BACKGROUND
Nuestra Gente Community Projects, Inc. is a nonprofit 501(c) 3 organization on a mission to improve the lives of Toledo’s underserved communities. Founded in Toledo in November 2008 to serve the Hispanic/Latino community, it has since expanded its mission and objectives for the inclusion of all community members in need. Nuestra Gente embraces and values the innumerable benefits of a diverse community working together for the progress of all. Nuestra Gente is a champion for education, health, and the overall enrichment of life in Lucas County, Ohio.
The vision of contributing to a healthy and an artistically vibrant community is the measure used for programs developed and implemented by Nuestra Gente. In service to these core values, the organization provides education, social services, health and safety awareness, multiculturalism and diversity awareness, and the promotion of artistic expression.
As a nonprofit serving the community, Nuestra Gente takes seriously our responsibility to provide access to the services, expertise, and facilities needed by our communities. It has been a pleasure to have served the people of our community over the last 12 years, and it will be a honor to serve even more of you – in more ways, in more places and with more new thinking – than ever in the years to come.
OUR VALUES
- Building a strong, healthy community
- Fostering compassion and respect for all
- Supporting rich, vibrant artistic expression
- Bringing people together to work for a brighter future
- Providing and encouraging educational opportunities
- Leadership
Our collaborations with local health organizations and community partnerships have been successful in assessing and addressing community needs through programs and activities that provide education, promote health, and highlight the arts. Our programs are critical to the families and community members we serve, as many of our clients have limited access to basic health care, are uninsured, or live below federal poverty guidelines. We also promote artistic disciplines including visual arts, dance, music, theater/performing arts, writing/storytelling, media arts, and interdisciplinary arts by supporting artists here and around the world through our annual Barrio Latino Art Festival. We are dedicated to the health and well-being of individuals and families of Lucas County. Our services are open to all who need help. We care about educating and empowering our community!
We invite nursing and medical students to assist at our free health screenings, helping the students gain valuable experience working directly with clients. You can help support our mission–your donation of time, talent and other resources helps Nuestra Gente fulfill our mission. Besides traditional monetary support, you can assist us on a number of different levels, including volunteer work, and in-kind donations.
OUR HISTORY
1) Inception
• Founded in November 2008
• Focused on serving Lucas County’s Hispanic/Latino community and to all who need help
2) Health programs
• Two health screening events, during Minority Health Month on April, and two on May to celebrate Lupus Awareness Month
• Weekly HIV testing at area Mexican restaurants and college students at The University of Toledo
• Distribution of free condoms to help prevent the spread of disease
• Blood pressure, blood sugar, HIV and cholesterol testing during three annual festivals — Latino Fest, St. Peter and Paul Church Festival and Nuestra Gente’s own Barrio Latino Art Festival during Hispanic Heritage Month in August
• Frequent training sessions for mental health first aid
• Monthly informational sessions about breast cancer, diabetes and lupus
• Screened 1,380 people for HIV and 1,520 people for blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol to date
3) Community programs
• WVZC-LP 96.5FM Nuestra Gente Radio, daily Spanish-language radio broadcast, the Nuestra Gente 96.5 FM is a “public” radio station, licensed to the Nuestra Gente Community Projects, Inc that provides a broadcasting service in Spanish to the Spanish speaking community in Lucas and Wood Counties, as well as those interested in Spanish music and services–operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is the only not-for-profit community radio station that provides programming in Spanish and makes a material contribution by serving an underserved community. public radio station licensed to NGCPI that provides a broadcasting service in Spanish to Lucas and Wood counties. Community radio stations are a source of empowerment to disenfranchised and marginalized groups in society, often providing the only means of access to vital information about health, education, culture, and current events.
• Nuestra Gente Noticias, the city’s first-ever Spanish-language radio newscast. Monday through Friday at noon on WVZC-LP 96.5 FM. The newscast, which started airing Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, is broadcast weekdays at noon and features local, national, and international news, sports, entertainment, and other headlines of interest to Toledo’s Latino population.
• Frequent dinner events, festivals and concerts to promote the community and raise funds for our organization.
• 419-Food Pantry Program, is a community-based program, we collect and store food and clothing for free distribution to needy people, families and veterans. Our food pantry is organized much like a small market and our Volunteer Team works with neighbors as they make food selections. 419-Food Pantry is designed to provide an emergency food supply, providing food relief for up to three days per person.
