BALTIMORE (Map, News) - Stealing a page, perhaps, from the searing 1993 social study “The Dream and the Nightmare,” which attributed inner-city suffering as much to mind-set as money, multidimensional New Song Urban Ministries Inc. is now in the entrepreneur-development business.

“We have our first economic development partnership going with a resident in the community,” said New Song’s Antoine Bennett, who, along with Patty Prasada-Rao, is the co-executive director of the innovative community-development nonprofit.

A 1988 outreach of Presbyterian New Song Community Church, the nonprofit “holistically” addresses urban blight across housing, education, health care, employment, ex-offender recovery and substance abuse fronts in coordinated programs that stress local empowerment and focus attention on a 15-square-block area of West Baltimore’s 72-square-block Sandtown.

“For the comprehensive health of our neighborhood, we needed some economic growth here,” Prasada-Rao said, explaining that the prospective convenience store, Gary’s Goods, will be sited in a building rehabilitated for $220,000 by New Song and run by Sandtown resident Gary Palmer.

“This is a great opportunity for me and has changed my life,” Palmer said.

The $300,000-a-year, three-employee group coordinates the efforts of the Sandtown Habitat for Humanity, the New Song Community Learning Center, Eden Jobs and New Song’s community health and substance abuse centers. Respectively, they are the nonprofit’s component home building, K-8 quasi-charter school, employment development, and primary health care and recovery nonprofits.

In all, the organization employs about 70 mostly local people and has an annual budget of $5 million. It has rehabilitated 235 houses; graduated about 150 from its learning center; placed 1,300 in jobs, including many ex-offenders; and has treated upward of 6,000 patients a year in its clinic, Prasada-Rao said.

“The one thing that struck me about them was their holistic approach to community development,” said Bert Hash, chief executive officer of Municipal Employees Credit Union, a mortgagor of some 20 Sandtown properties. “Not only were they interested in providing housing to people but also health care and education and jobs.”

Comments from Examiner Readers

10:56 AM MST on Wed., May. 14, 2008 re: "Group seeks summer activities for low-income youth"

Examiner Reader said:
At least this time Mr. Corrigan wrote a variation on his theme of the past 10 weeks, instead of just the same story with different words.

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11:57 AM MST on Tue., Apr. 29, 2008 re: "Ministry stresses local entrepreneurship"

Examiner Reader said:
It seems as though the Examiner just lets Mr. Corrigan recycle the same story every week or so, and has let him do it for about the last 9 weeks. As much as I support recycling, I think it might be time for a new topic.

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4:59 PM MST on Thu., Dec. 6, 2007 re: "Washington-area nonprofits coordinate different crisis-management strategies"

Examiner Reader said:
It's only a matter of time. Plan thoroughly, consider all options, and where roadblocks are placed before you, find alternatives. Remember that during the Katrina evac, all the buses where in the up-scale part of town that the walkers from poor sections couldn't get to in time. Please be careful. People need you, but there are those who don't want you to succeed.

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8:32 AM MST on Thu., Nov. 22, 2007 re: "Study: Nonprofit employment growing faster than private sector"

Examiner Reader said:
With all the shady, non-taxed, I mean, so-called, non-profits in Maryland, working for a non-profit is working in the private sector.

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11:40 AM MST on Tue., Aug. 14, 2007 re: "Marian House helps at-risk women cultivate independence"

Huh? said:
"[T]his $1.6 million, 22-employee nonprofit has a track record to support its claim." Okay, fair enough. So, what's the track record? Also, if the org has helped about 1,000 women since 1994, that's fewer than 90 women per year and there are 22 employees! It had better be successful at that ratio. Another point: Not-for-profit is merely a tax status. It does not mean that administrators cannot earn a handsome salary. I am not suggesting that is the case here but there's a reason these places don't share that info without being asked.

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8:50 AM MST on Tue., Jul. 3, 2007 re: "Martha�s Place promotes hope for women overcoming addictions"

Examiner Reader said:
As a woman in recovery who needed balance in my life recovery houses such as M artha"s Place deserve to recieve all the available resources to help restore self-esteem, and save lives. How can we mimnimize lives by withholding funds. I am an alumni who's life has been restored because of Martha's Place! I thank God for Elder & Mrs.Harris for leaping out into an area many others have not and willnot accept the challenage to save lives!

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12:18 PM MST on Tue., Jun. 19, 2007 re: "Health Care for the Homeless to expand services"

Examiner Reader said:
Hi! Thank you so much for printing this article. It is a wonderful summary of what this incredible organization does. My husband works for Jeff Singer. Jeff is an incredibly humble, gracious and loving person. He truly cares about each person who comes through his Center. He deeply appreciates the job that everyone does on a daily basis. One can only truly appreciate the magnificent compassion and respect this organization offers to our homeless friends by visiting the center and helping face-to-face, hand-to-hand and heart-to-heart as this family reaches out to those in need. Thanks again for helping to make our neighbors aware of the needs of our brothers and sisters and the assistance provided by these loving angels of mercy!

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12:20 PM MST on Wed., May. 23, 2007 re: "D.C. charity helps kids pump clean water in Africa"

Matthew C. Andrea said:
Please post the contact information for PlayPumps International. This concept is brilliant, fun and uplifting. Definitely something that I would like to support.

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7:21 AM MST on Wed., May. 2, 2007 re: "Advisory board trims list of nonprofit grant applications"

Examiner Reader said:
When is Montgomery County going to realize that Casa of MD is taking them/us to the cleaners?

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