Marketplace of Ideas Showcases Grassroots Solutions to Address Needs of Children, Families in North St. Louis

 Marketplace of Ideas Showcases Grassroots Solutions to Address Needs of Children, Families in North St. Louis

ST. LOUIS – The six Marketplace of Ideas finalists demonstrated Tuesday how small community grants will be used to turn honey, sweet potatoes and lawn mowers into jobs for teens, as well as to teach them strategies for healthy eating and reducing violence among their peers. 

Each of the six finalists were presented with a $5,000 start-up grant from Incarnate Word Foundation during the second annual Showcase of Ideas held at Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church. Once the checks were distributed, the second phase of the competition began with each of the finalists presenting their projects to a panel of other foundations in hopes of securing additional grant money.

The competition arose from the realization that too often community ideas are not heard and creative collaborations are not explored in north St. Louis, said Bridget McDermott Flood, executive director of Incarnate Word Foundation. The Marketplace of Ideas seeks to overcome this, she said.

To be eligible for the competition, projects must address the needs of children and families in north St. Louis. The project also must involve a collaboration of at least two institutions, such as a non-profit agency, neighborhood group, school, religious group, governmental agency and such. Each group’s role must be clearly defined, and a letter of support for the project is required from a senior representative of each group. A panel of community judges then selects the project finalists. 

“The Marketplace of Ideas is about empowering people to address needs in their own community with their own self-generated solutions,” Flood said. “These six projects demonstrate what can be achieved when grassroots organizations work together. There is a richness of community activity north St. Louis that deserves to be celebrated.” 

The panel of community judges reviewed 13 projects and selected six finalists. The finalists involved 43 community organizations that represent non-profits, business, faith-based organizations and city and state agencies. The finalists are: 

• Sweet Sensation – A social enterprise led by Northside Community Center designed to provide employment opportunities to teach entrepreneurship and small business development skills to underserved teens through the design and operation of an urban beekeeping business.

• TAP STEP
– A youth employment project led by the Acts Partnership that will provide teens in the 21st Ward with lawn service job opportunities this summer.

• JSO 21st Century Summer and Afterschool Learning Enrichment Program
– A project led by HopeBUILD that engages children in relevant, hands-on nutrition education to build a solid foundation for healthy eating habits. 

• The Sweet Potato Project – An employment program led by the North Area Community Development Corporation that will teach youth how to plant and harvest sweet potatoes and how to develop, package, market and distribute products developed from sweet potatoes.

• Claver Works Landscaping and Savings Program
– A youth employment program led by Revitalization 2000 that will provide an opportunities for employment, job training and savings through a landscaping program in the Ville. 

• The Real Deal: Reducing Youth Violence Through Peer Influence Strategies
– A comprehensive violence prevention program focusing on self-worth and bystander intervention techniques will be taught by St. Louis Families in Shearwater High School.

“The Marketplace of Ideas is a small grants community funding program, but it is exciting to see the innovative ideas that emerge,” Flood said.

This is the second year for the competition. To learn more about the Marketplace of Ideas, visit the Incarnate Word Foundation online at http://www.iwfdn.org/grants/marketplace-of-ideas/

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