Ellen, Hope and Gus

Dear Friends,

On hot summer days like today—the days that our friend Hope Reichbach loved most of all—it’s hard to believe she’s been gone for fifteen months. On July 14th, we lost Hope’s greatest role model and mentor—her father, Gus Reichbach. As a community, we gather again to reflect on how best to honor this incredible public servant, father, and progressive leader. Hope was her father’s daughter through and through, and we know that we can best honor Gus by honoring her.

Last summer, though our grief was still raw, we began thinking what we could do to honor Hope. We set out to create something in memory of the intrepid, ambitious 22-year-old young woman we so missed. A core group of Hope’s friends began meeting on Bond Street in Brooklyn, in the house where Hope was raised and where her mom, Ellen Meyers, still makes her home.

And so we created the Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund, a fund that would give young people opportunities to work toward social justice and progressive values in Brooklyn, as Hope had done. The fund provides generous stipends to college students in financial need for summer internships in Brooklyn-based community organizing, activism, and civic leadership.

This summer, the interns we’ve selected are bright, dynamic, and eager to make a positive impact on the world. These five interns recently began working at a great group of Brooklyn-based organizations that are offering opportunities for civic participation in many forms.

Hope’s much too short life continues to influence the politics, policies, and lives of the people of Brooklyn through the impact our interns are making on this community, and the influence the program will have on their paths. One year later, we are resolved to continue Hope’s legacy in this way.

July 24th would have been Hope’s 24th birthday. Please consider honoring her memory by making a gift to the Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund. The support of the community Hope built allows her values and her spirit to live on. Thank you for being a part of the Circle of Hope.

Donate online:

http://www.brooklyncommunityfoundation.org/give/hope-reichbach-fund

Donate by mail:
Please make checks payable to the Brooklyn Community Foundation–note the Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund in the memo section of the check. Donations to the Brooklyn Community Foundation for the Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund are tax deductible as provided by law.

Brooklyn Community Foundation / Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund
Attn: Development Office
45 Main Street, Suite 409
Brooklyn, NY 11201

Much love,
Hope’s friends and family

Introducing the inaugural class of Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund recipients:

The HRMF interns, with their organizations and with representatives of the fund. Front row, from left to right: Ellen Meyers (HRMF), Rebecca Karasik (HRMF), Benedict L. Joson (Recipient), Brenda Aracely Grande (Recipient), Nia Gumbs (Recipient), Colleen Mims (Recipient), Ariel Estrella (Recipient)

All of us at the Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund are proud to present our interns for the Summer 2012 session. These five amazing candidates stood out from a selection group for over 30 applicants. We look forward to getting to know them better over the summer and continuing to work with them for many years to come.

Benedict J. Joson was born in Bulacan, Philippines, where he spent the first 5 years of his life. In 1996, Benedict moved with his grandparents to New York City. To better integrate into the culture and to learn the English language, he attended St. Sebastian School in Woodside, New York. This experience opened his mind to the possibilities of education and society. He graduated with achievements in 2007 and continued on to Archbishop Molloy High School in Briarwood, New York. Academic, athletic, and extracurricular programs nurtured him in body, mind, and spirit. He graduated in 2010 and moved on to CUNY Hunter College in New York, New York. Eager to contribute and learn more about campus life and the college, he decided to join the Undergraduate Student Government. His involvement has been a catalyst for a future in service and leadership in the government and society.

Brenda Aracely Grande is from New York City. She is currently a sophomore at Mount Holyoke College, majoring in English, with a minor in Law and Public Policy. She is interested in law and plans to be an immigration lawyer because she has been surrounded by the political prejudices against undocumented immigrants. She likes to be active in Latino issues and is a member of MEChA, the Chicano club on campus, for which she is the treasurer. Her other interests include literature, which is why she decided to become an English major. She also enjoys writing and enhancing her writing skills.

Nia Gumbs is 19 years old and attends SUNY Geneseo. She is currently a sophomore, majoring in Childhood with Special Education. In 2011, she co-founded the volunteer group Hearts for Sammy, a group that raises money each year to donate to the Children’s Heart Link Foundation for Congenital Heart Defect Disease. In 2012, she organized the Geneseo Hoodie March for Trayvon Martin. She is also involved in various organizations, such as Women’s Leadership Institute, the Black Student Union, and FACE AIDS. In fall of 2012, she will be the public relations representative for FACE AIDS and part of the Women’s Leadership Professional Development Team. After graduation, she wants to teach in inner-city schools, because she feels that she can relate to those students and help them, since she used to be an inner-city school student herself. She understands the struggle for students who attend inner city schools and, as someone dedicated to working towards success, she feels that it is her job to give back and to help disadvantaged students to excel.

