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Community Impact

Here are a few milestones we've reached:

February 2022

Began a twice monthly food pantry distribution to Community families in need through a grant award of $100,000 from the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs’ Community Development Block Grant funding.  The ACDC, in coordination with Yorktown Missionary Baptist Church, distributes a balanced array of fresh produce, proteins, beverages and canned and packaged goods at the Robert L. Hope Community Center to an average of 135 families at each distribution, and supports Yorktown with its twice monthly distribution at the church.  These events are critical for the Community which is located in a “food dessert,” an area that has limited access to affordable and nutritious food.  Application for the grant in 2023-2024 is underway.

2019-2021

  • Established two improved gateway signs on Africatown Boulevard; 

  • Had a mural of the Clotilda – the last slave ship to the U.S. –painted  on Africatown Boulevard;

  • Partnered with the City of Mobile and Alabama Power on an exterior painting project for eight homes in the Community;

  • Restored the interior, exterior, porches, bathrooms, and floors in seven homes in the neighborhood;

  • Replaced three roofs;

  • In partnership with the State of Alabama Fortified Homes roofing project, installed 12 new roofs;

  • Installed an above-ground vegetable garden for Mobile County Training School students;

  • Installed 150 smoke detectors in Community homes;

  • Supported Kidd Park with sports equipment, uniforms and food;

  • Supported the Mobile County Training School with painting projects, sponsorship of Fall Festivals, purchase of baseball and softball equipment, purchase of a sofa for the teachers’ lounge and mowing grass to maintain the school campus;

  • Partnered with the Elk’s Club for youth initiatives, including Christmas toy distributions and Easter Egg hunts;

  • Hosted the Africatown Sports, Leadership and Academic Camp for 10 years;

  • Hosted several Community cleanup events with the U.S. Navy from Pensacola;

  • Cut grass and cleaned up blighted areas on a regular basis;

  • Partnered with Mobile County on the Heirship Workshop for land rights;

  • Planted crepe myrtle trees on several Community streets; and 

  • Helped to establish the Mobile County Training School Alumni Den with its rich historical artifacts and memorabilia.

February 2018

  • Was granted a RESTORE ACT Council grant of $3.5 million to construct an official Welcome Center for the Africatown Community.  In addition to serving as a welcome and tourist information center, the new facility may also serve as the site for the permanent exhibition of Clotilda artifacts.

  • Became the recipient of the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs’ Healthy Food Financing Program with a grant to support the continued development of its Jake’s Lane Community Garden and MarketPlace to sell fresh produce within and outside the Community. Space for the MarketPlace is currently under development by Mobile County.

January 2018

  • ​Hosted explorer, journalist and author Ben Raines, and became an international resource for the Africatown Community upon his discovery of what was believed to be the remains of the Clotilda, the last illegal ship with enslaved people into the U.S., carrying the ancestors of members of the Africatown Community and ACDC Board member.  News organizations deemed it the most culturally significant find in the U.S.  The discovery of the Clotilda was confirmed in 2019.

July 2017

  • Worked with ALDOT, Arc Terminals (now Zenith Energy) and other public and private partners to host the successful, inaugural “Africatown Bridge Challenge,” the first-ever fundraising event for the Community that brought over 560 diverse entrants to walk and run over the Africatown Bridge and raise funds for the Community Garden and MarketPlace.  Additional races were hosted in 2019 and 2022 and the ACDC hopes to make this a regular, annual event.

2016

  • The ABCP provided matching funds for a Strengthen Alabama Homes initiative grant received from the State of Alabama that inspected and repaired 60 neighborhood homes, allowing residents to stay in their homes and make them more resilient to inclement weather.

2015

  • In partnership with Alabama Power, the Alabama Department of Agriculture and other public and private partners, launched a successful Jake’s Lane Community Garden to serve as a social and education center and provide fresh vegetables for the Community, located in a “food desert.”  The quantity and variety of fresh produce grows with each passing season, along with the addition of commercial grade gardening equipment.  Upon establishment of the MarketPlace facilities by Mobile County, the fresh produce will be provided to the Community, and excess produce may be purchased outside the Community.

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