Unity Gardens funds groups such as homeowners associations, faith-based organizations, schools and scout groups, garden clubs, and other qualified nonprofits. The deadline to apply for Fall Grants is August 1. Spring Grants are due March 1.

We’re also happy to talk to you about your potential project before you submit an application. Email unitygardensaa@gmail.com to set up a time to review your project plans with us.

To apply, all groups must submit the following: 1) Project Description, 2) Photos of the Site, 3) Sketch of the Proposed Garden, 4) Maintenance Plan, 5) Letter of Support from the Property Owner, and a 6) Proposed Budget (save in Excel or Google Sheets).

How to Apply for a Grant

An updated application for Spring 2023 will become available on January 15. In the meantime, you can review past applications and guidelines to learn more about our grant program. If you have questions, you can email us at unitygardensaa@gmail.com.

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The Community Action Agency Newsletter
December 2020

December 31^st Deadlines Looming for COVID-19 Related Assistance Programs

Funding for two COVID-19 related emergency programs expires on Thursday, December 31, 2020, with no extensions expected.

The Agency received CARES funding from Anne Arundel County to offer energy assistance to households whose incomes are over the eligibility requirements for Community Action’s other energy programs.  To qualify, applicants must be an Anne Arundel County resident, have experienced a decrease in household income due to the pandemic, and outstanding energy bills must be from no later than March 1, 2020.  If you, or anyone you know, meet these criteria, please contact Community Action’s energy assistance hotline as soon as possible at 833.888.0401(TTY 711).  The hotline is manned twenty-four hours a day, seven days per week.

Community Action’s Housing Assistance and Services program has funding to assist County residents who live and/or work in Hanover, Harmans, and Severn with delinquent rent payments due to a loss of household income due to COVID-19.  If you live or work in these communities and are behind in your rent payments, please call 410.626.1900 x1018.

For information about the Agency’s Energy Assistance and Housing Assistance and Services program, please contact Martha “Mickie” Stanfield, Deputy CEO and Director of Asset Building, at 443.822.2035 or mstanfield@aaccaa.org.

Community Action Enters into Formal Partnership with CASH Campaign of Maryland

The Community Action Agency recently entered into a formal agreement with the CASH (Creating Assets, Savings, and Hope) Campaign of Maryland to offer financial capability education to the community members we serve.  Training sessions will include topics such as credit score repair, budgeting that works for individual households, retirement planning, and debt reduction strategies.

The Agency is launching the training initiative with the parents and guardians of our Early Head Start families as part of the 2 Generation Whole Family approach, which is currently being piloted within the program.  Community Action will roll out the education program to all households served by the Agency and interested Anne Arundel County residents early in the new year.

For more information about Financial Capability Education and the Agency’s 2 Generation Whole Family Approach, please contact Roxanne McGowan, Program Integrationist, at 443.822.2035 or rmcgowan@aaccaa.org.

Community Action Receives Gifts and Supplies for Early Head Start Children

The Christ Child Society of Annapolis has donated gifts and supplies for the 32 infants and toddlers who participate in Community Action’s Early Head Start program in South County.  This is an annual giving event, and Early Head Start staff provides names, ages, and gift suggestions to a coordinator at the Christ Child Society to ensure gifts are appropriate for the needs of each child.  Early Head Start staff has delivered the gifts and supplies, including diapers, to the homes of our families.  Community Action appreciates the generosity of individual members of local churches who donated the gifts to the Christ Child Society.

The Early Head Start program is accepting applications from income-eligible South County families interested in having their infants and toddlers participate in the program.  Although the Center is currently closed due to the pandemic, our staff continues to serve participants by offering the curriculum virtually and ensuring families have access to the Agency’s wrap-around services and referrals to our community partners.

For more information about the Early Head Start program, please contact Margaret “Peg” Jarboe, Director of Early Head Start at 443.822.0536 or mjarboe@aaccaa.org

Health and Wellness Corner

Did you get your flu shot?  We are now in flu season and people getting flu immunizations can help reduce the spread of respiratory illnesses.  With an increase of infections, hospitalizations, and death due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is highly recommended that everyone gets their flu vaccination this year. Our local hospitals are well over the 70% occupancy rate recommended by the CDC, which means a serious flu outbreak could further stress our frontline medical workers and community.  The CDC has worked with manufacturers of the vaccine to ensure there are enough doses to get as many people inoculated as possible.  County residents can visit their local pharmacy to get low or no-cost flu shots.  For county residents who don’t have medical insurance, the Anne Arundel County Department of Health provides them for free by appointment.  To schedule an appointment at the Glen Burnie Health Center, please call 410.222.6633, and at the Parole Health Center, call 410.222.7247.  For more information about the seasonal flu, please visit: https://aahealth.org/seasonal-flu-vaccine/

December is AIDS Awareness Month!  While December 1^st is National AIDS Day, the entire month is dedicated as a time for people to come together to stand and fight against AIDS, to show support for those who are living with AIDS or HIV and those who have lost loved ones to the disease.  Since AIDS and HIV caused a global pandemic in the mid-1980s, over 35 million people have lost their lives due to infection.  Even now, 4,450 people are diagnosed with HIV each year.  National AIDS Day was developed to remind governments and people around the world that this destructive disease has not gone away.

Across our nation, HIV and AIDS disproportionately affects certain community sectors.  According to statistics, in Anne Arundel County approximately 75% of those living with AIDS or HIV are male.  Blacks constitute 56% of adult and adolescent cases, followed by non-Hispanic whites at 27% and Hispanics at 8%.  Fifty-two percent of all persons with active AIDS/HIV cases live in three areas of the County:  Annapolis (21401), Annapolis-Eastport (21403), and western Glen Burnie (21061).  To prevent infection, people should avoid having unprotected sex and sharing needles for injection drug use.

