Matthew 25 will host a Spring Celebration event today (April 30) to showcase the nonprofit organization’s impact on housing and food access in the Time Check neighborhood in northwest Cedar Rapids.
Three years ago, Matthew 25 kicked off the Healthy Neighborhoods Campaign to raise $1.4 million for establishing a nonprofit grocery store in a food desert neighborhood and creating new housing opportunities.
Since then, the group transformed a run-down building on a high crime corner into the Cultivate Hope Corner Store, rehabbed eleven units of housing (some of which had sat empty for years), and recently began construction on three super energy-efficient homes that will add even more vibrancy to the neighborhood.
Thus far, Matthew 25 has spent more than $1.1 million of the campaign funds raised, and that funding has leveraged another $1 million of Matthew 25 investment in the Time Check neighborhood.
At the Spring Celebration event, supporters will be able to see first-hand the impact this and other Matthew 25 work has had in the Time Check neighborhood.
The event will begin with an official program at 4:30 p.m. at the Cultivate Hope Urban Farm, 437 G. Ave. NW, discussing work achieved to date and recognizing key partners.
After the main program, guests can engage in a self-guided walking tour from 4:50 to 6:30 p.m., where they can walk through a newly constructed home, check out a newly renovated affordable housing rental unit, see the sites of the new net-zero homes, and visit the now two-year-old Cultivate Hope Corner Store, where a special ceremony will begin at 6 p.m. to recognize longtime Matthew 25 supporters Len and Marlene Hadley.
Street parking for the event will be available on F Avenue, G Avenue, and other nearby streets.
The event is free and open to the public.
Matthew 25, an independent, local 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, began in 2006 to help strengthen and elevate neighborhoods on the west side of Cedar Rapids. Matthew 25 works to improve the health of people and neighborhoods by investing in quality affordable housing, healthy food, educational opportunities, and community building.
