BQLT reached 99% of 2024 Campaign Goal with 102 donors!
In mid-November, BQLT kicked-off our 2024 BrooklynGives campaign with a $5,000 match challenge from Brooklyn Org and achieved it by midnight on #GivingTuesday Dec. 3rd!!! We successfully achieved a Sierra Club NYC $3,000 Match and a $1000 Match from Bonnie Webber. We raised $19,812 or 99% of our $20K goal from 101 donors, making us #5 on the Brooklyn Org Leaderboard for most number of donors.
BQLT is proud to be one of the 20 finalists for a 2025 Brooklyn Org Spark Prize, which celebrates the work of long-standing local organizations championing racial justice across issues and communities in Brooklyn. This entitled us to a $5000 Match as a finalist!
“Community gardens are intersectional solutions to multiple crises impacting human and environmental health. The Sierra Club proudly supports grassroots, community organizations, like the Brooklyn Queens Land Trust, that work to protect and promote their local ecosystems. Now, perhaps more than ever before, is the time for local, environmental stewardship and we thank the BQLT for their service.”
– Karl Palmquist, Chairperson, Sierra Club New York City Group
BIG THANKS to everyone who donated during our 2024 BrooklynGives Fundraising Campaign which features “Our Story” (see below) and our dedicated board members’ individual fundraiser pages too!
From BQLT’s “Our Story” on our 2024 BrooklynGives Fundraising Campaign Page:
We manage more than three acres — 37 community gardens — of shared community green spaces. We are in 18 diverse neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Queens. Many of our gardens date back to the 1970s and 80s and have long been hubs for growing food and gathering neighbors together.
Community gardens are vital green spaces in neighborhoods that have limited access to parks.
Since 2004, BQLT has been a 501(c)(3) with a unique mission and grassroots structure. We offer gardeners collective ownership and ability to maintain day-to-day control of the land. Many gardeners have looked after their gardens for decades. Our green spaces remain protected due in large part to BQLT’s stewardship and our grassroots fundraising efforts.
Your gift today will help strengthen the social fabric of these communities while making them healthier, safer, and more sustainable.
Our goal is to raise $20,000 for our 20th Anniversary in 2024!
Your donation will help with vital STEWARDSHIP DEFENSE measures for our 37 Community Gardens, including:
- Funds for the maintenance and repair of essential infrastructure, such as: fences, pathways, gazebos, sheds, raised planting beds, tree pruning, sidewalks, and clean soil.
- Expenses related to water usage, repairs and annual inspections of the 28 city water systems.
- Property and liability insurance coverage to safeguard all gardens within the community.
- Defense against encroachment to ensure our gardens remain fully operational year-round.
We are a small, but mighty grassroots organization! BQLT’s two-person staff and all-volunteer working board makes sure the gardens are protected. This allows our gardeners to focus on the work that they love — growing food and flowers, tending fruit trees, bee-keeping, composting, rainwater harvesting, hosting workshops, musical concerts + dance groups, teaching local school groups, building community, and more!
We hope you’ll join us this giving season in supporting our 37 community gardens. Check out our BQLT board members’ fundraiser profiles, showcasing our dedication and commitment to BQLT gardens and the organization as a whole.
Updated on 1/8/25
