Five Brooklyn-based nonprofits each received $100,000 at the annual Brooklyn Org Spark Breakfast on Tuesday, March 3, an awards event the organizers said honored groups for their work across the borough at a time of what they called unprecedented cuts to government funding.
According to a media advisory from the publicity firm Anat Gerstein, the breakfast ran from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. and recognized five organizations the organizers described as trailblazing nonprofits serving Brooklyn. The advisory said each honoree would receive a $100,000 prize to expand its work, and described the event as almost sold out in the days before it was held. Brooklyn Org, which presents the prize, called the award a “no-strings-attached” $100,000 grant and said the Spark Prize has invested more than $5 million in local nonprofits since 2016.
The honorees, as listed by the organizers, were Asiyah Women’s Center, Black Trans Femmes in the Arts, The B.R.O. Experience Foundation, the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project and YVote. The breakfast was held at Barclays Center.
Asiyah Women’s Center provides culturally responsive shelter and support for survivors of domestic violence, according to the advisory. Black Trans Femmes in the Arts, known as BTFA, invests in Black trans femme artists through residencies, grants and public programming, the organizers said.
The B.R.O. Experience Foundation offers trauma-informed mentorship for young Black and Latino men, according to the advisory. The Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, known as S.T.O.P., protects civil rights by challenging discriminatory surveillance technologies, the organizers said, while YVote empowers young people to lead through peer-driven civic engagement in Brooklyn high schools.
The advisory listed Erin Clarke of Anat Gerstein as the media contact for the event.
