written out to follow volunteers or myself.
I know this makes giving a monetary donation even harder, and if you have any questions please email us at LongIslandFoodNotBombs[at]gmail[dot]com or call us at 631.223.4370. In addition, for anyone giving monetary donations, please provide me with an email or phone number so I may send you updates on our progress with this project. You can also give us donations at Tuesday’s meeting or at any of our local Food Shares in Hempstead, Huntington, Farmingville or Bedstuy.
Thank you for your time and support,
JonSTeps & Long Island Food Not Bombs
