named programs · 4 · from sources
What they call their work
Community Garden Support
Grassroots Gardens of WNY provides technical assistance, resources, and training to help communities establish and maintain school and community gardens across Buffalo and Niagara Falls.
Incubator Farm Program
Providence Farm Collective supports aspiring farmers from under-resourced communities by providing land, resources, and business development support to launch their own farm enterprises.
Urban Farm Day
Annual self-guided tour of over 20 urban and suburban farms in the Buffalo region, featuring educational talks, hands-on activities, and opportunities to purchase local produce and products.
Youth Employment Program
Massachusetts Avenue Project trains teens in urban agriculture, food systems advocacy, and nutrition education while providing job experience through farming and Mobile Market operations.
activities · 6 groups
What they do
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Public Garden Tours and Events 4 activities
- Organizing East Side Garden WalkHosts the free, self-guided East Side Garden Walk as a two-day annual event showcasing over 100 gardens on Buffalo’s East Side, including private homes, community gardens, and urban farms. The event promotes neighborhood revitalization, features live music, community art-making, children’s activities, and distributes free backpacks to children at designated sites.
- Organizing Garden Walk BuffaloOrganizes Garden Walk Buffalo, America's largest self-guided garden tour, featuring over 300 to 400 private, community, corporate, and church gardens annually in July. The event includes three official headquarters, shuttle bus service, visitor amenities, and attracts tens of thousands of visitors from across the U.S., Canada, and internationally.
- Producing virtual garden engagement programsProduces virtual garden engagement initiatives such as Garden Views, a digital celebration launched during the pandemic that included social media outreach, blog posts, videos, virtual tours, and digital maps for self-led exploration of Buffalo’s gardens.
- Supporting regional open garden tours and publicationsOrganizes juried and self-guided garden tours across Erie and Niagara counties, including evening and weekend events, and produces an annual Open Gardens Guide with maps, schedules, and garden descriptions available for purchase and in-person distribution during major events.
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Neighborhood Revitalization Initiatives 1 activity
- Advocating for neighborhood revitalizationEngages in advocacy efforts supporting East Side revitalization, including successful campaigns that contributed to securing a $743,000 NYS grant for streetscape repairs around the Freedom Wall.
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Curated Art Exhibitions and Public Displays 1 activity
- Delivering artist-in-residence and cultural programming in gardensRuns cultural engagement programs such as Artist in the Gardens and “Paint Outs,” where selected artists are compensated to create or perform in gardens during major events, engaging visitors—including children—with live demonstrations and participatory art activities.
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Flexible Grants to Grassroots Organizations 1 activity
- Funding community beautification projectsFunds garden beautification initiatives through grant programs including the Marvin Lunenfeld Beautification Grants and Garden Walk Beautification Grants, providing over $200,000 in support to block clubs and community groups for projects involving community gardens, planters, and garden restorations in Buffalo.
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Horticultural Education and Community Gardening 1 activity
- Hosting Urban Farm DayOrganizes an annual Urban Farm Day event featuring self-guided tours of over 15 to 20 urban farms across Buffalo, offering educational talks, workshops (including forest gardening), interactive nature experiences, scavenger hunts, and shopping opportunities. Launched in 2021, the event promotes urban agriculture practices such as chicken raising and greening vacant lots.
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Artist Marketplace Operations 1 activity
- Hosting annual Garden Art SaleHosts the annual Garden Art Sale in June at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, connecting over 50 local artisans and vendors selling garden-themed merchandise with the public. The event is part of broader garden-related programming and community engagement efforts.
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financials · form 990EZ · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$161K
Contributions & grants$119K74%
Program service revenue$17K10%
Investment income$4K3%
Other revenue—
expenses
Total expenses$161K
Program expenses—
Admin / overhead—
Fundraising—
Salaries & benefits$15K
Grants paid out$21K
balance sheet
Total assets$179K
Cash—
Investments—
Liabilities—
Net assets$179K
4 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue -2.6%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024
Who runs it
board members · 10
- Barbara Cavanagh — Director
- Catherine Carr Lincoln — Director
- Dorothy Weitz — Director
- Ellen Goldstein — Director
- Jo Ann Belliotti — Director
- Mara Montante — Director
- Nikki Ronan — Director
- Samantha White — Director
- Tyler Pendleton — Director
- Yolanda Fields — Director
relationships · 78
Who they work with
- 5 Loaves Farm Partner — Collaborates with 5 Loaves Farm to highlight youth employment, spiritual nourishment, and regenerative farming practices during the event.
