THE 37208 FUND:
LESSONS ON BUILDING ECONOMIC DEMOCRACY 

2023 Annual Report

Dear Neighbors, 

As we wrote in our initial press release, quiet and consistent acts of love are plentiful in North Nashville – if you know where to look and you know how to listen. We wanted to find out what would happen if community members and organizers didn’t have to self-fund their solutions to the issues that complicate life in 37208, from food insecurity to mass incarceration – and everything in between.

By funding people and projects that are authentically justice-minded and community-led, the 37208 Fund seeks to be part of a growing web of support, building towards North Nashville’s reparative future. 

In this report, you will learn about the values we bring to this work, how we’ve spent the money from our generous funders, and a brief recap of the successes and/or challenges experienced by projects to which we awarded grants. We hope this report is just the first of many to come, because we believe in practicing transparency and accountability to all. 

With Gratitude and Joy,
M. Simone Boyd and Whitney Pastorek

VALUES

Care, collaboration, and transparency are the values at the heart of all 37208 Committee Members, partners, and collaborators. Our grantmaking process is democratically designed and centered in consensus and simple majority votes, with the voice of Committee Members being the final say on all grant decisions. 

Despite having more than quarter million dollars to disburse and steward, we’ve never had an argument. No one’s ever raised their voice, and we’ve laughed a lot. When we’ve made mistakes, we’ve owned them, taken corrective action, and moved forward. 

We prioritize relationships, trust, and belonging in our work towards building collective power, both as an organization and within 37208 at large. We have sparked and fostered connections between students and teachers, artists and those seeking inspiration, those in need and those seeking to provide. We are continuing to overcome historic harm as we make decisions regarding our priorities, including taking a stance of resistance when it comes to funding from organizations that have preyed on our community.

APPLICATION PROCESS

We also seek to empower our applicants and potential grantees through a process that is human-centered and straightforward, while offering assistance to those who still face barriers – which can mean something as simple as lacking a bank account. Our evaluation process is intentionally simple and celebratory. We will never force applicants to “prove” themselves, something we’ve made clear to any funders expecting a more comprehensive audit process for our grantees. 

All grant funding decisions are made by The 37208 Fund Committee and are final. The Committee is made up of residents, artists, non-profit leaders and others committed to justice and action in North Nashville.

We are providing financial resources for individuals and organizations with a documented history of serving the 37208 community, and we trust them to know and do best. 

THE HARD STUFF: CHALLENGES AND TRANSITIONS

That said, we are aware that some of our awardees have not fulfilled their commitments to The 37208 Fund or the neighborhood, and we are using that information to refine how we offer support and handle the evaluation process on our end in the future.

In December, we said a fun farewell to our inaugural 37208 Fund Committee Members. Our final meeting was held at the 100 Taylor Arts Collective, where we toured the Faces of North Nashville exhibit – one of our first grantees – and it was so rewarding for the Committee and Fund support team to see our hard work come to life. We sit in deep gratitude to our Committee Members, past and present, as well as everyone in the community who’s lent their time, talents, and treasure to this learning and growing process. 

The 37208 Fund is in a period of transition. Our co-founder M. Simone Boyd has made the decision to step away from our work; we will be continuing on with her fellow co-founder Whitney Pastorek in the role of Fund Administrator and Mr. Louis Holiday serving as our point of contact. The values Simone brought to this process will forever be at the center of what we do, and there’s no way to encapsulate in words the thoughtfulness, dignity, and generosity of spirit she brought to the Fund during her two years at the helm.

In June of 2022, we hired our first staff person. We aimed to grow and learn with that person at the helm, but for various reasons we ended their employment in May 2023. Navigating that situation with care and intention was a significant diversion of energy, time and attention, and we plan to spend the next several months recalibrating in order to better model accountability and transparency to North Nashville as we move forward. We are actively seeking a new Fund Coordinator. 

Meanwhile, our newest cohort of Committee Members is hard at work reviewing our current applications, and we look forward to ramping up awareness of our work and our application process as well as recruiting additional Committee Members and expanding our donor base in the months to come.

GRATITUDE AND HOW WE’VE SPENT THE MONEY 

The 37208 Fund is funded by generous contributions from The Frist Foundation, The Healing Trust, United Way of Greater Nashville, Ryan & Marissa Finn Hersch, and Gigi Adams. Our fiscal sponsor is Corner to Corner, with whom we partnered because of their similar priorities, depth of knowledge about this community, and willingness to take this collaborative leap with joyful hearts.

Since our launch on October 1, 2021 through June 2023, the 37208 Committee has reviewed over 50 applications, funded 18 projects, and awarded $112,550.98 in grants to those seeking to make North Nashville a better place to live, work and grow. 

Our administrative expenses for 2022 total $31,804.22. Those expenses went to Committee Member stipends; administrative fees for Corner to Corner; building and launching the 37208 Fund website; and paying a coordinator for administrative assistance.

We've also been fortunate enough to receive some positive press for our work. Please visit the Projects section below for more press spotlights on the work of individual grantees.

IMPACTFUL PROJECTS: A SPOTLIGHT ON THE WORK

  • Project: Faces of North Nashville

    Contact Person: Carlos Partee
    Award: $8,000
    Status: Complete

    The curators of Faces of North Nashville shared that they’d been working on the idea since 2018, and our funding was the missing piece. Hundreds of people visited the exhibition – featuring historic photos of North Nashville families and businesses, as well as artist-driven portraiture – and the curators have since moved the collection to Robert Churchwell Elementary, as well as adding many of the pieces to the archive at Fisk University in what will be an ongoing partnership. A digital version of the original space within the 100 Taylor Arts Collective was also captured for future viewing.

