Raising Hope One Neighborhood at a Time

Students participate in Live Again Fresno’s afterschool programming at Roeding Park. Live Again Fresno serves children and families living in the Jane Addams neighborhood near Fresno’s Motel Drive.  Started by Executive Director Richard Burrel in 2011, the organization builds hope, empowerment and trust among neighborhood residents.

When Live Again Fresno broke ground on a brand-new community center in March, it was a full-circle moment for Richard Burrell, who founded the organization in 2011. He remembers the early days of trying to serve and support the kids who live at Motel Drive, a Fresno neighborhood notorious for gangs, drugs, and other illegal activities. 

“Initially, everything we did happened inside the motels. While we were trying to do art therapy or music, you have the sex work going on and all the craziness that happens on Parkway Drive and in the motels. It made it super challenging,” Mr. Burrell said.

A few miles away, in Southwest Fresno, Nia Hodge, founder of Another Level Training Academy (ALTA), prepares for her organization’s personal and professional development classes. Part community hub, part training center, ALTA offers the neighborhood a place to learn important skills, build relationships, and realize, maybe for the first time, their voice matters. 

Kindergarten students at a local elementary school listen to community advocate, Nia Hodge.  As the founder and CEO of Another Level Training Academy, Nia listens to the needs of the local community and works to connect neighbors with the resources they need to thrive.

“Community. Communing in Unity. No one is left out. Everybody has a purpose and a place that they serve,” said Ms. Hodge.

Live Again Fresno and Another Level Training Academy are part of Fresno DRIVE’s civic infrastructure initiative. Simply put, Richard, Nia, and others like them in neighborhoods throughout this community are leading change to spark human and economic development across Fresno.

According to Artie Padilla, Director of DRIVE Initiatives for the Central Valley Community Foundation, the program is currently in 14 neighborhoods throughout Fresno, with hopes of expanding. 

“DRIVE’s vision is to build an economy that works for everyone in our community, especially people who’ve been overlooked or held back for years. And it really starts with the people. People are the economy. That’s why we’re tackling this at the neighborhood level,” Mr. Padilla said.

And it’s working. Both Richard and Nia have leveraged initial investments from the Central Valley Community Foundation to attract additional resources from national foundations, the State of California and local donors. This means they are building capacity, hiring people from the neighborhood and planting seeds of positive change.

“To know where they come from. And they still have that glimpse of hope,” Ms. Hodge said. 

Mr. Burrell agrees.  “We are not a voice for them (the people who live in the 14 neighborhoods), but we create a platform so their voice can be amplified so that the vision for a healthier neighborhood comes from folks in this neighborhood,” he said.

Learn more about Fresno DRIVE by visiting fresnodrive.org. 

This story is part of the Central Valley Community Foundation’s “Sixty Stories That Shaped Us” initiative to help mark 60 years since our founding. We invite you to join us in celebrating this milestone and this special place we call home. To learn more, visit centralvalleycf.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn @centralvalleycf.