• Nuestra Gente Thanksgiving, we help families in need have a Thanksgiving meal on their table. We provide and deliver 60 food baskets filled with turkeys and all the ingredients for a full Thanksgiving meal to Families in the Old South End, near downtown Toledo, Veterans, Homeless and to a Pastor for members of his church.
• Feliz Navidad Initiative, provides Christmas assistance such a free clothes, shoes, food, bikes and toys to needy individuals, underprivileged children and families in Lucas County. Each year, our Feliz Navidad Initiative selects a handful of well-deserving families to be sponsored. These families are not receiving or do not qualify for other forms of assistance. In addition, we select individuals that are making significant attempts to support themselves, i.e. the under-employed. Feliz Navidad Initiative mission is to provide gifts to children whose families may be struggling during the holidays; encourage other members of the community to help local families and to inspire community members to be community and service minded—always willing to help others.
Español
Nuestra Gente Proyectos Comunitarios Inc., es una organizacion no lucrativa 501(c)3 establecida en Toledo, Ohio, sirviendo condado de Lucas (población 441.815 incluyendo 27,392 Hispanos / Latinos de acuerdo con el Censo 2010 en EEUU). Nuestra Gente Community Projects, Inc., fué creada para proporcionar educaciónn, servícios socíales y de salud, a los residentes y los trabajadores inmigrantes y a sus familias. La misión de Nuestra Gente incorpora valores, íncluyendo la compasión, la excelencia, la justícia y la dígnidad humana. Nuestros programas incluyen educación sobre el VIH; exámenes de salud gratuítos; educación sobre la diabetes, el control y la prevención; educación sobre el cáncer de mama y de apoyo, educación sobre lupus, control y la prevención; y la educación ambiental. También promovemos disciplinas artísticas que incluyen artes visuales, danza, música, teatro / artes escénicas, la escritura / cuentos, artes audiovisuales y artes interdisciplinarias mediante el apoyo a los artístas locales; y de todo el mundo a través de nuestro festíval de arte Barrio Latino. Nuestro trabajo es fundamental para la salud de las comunidades que servímos.
Nuestra Gente Comunidad Proyectos Inc. sirve a las familias con acceso limitado a la atención de la salud, los no asegurados, y los que están por debajo de los níveles federales de pobreza. Mientras que nuestra misión príncipal es servír a la comunidad Híspana/Latína; nuestros servícios están abiertos a todos los que necesítan ayuda. Nos preocupamos por educar y empoderar a nuestra comunidad!
Nosotros ínvitamos a estudiantes de enfermería y asistencia médica para ayudar en nuestros exámenes de salud gratuítos; ésto ayuda a los estudiantes a obtener una valíosa experiencia trabajando directamente con los clientes.
Historia de la organización
1) Comienzos:
- Fundada en Noviembre del 2008
- Enfocada en servír a la comunidad Híspana / Latína del condado de Lucas
2) Programas de salud
- Dos eventos de exámenes de salud gratuítos en Abríl celebrando el Mes de la Salud de las Minorías y dos en el mes de Mayo, para celebrar Lupus Awarenes Month
- Prueba semanal del VIH en restaurantes mexicanos y a estudiantes universítarios en la Universidad de Toledo
- Distribución gratuíta de preservatívos para ayudar a prevenír la propagación de enfermedades
- Pruebas de la presión arterial, azúcar en la sangre, el VIH y de colésterol durante tres festívales anuales: Festíval Latino, Festival de la Iglesia San Pedro y San Pablo y el Barrio Latino Festival de Arte de Nuestra Gente durante el Mes de la Híspanidad en Agosto.
- Entrenamíentos frecuentes de prímeros auxílios en salud mental
- Sesiones informatívas mensuales sobre el cáncer de mama, la díabetes y el lupus
- Hemos chequeado a 1,180 personas para el VIH y 1.400 personas para la presión arterial, azúcar en la sangre y el colésterol hasta el día de hoy
3) Programas comunitarios
- Nuestra Gente 96.5 FM es una estación de radio “publica” con la licensia otorgada a Nuestra Gente Community Projects, Inc que provee transmisiones en español para la comunidad de habla híspana en las comunidades de los condados de Lucas y Wood y también para los interesados en música y servicios en español; funciona 24 horas al día, siete dias a la semana y es la única estación de radio pública que ofrece programación en español contribuyendo a servir a una población marginada.
- Frecuentes eventos para cenar, festívales y concíertos para promover a la comunidad y recaudar fóndos para nuestra organización.
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