    Press Coverage: Nashville Scene / NewsChannel 5 / WKRN / Tennessee Tribune

  • Project: Black Nashville Assembly

    Contact Person: Jamel Campbell-Gooch/Erica Perry
    Award: $5,000
    Status: Complete

    Although their evaluation was slow to arrive, BNA eventually reported that they used their grant towards staff time, meeting space, and meeting costs to further their goal of working with North Nashvillians to create policies and programs that combat gun violence and other forms of harm, housing displacement, health issues, youth violence, and fractured community relationships.

  • Project: North Nashville Alley Clean Up - Refuse Engineers

    Contact Person: Larry Turnley
    Award: $10,000
    Status: Complete

    Grant award was used to cover dump fees, gas, maintenance, and labor costs while removing multiple tons of junk, furniture, and debris from the streets and alleys of North Nashville. Mr. Turnley shared that he felt an immediate impact; he was also able to hire formerly incarcerated neighbors to assist with the cleanup, and the visibility from the project helped him sustain and grow his business.

    Press Coverage: WSMV News 4

  • Project: Peers Supporting Victory

    Contact Person: Terrance Simpson
    Award: $5,000
    Status: Complete

    Funds were used to build out the PSV Store within the 100 Taylor Arts Collective, with the goal of giving local teens as well as adults experiencing homelessness the opportunity to design and create products and art for sale within the space. While Mr. Simpson reports he was able to identify teens to participate, he was unable to find participants from the community living with homelessness.

  • Project: Passion Transportation Service

    Contact Person: Jalesa Howard
    Award: $7,500
    Status: Complete

    Passion Transportation Service provides rides to school for kids in North Nashville who are in foster care or experiencing homelessness. Grant was used to hire additional drivers – as well as pay them more per trip – and she succeeded in doubling her staff.

  • Project: McGruder Social Practice Artist Residency

    Contact Person: Marlos E’Van
    Award: $10,000
    Status: Complete

    Notes: Mr. E’Van is an artist whose studio is located within the McGruder Family Resource Center. He sought funding to offer ten artist residencies within the space. He reported that much of the funding instead went to begin production on Nico the Clown, a film written, produced, and shot entirely within 37208. He did offer art supplies for kids at McGruder, and host a studio open house.

  • Project: Evolving Youth Excellence

    Contact Person: Shaunese Gleaves
    Award: $8,000
    Status: Complete

    Ms. Gleaves’s goal was to continue her history of serving youth and her community without needing to come out of pocket for all expenses. Her list of service projects supported with 37208 funding is exemplary: She hosted seminars on Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Suicide Awareness; took young ladies from the community out for lunch and skating during Spring Break; organized a Community Reach-Out Day to give away food, clothing, and resources; hosted two Easter Egg hunts as well as a Kids Fun Day to celebrate the end of the school year; distributed over 100 backpacks filled with school supplies; and led a Community Baby Shower, a Coat Drive, a Turkey Giveaway, and a December Toy Drive.

  • Project: Nashville Freedom Schools

    Contact Person: Aisha Swann
    Award: $10,000
    Status: Complete

    With the grant money from The 37208 Fund, Nashville Freedom Schools was able to hire and train three college students as Servant Leader Interns, allowing NFS the space to enroll 30 scholars in their program. SLIs were trained nationally by The Children’s Defense Fund Ella Baker Training Institute and locally by Nashville Freedom Schools lead staff for a total of 90 development hours. SLIs gained valuable experience in classroom instruction, classroom management and developing lesson plans. Our SLIs were also able to integrate social action and social justice into their work, giving them the opportunity to make a difference in the learning environment and the community.

    Press Coverage: WPLN

  • Project: InnerG Juice & Yoga

    Contact Person: Nielah Burnett
    Award: $6,500
    Status: Complete

    Grant used to hire staff, pay for advertising/marketing materials, and help with rent for the storefront. Long term, Ms. Burnett shared that she expects the investment from the 37208 Fund will help InnerG to offer educational classes around wellness, subsidize fresh food and yoga classes for those needing assistance, and to hopefully expand their reach in the form of an additional storefront within the next three years.

  • Project: Divine Diamond Dolls Youth Dance Team

    Contact Person: Diamond Jade-French
    Award: $6,550.98
    Status: Complete

    Grant was used to purchase uniforms, warmups, and bags for the team – many of whom unfortunately took the products and quit. However, Ms. French shared that she has recruited new dancers, and is working from a stronger place of solidarity with them. She’s been able to pay coaches and cover the rent for a rehearsal space, as well as finally open a business bank account for the team.

  • Project: No Greater Love Ministries D.B. Todd & Buchanan Area Support

    Contact Person: Pastor Kenneth Van Buren
    Award: $2,500
    Status: Complete

    Initial goal was to help improve the neighborhood by cleaning up the Buchanan St/Dr. D. B. Todd Jr. Blvd intersection, as well as providing meals for neighbors experiencing homelessness. Over the project’s six month timeframe, the project team also boarded up empty houses and cleaned storm drains in the 37208 area, and recruited safety volunteers to stand with children at bus stops.

  • Project: Nashville Peacemakers

    Contact Person: Clemmie Greenlee
    Award: $7000
    Status: Complete

    The organization was able to apply these funds across two programs, as well as to meet general administrative needs. The Back to Basics 2023 Spring Session incorporated Home Economics into the program’s foundational platform; these funds enabled them to purchase ten sewing machines and griddles, as well as provide cooking and sewing kits for participants. Funding was also applied towards the 2022 Mothers Over Murder Retreat, attended by 25 women.