Health and Wellness Corner is a new monthly feature by Katia Butler, the Agency’s Health and Wellness Initiative Coordinator.

Fund Development

Community Action has accomplished so much this year, but there is still important work to be done to support lower-income households in Anne Arundel County.  The pandemic continues to adversely impact the household budgets of many of our neighbors, and with COVID-19 related emergency assistance programs ending on December 31, 2020, we expect to experience more demand for our services than ever before.  The abeyance on evictions also ends on December 31, with thousands of county residents facing homelessness during the cold, winter months.  Will you help us start 2021 with the resources we need to help families stay safe and warm in their homes during these extraordinary times?  We welcome donations of all amounts and with Community Action keeping its administrative costs under 12%, your gifts to the Agency will be directed to programs so our customers get the assistance they need.  Donations can be mailed to Julie Snyder, Director of Development at 251 West Street, Annapolis, Maryland 21401.  For more information, please contact Ms. Snyder at 443.822.1167 or jsnyder@aaccaa.org.

Community Action Makes a Difference

While many people have been focusing on Anne Arundel County households impacted by the coronavirus, other households have been facing emergencies caused by other circumstances.  Recently, an 18 year-old young man found an eviction notice secured to the front door of his home.  The young adult had recently had one parent pass-away, while his other parent was experiencing severe mental health issues, and at the same time he was working hard to stay on top of his high school studies.  He made his way to Community Action for help clearing over $3,000 in arrears so he and his parent could remain in their home.  The Agency’s housing counselors worked with the young man and with three of our faith-based community partners to provide the matching funds necessary to keep the young man and his parent in their home.  Through the work of Community Action staff and our partners, our customer is in his home for the holidays and beyond!

The Community Action Agency will be closed on Friday, December 25, 2020 and Friday, January 1, 2021 so our staff members can celebrate the holidays.  On behalf of the Community Action Agency staff, we wish you a safe, healthy, and happy holiday season!

Community Action is On the Move!

When: March 27, 2020, 8:30am-3:00pm
Where: Howard County Economic Development Authority
6751 Columbia Gateway Dr, 1st Floor, Columbia, MD 21046

Join MEDA for a one-day training that has been created to provide participants with an introduction and overview of how Maryland practices economic development. Course attendees will quickly develop a network of resources and link people and faces, all while building camaraderie among participants to further Maryland’s economic development team.
 
This course is designed for those who are new to economic development in Maryland, in addition to strategic partners in collaborative industries.
 
Find out how economic development transforms lives by creating opportunities, inspiring innovation, and enriching communities. Together we can work to make a brighter, more prosperous future for the state of Maryland!

Click here for more information and to register

The event is taking place on Saturday, March 7th at 2:00pm at Discoveries: The Library at the Mall.

Click here for more information.

Tuesday December 3rd 8-8pm

Please join us for an evening of merriment, sparkle and cheer!

Enjoy culinary treats, sweets and libations with holiday music favorites!

2625 Mas Que Farm Road, Annapolis - Minimum donation $35

All proceeds go directly to Wellness House of Annapolis | 410-990-0941

 
Don’t miss out, space is limited for this event!

 
Register Now at www.annapoliswellnesshouse.org/caringtree


www.annapoliswellnesshouse.org/caringtree

Sunday, October 27th from 3-5 pm at Arlington Echo Outdoor Education Center

This autumn, bring the seasonal flavors of the Chesapeake to your Thanksgiving table!

Join John Shields, owner of Gertrude’s Restaurant at the Baltimore Museum of Art, and author of The New Chesapeake Kitchen, as he shares his passion for healthy food flavors and local ingredients. Drawing on his long and storied career, John makes a strong case for a healthy locavore diet and champions a holistic view of community foodways.

Enjoy small bites of a seasonal recipe from The New Chesapeake Kitchen, perfect for upcoming Thanksgiving celebrations! Copies of The New Chesapeake Kitchen will be available for sale and signing. Light refreshments served. Registration is $15.

REGISTER HERE

Questions? Contact Katie Foster.

Tuesday, October 29, 2019 9:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Cost: $70 / per person (includes lunch)
Light Box, 209 West Street, Suite #205, Annapolis, MD

This is an interactive workshop led by former Light House Executive Director, Elizabeth Kinney (FLG95) and former Development Director, Pam Siemer. For six years this dynamic duo successfully worked as a team to raise over $2 million annually (90% private) for operating funds for The Light House Homeless Support and Prevention Center in Annapolis, Maryland. They raised an additional $3 million for the renovation and startup of the first social enterprise in Annapolis, The Light House Bistro. Both women served on the Board of the Light House Bistro and have more than 50 years combined extensive experience in nonprofit leadership strategies, fund- raising and community engagement.

Elizabeth and Pam know first-hand that the scope of work and the amount of energy it takes to run a nonprofit can be endless and exhausting. It can be lonely at the top. Having a trusted, dedicated team player as a partner is imperative to sustainable leadership and ultimate success.

What does that partnership look like and how do you maintain that relationship in the context of the stresses of the work? How does this relationship help your organization thrive? We will discuss these questions along with fund- raising strategies in this workshop designed to explore your leadership team goals. Building a solid, supportive and effective team leads to a successful and financially stable organization.

Click here to download the event flyer with more information and registration instructions.