- Arts Services Inc. Partner — Supports Artists in Open Gardens through funding and partnership.
- Arts Services Initiative Funder — Awarded a $5,000 SCR Community Arts/Arts Education Grant to launch the Artist in the Gardens program.
- BFLO Worm Works Partner — Includes BFLO Worm Works as a featured site offering vermicomposting tours and soil health workshops during Urban Farm Day.
- Badding Farm Market & Garden Center Partner — Distribution partner for the Open Gardens Guide
- British Hosta and Hemerocallis Society Partner — Mike Shadrack, GBN board member, is former chairman and executive bulletin editor of the British Hosta and Hemerocallis Society.
- Buffalo & Erie County Botanical Gardens Partner — Partnership to support regional garden events and educational programming.
- Buffalo & Erie County Botanical Gardens Partner — Provides setting and support for GBN’s annual Garden Art Sale.
- Buffalo & Erie County Public Library System Partner — Collaborates on outreach and educational components of garden-related events.
- Buffalo AKG Art Museum Partner — Promotes the East Side Garden Walk through exhibits.
- Buffalo Architecture Foundation Partner — Collects and shares stories and photos of Garden Walk Buffalo gardens.
- Buffalo Arts Studio Partner — Presenting partner for the Artists in Gardens program
- Buffalo Niagara River Land Trust Partner — Laurie Ousley, GBN President, is Development Director at Buffalo Niagara River Land Trust.
- Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy Partner — Collaborates on garden tourism and community beautification initiatives.
- Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy Partner — Provides space in Martin Luther King, Jr. Park for East Side Garden Walk and supplies annuals to gardeners.
- Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy Partner — Works with the East Side Garden Walk on initiatives related to gardening and public space enhancement.
- Buffalo Women of Environmental Learning and Leadership Partner — Deana Guarino, GBN Development Committee Chair, is Vice President of Buffalo Women of Environmental Learning and Leadership (BWELL).
- Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Garden Partner — Distribution partner for the Open Gardens Guide
- Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens Partner — Dorothy Weitz, GBN board member, is a long-time docent at the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens.
- Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens Partner — Hosts the Garden Art Sale on its grounds
- Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens Partner — Hosts the Garden Art Sale on its grounds.
- Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens Partner — Mike Shadrack, GBN board member, is a former board member of the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens and was chair of their Plant Collection Committee.
- Canisius High School Partner — Headquarters location for Garden Walk Buffalo and distribution of the Open Gardens Guide
- Canisius High School Partner — Hosts an official Garden Walk Buffalo event headquarters at its Field House location.
- Canisius High School Partner — Serves as one of the headquarters locations for Garden Walk Buffalo
- City of Light Consulting Partner — Nikki Ronan, GBN board member, is founder and lead consultant of City of Light Consulting.
- Cornell Cooperative Extension Erie Master Gardeners Partner — Works with GBN to support garden education and volunteer expertise.
- DeeplyRooted Community Garden Partner — Includes DeeplyRooted Community Garden as a participant promoting regenerative design and native food-producing ecosystems.
- Elmwood Village Association Partner — Provides space for GBN’s Conservation Day and supports Garden Walk Buffalo.
- Erie County Children’s Foundation Funder — Provided designated funding for the Children’s Garden Festival.
+ 48 more
strategies · 2
How they approach the work
Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.
- Experiential Education in Urban Agriculture and Sustainable Food Systemsmethodology: experiential_educationBy combining hands-on learning with accessible recreational activities in garden settings, the organization promotes public understanding of sustainable growing practices and local food systems because experiential engagement leads to deeper knowledge retention and behavior change than passive outreach.
- Gardening as a Tool for Community Building and Social Connectionmethodology: community_building_through_gardeningBy using community gardening and shared garden spaces as a platform for programming and events, the organization fosters social, cultural, and artistic connections that build vibrant, equitable, and resilient communities because shared stewardship of green space strengthens neighborhood bonds and reduces social isolation.