Community
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Vision Step Team – Community Reinvestment Project Spotlight
Vison Step Team (VST) was one 30 By/For Black, Latine, and Indigenous Kin organizations in Pierce County who were recommended by the Pierce County Local Advisory Team to receive funding through the Washington State Department of Commerce’s Community Reinvestment Project.
GTCF contracted with Commerce to convene the Pierce County Local Advisory Team and deliver funding based on their recommendations. You can read more about this partnership here.
GTCF reached out to VST Founder, Chelsea McElroy, to learn more about their organization and how this Community Reinvestment Project funding is helping accelerate their work in Pierce County.
What inspired the creation of your organization/movement?
Vision Step Team (VST) was created out of a community need for free, safe spaces for Black girls in Tacoma. As a Black girl growing up in Tacoma there were few spaces that I felt edified who I was as a person, while allowing me to be my full self. I wanted to give young girls in the community something to do as prevention, while teaching them skills in self-efficacy, public speaking and making friends.
What is a challenge – or opportunity – your organization/movement is addressing or trying to create solutions for?
We wanted to challenge the narrative of who Black girls are in this community and what value they can bring when given opportunities.
What is an example of the actions, programs, or projects of your organization/movement?
VST has partnered with the Girl Scouts of Western Washington to provide free troop activities. We have also partnered with Tacoma Public Schools to provide free ELO experiences for the past 6 years. We took the girls to African American Girls camp, Umoja camp. The girls have access to stages, galas and event spaces that they otherwise wouldn’t be exposed to.
How can funding – like what was delivered through the Community Reinvestment Project – help accelerate the work of Vison Step Team?
The funding provided by GTCF through the Community Reinvestment Project allowed me to finally pay my staff. We are 100% volunteer based but now with a dedicated staffing we are able to dedicate time towards looking for more grants that will make the program sustainable for the long time.