The Neighbor Relief Fund of Marion County – summary of impact

PHILOSOPHY & IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NEIGHBOR RELIEF FUND

The Neighbor Relief Fund of Marion County (NRF) was created in April of 2020 and has been managed with fluidity given the rapidly evolving nature of the pandemic. The fund is aligned with CICF’s equity goals, is resident-engaged, and prioritizes neighborhood-based, grassroots organizations that are serving under-appreciated neighborhoods and/or communities of color, including seniors, with programs that are easily accessible and provide meaningful relief to residents during this critical time of need.

The Neighbor Relief Fund uses a resident-informed grantmaking model that supports under-appreciated communities and vulnerable populations in gaining access to the resources they say that they need. Grantmaking staff works collaboratively with CICF Community Ambassadors, and leverages community relationships in a shared-power model that prioritized listening to residents and treating them with dignity and respect.

The fund raised more than $1.2 million and received approximately 150 proposals with more than $4 million requested. Thus far, there have been 51 total NRF grantees (many being first-time applicants across all CICF funds) with $1,116,420 in grant dollars awarded. Of all dollars deployed, approximately 80% have been dedicated to providing direct relief to residents, including seniors, in the form of rent/utility assistance, prescription drug costs, medical expenses, transportation credits, food access, and income supports – with very few dollars utilized for organizational administrative costs or overhead.

TARGETING UNDER-APPRECIATED NEIGHBORHOODS

The primary driver behind NRF is to work with neighborhood-based service providers to target resources to the communities most impacted by COVID-19 – which also happen to be the same communities that are challenged by high-percentages of residents with low socioeconomic status, low-income seniors, low educational attainment, poor public health outcomes, and poor rates of public safety.

Understanding that these issues compound on themselves and that income is a significant indicator of many quality of life metrics, NRF targeted the following zip codes:

• 46201 (Near Eastside, 34% poverty rate)
• 46208 (Riverside, Clifton, 39% poverty rate)
• 46218 (Martindale-Brightwood, 33% poverty rate)
• 46220 (Avondale Meadows, 42% poverty rate)
• 46222 (Near Westside, 36% poverty rate)
• 46226 (Forest-Manor, Devin, approx. 20% poverty rate)
• 46235 (Far Eastside, 29% poverty rate)
• 46260 (Crooked Creek, 26% poverty rate).

To date, the following indicates the geography and frequency of where NRF grants have been made:

• 46201: six grants made
• 46208: six grants made
• 46218: three grants made
• 46220: one grant made
• 46222: one grant made
• 46226: two grants made
• 46235: nine grants made

These grants equate to 28, or 54% of the 51 total grants made to-date. The total investment of these 28 grants has been $702,120, or 60%, of the total $1,166,420 granted. It is worth noting that several total grants were made to support city-wide services that served residents from multiple high-needs areas. Additionally, of the zip codes identified, all of which, with the exception of 46222, are represented at CICF by a Community Ambassador, or resident leader, who CICF staff work with to verify needs and make informed, targeted investment decisions for the maximum support of residents in their neighborhoods.

Marion County Neighborhood Coronavirus Risk Level Map

As we now know as a result of the SAVI Coronavirus Database, the same neighborhoods most impacted by COVID-19 are also those that are experiencing severe challenges in other areas like public safety, public health, income, and educational attainment. Included here is the Marion County Neighborhood Coronavirus Risk Level Map, which uses age, race and socioeconomic status as primary indicators of risk. The areas in gold are those that are most at-risk of the damaging health and economic consequences of COVID-19 and are also synonymous with the NRF zip codes of interest listed above.

According to the data, age-related risk is more geographically diverse in Indianapolis than other indicators. Areas in northern Marion County have high estimated rates of cancer and have older populations. The Martindale-Brightwood and Meadows neighborhoods (northeast of downtown) have high estimated rates of heart disease and some pockets of older populations. The Far Eastside and the Far Southside (near U.S. 31 and County Line Road) also have high-risk populations according to the age-related risk factors.

HISTORY of grants made through Neighbor Relief Fund