This month, the Albuquerque Living Cities Integration Initiative was honored to be a recipient of the Albuquerque Community Foundation’s Great Grant Giveaway, bringing in a total of $38,562 in grant prizes from the event. Other recipients for this year’s “Partnerships” themed awards included The Downtown Arts and Culture District and Healthy Neighborhoods ABQ. In total, over $105,000 was awarded to the grantees, each taking home more than $30,000 to support their work.

Robin Brulé, Chief Strategist for Albuquerque’s Integration Initiative, said, “We are very proud and grateful to have been chosen as a recipient of Great Grant Giveaway this year. The funds will support our work focused on creating ten-thousand new, living-wage jobs in Albuquerque by 2025 with a focus on racial and income equity.” The Integration Initiative’s Leadership Team will vote in the coming weeks to allocate these funds to a pilot program (or programs), potentially supporting Co-op Capital, the Molino Project or Business Navigators.

Great Grant Giveaway was attended by more than 700 people this year. Each table of ten attendees was given the opportunity to decide which partnership would receive their table’s $500 grant. Organizations and donors were also given the opportunity to contribute additional funds, and in the end, the event saw a record amount of donations. The ceremony was opened by Albuquerque’s three Poets Laureate, who performed for the first time ever together on stage, reminding the audience about the one “thing we need most: each other.”

Congratulations to Healthy Neighborhoods ABQ and the Downtown Arts and Culture District! See our video and tweets from the event below: