Hirsch Family Foundation shines a light on the kids of East Durham

July 25, 2011

Our friends at East Durham Children’s Initiative are thrilled to receive a $300,000 gift from the Hirsch Family Foundation.

Unrestricted grant furthers EDCI’s mission to offer pipeline of services from “cradle to career” for the children of East Durham

East Durham Children’s Initiative (EDCI), a “cradle to career” program modeled after the Harlem Children’s Zone, announced today that it has received a grant of $100,000 per year for the next three years from the Hirsch Family Foundation. This support is unrestricted and will be used for a variety of purposes that will help further develop the EDCI model. The Hirsch Family Foundation is a private foundation based in Dallas, Texas, that supports novel social service organizations in hopes of strengthening local communities.

“East Durham Children’s Initiative is very gratified for the significant support given by the Hirsch Family Foundation,” said Barker French, co-chair East Durham Children’s Initiative. The Foundation believes the cradle to college and/or career model developed by EDCI will transform the lives of children in East Durham, and EDCI is committed to helping Durham’s children succeed.”

“The Hirsch Family Foundation is impressed by EDCI’s ability to forge collaboration between Durham’s various non-profit organizations in order to more effectively help the families of Durham. We believe EDCI has the potential to create lasting, generational change, and we hope that our donation, in conjunction with that of the Oak Foundation, will help it grow and reach its potential in the coming years. We are honored to be involved.”

About East Durham Children’s Initiative

EDCI was established in 2008 by community members, government and school leaders, and child-serving agencies to support and nurture families and children in a 120-block area east of downtown Durham, North Carolina. Recognizing a vast contrast between EDCI’s vision and the current reality of the neighborhood, EDCI is developing a plan to create a continuum of services from birth through college or career. Key elements include early childhood services, elementary and secondary school improvements, family support, health and wellness, adult literacy and job training.

The initiative is modeled after the highly successful Harlem Children’s Zone, a pioneering, nonprofit, community-based organization that works to enhance the quality of life for children and families. EDCI is a program of the Center for Child and Family Health.