Colleen Mims is a sophomore at Kingsborough Community College, majoring in Business Administration. Throughout the past five years, Colleen has contributed to her home, Brooklyn, by participating in groups like Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Center, College for Kids, Kingsborough’s Honor Society, Student World Assembly and others. She has tutored children in music, English and Math; opened an art gallery gift shop; helped Brooklyn’s environment by participating in campus clean-ups; planted trees; and promoted good environmental practice by creating compost piles and coming up with ideas to help her college’s urban farm. She writes poetry and participates in student publications, Business Council and other clubs at Kingsborough. Colleen plans on starting her own daycare by age 22 and attending Howard University after she graduates from Kingsborough. She currently operates an online jewelry and clothing business.

Ariel Estrella was born and raised in Queens. She studied at Hunter College High School and graduated from City-As-School, and is currently a student at Macalester College. She intends to double major in English and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. She participates in many school organizations and committees relating to gender and sexuality issues, including organizations that promote feminism, anti-sexism, the LGBTQ community, sex-positivity, and all-gender spaces/issues. Off-campus, she plans to begin working with a nonprofit that hosts a mentoring program for young women. She is also passionate about art, community activism, fighting against gentrification, and improving access to better education and community resources for urban youth (especially those from historically marginalized identities). She hopes to create even more opportunities in the future for empowering youth and the communities in which they live, carrying on the transformative spirit of Hope herself in the best way that she can.

Our mission at the Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund is to provide vital learning experiences and career development for students, inviting them into a network centered around Hope Reichbach’s memory and values of active leadership and communal responsibility.

Please rollover How to Apply in the top navigation to access the instructions and a link to the PDF of the Application.

UPDATE: The application period for Summer 2012 has ended. Internships will be announced on April 28. Check back in January 2013 for the next round of applications.

On October 20, 2011, about 100 people came together at Hope’s tree at Borough Hall to celebrate the launch of the fund. Read the full story here and see video of the event below:

Website currently under construction.

The Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund provides scholarships for Brooklyn-based students
who take internships in civic leadership and community organizing. We will continue
Hope’s legacy of progressive values and passion for Brooklyn in the following ways:

• Provide stipends to dedicated college students who embody the values Hope
  stood for
• Facilitate internships with Brooklyn organizations involved in local issues and
  activism
• Provide mentorship and a network of contacts to our students; enhancing their
  career development
• Create a new generation of leaders in Brooklyn

Hello, and thank you all for coming. I’d like to take this opportunity to tell you more about the goals of the Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund. After Hope died, we all came together to brainstorm the best way we could carry on her legacy. Since that first meeting in June, we have devoted ourselves to create a fund that embodies the values of active leadership and communal responsibility that was once instilled in Hope’s tireless pursuits. We’ve partnered with the Brooklyn Community Foundation because of their commitment to improving Brooklyn’s diverse neighborhoods and communities.

With your help, so far we’ve raised over 50 thousand dollars that will help underprivileged Freshman and Sophomore college students gain invaluable internship experiences in the place that was closest to Hope’s heart, Brooklyn. These stipends are intended to connect talented and dedicated students who have demonstrated interest in civic leadership and community organizing with Brooklyn organizations involved in local issues and activism.

Hope was the type of person who wanted to connect people from all different walks of life. With this Fund we wish to bridge gaps and overcome obstacles that inhibit students from making the connections they need to advance in a career path. Often the most rewarding way to make these connections is through an internship, but most are unpaid because of lack of funding. While some students of means are able to take full advantage of these opportunities, there are many qualified students from low-income communities who unfortunately miss out on worthwhile unpaid internships due to financial difficulties. With these stipends the Brooklyn community will find their talented and indispensable interns who consequently benefit by expanding their professional network. Ultimately, by continuing this Fund a new generation of Brooklyn leaders will graduate from these experiences.

In addition to this we invite these grantees to join our larger family through a mentorship program with those of us in the Steering Committee. As part of the Steering Committee, we look to strengthen the bonds of a network that Hope created and subsequently share the benefits of being connected with such an eclectic and talented group of people. We all come from different backgrounds but we all loved Hope. Although no one was more devoted to this borough, in this small way we will invigorate Brooklyn with Hope’s tenacity. Thank you again for taking the time to join us today, and for your continued support. Hope For Brooklyn.

Donate now by clicking here.

Donations to the Brooklyn Community Foundation for the Hope Reichbach Memorial Fund are tax deductible as provided by law.

A copy of the Brooklyn Community Foundation’s latest annual report is available from The Brooklyn Community Foundation, 45 main St. Ste. 409, Brooklyn, NY 11201, or by writing to the Charities Bureau, Office of the Attorney General of the State of New York, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271.