Congratulations to Revitalization 2000, winner of our 2017 Award for Excellence in the Faith-Based Community!
CBN’s Award for Excellence in the Faith-Based Community recognizes an individual or institution that:
Is community oriented.
Deploys both human and financial resources to bear on neighborhood issues, policy change, or social justice issues.
Demonstrates a willingness to collaborate with community partners.
Revitalization 2000 (R2K) is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to the residents and revitalization of the Ville neighborhood in North St. Louis City. It operates programs and leads projects that build relationships between residents and non-resident volunteers. It also serves as the backbone for the Ville Collaborative, an association of organizations in the community that work together on education, beautification, neighborhood safety, and other collective initiatives. R2K emerged from St. Matthew the Apostle Catholic Parish in the Ville when it was founded in 1998 and collaborates extensively with other churches and faith-based organizations in the neighborhood.
R2K has joined with community partners to make a positive impact on the Ville through a variety of programs. It has been a leader behind several community gardens that help to beautify the neighborhood, provide residents with nutritious food, create visible change, and fortify community ties. The Claver Works youth jobs and savings program provides participants with earned income opportunities and experience in lawn and garden landscaping. R2K helps to organize the neighborhood’s annual back-to-school block party and also runs Claver House, a service-based residence community for young people making an extended volunteer commitment in the Ville. Most recently, in collaboration with a number of community partners, R2K is working to launch a new initiative that will provide hands-on educational opportunities to children living in the neighborhood. R2K is dedicated to “connecting the dots” across organizations by creating a culture of collaboration that is also grounded in their faith-based tradition.
