Beyond the BPC: A House on Beekman

By: Tracy Thorton

Only a few months after my Not-For Profit, A House on Beekman, won the Center for Faith & Work EI Business Plan Competition (BPC), it became clear to me that big changes were ahead. I had heard how difficult the first year of a venture can be, and I wanted to be able to devote my full time to being a Director of Operations.  In order to be able to more fully utilize my organizational gifting and leadership to balance the vision, creativity and passion of our Executive Director, Sara Miller, I would need to leave my job as the Children’s Director at Redeemer Presbyterian Church.    

At the time I left Redeemer staff, I felt confident that I was doing the right thing, but unsure as to how God would provide the means of support. Sara lives in Mott Haven which gives her the opportunity to love her neighbors well. My passion was to help connect outside resources to this community and my job at Redeemer had proved beneficial in the past. After serving in Manhattan for six years, many of the people I know have given their time, resources, and finances to our organization.

In the neighborhood, our goal is to help break the cycles of poverty. We aim to do this by creating a seamless series of programs from birth to college. I have loved watching our “Mommy and Me” kids learn and grow and especially watching our moms learn how to better parent their children. In our afterschool programming, it is amazing to see kids learn new academic skills as well as grow in their character. It has been especially fun to dream with our families about starting a preschool to help kids in the Bronx be prepared for elementary school.

However, ministry in Mott Haven is hard and we have had our share of tough times. Our moms have had fist fights during class, one of our babies was killed last year, and while we have rented a new space the heat is not adequate which makes the facility very cold.  If I was not clear of my calling, it would easily be less risky.

After winning the BPC, A House on Beekman became an affiliate of Hope for New York. This has helped tremendously with finances, coaching, support, and volunteers. It helped legitimize us since we are such a young organization and within the last month we have received a 501c3 status as a not-for-profit. We were able to get our legal work done pro-bono, and we have been well supported by both of our church communities at Redeemer and Trinity Grace. It cannot be underestimated how much it helps to have both of these churches behind us in significant ways.

Starting a nonprofit has been one of the most exciting and scary things I have ever done. The past year has felt a lot like a roller coaster ride with all the ups and downs. While I have loved the autonomy it is scary to think how often I have started my sentences with “I have never…”  I joke often that I am acquiring a very strange set of skills that don’t seem to go together including negotiating leases, attending meetings with the Health Department, learning about tax forms and filings, and general contracting work to name a few.

One of the greatest challenges has been the sheer amount of work it takes to keep Beekman going.  It can easily consume all of your time and energy when there is no one to delegate to. This year my goal is to be more balanced with my time and every day challenges this goal.  That being said, I thank God for the privilege of getting to spend all of my time on a job and community that I feel so strongly about and love. For me the greatest privilege of my life has been being a part of A House on Beekman.