North-Oak NRZ Helping and Advocating for Neighborhood

When Pastor Dana Smith, President of the North-Oak Neighborhood Revitalization Zone (NRZ), looks around his neighborhood, he sees a lot of work that is needed.

Since he was elected as president of the North-Oak neighborhood’s community organization last February, Smith and the NRZ have maintained active work for the neighborhood’s residents.

As difficult as the challenges were facing New Britain’s poorest neighborhood in February, within only weeks of Smith’s election, the obstacles were made all the more difficult by the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic’s economic impacts have fallen most heavily on the people who could least afford it, which, of course, meant that its effects have been felt severely by North-Oak neighborhood residents.

Smith and other NRZ leaders responded to the new challenge by working with other community partners to collect and distribute donations of food and supplies to people who have been struggling. The most recent such event was the “Community Event” held on October 10, 2020 at the Friendship Center’s Howey House on North Street.

That event was sponsored by the Berlin Lions Club, Teeza Barbershop, New Life II Ministries, Greater New Britain Re-Entry, the Community Chest of New Britain and Berlin and the NRZ. A similar event was held on September 5th.

Meanwhile, NRZ Vice-President Manny Sandoval wrote a children’s book about the questions and concerns kids have about COVID-19. His book, What is a Pie Medic? (Pandemic), is about a little girl named Ireni, and her experiences during the pandemic. “The NRZ has included the book in its COVID Care Kits that are currently being given out to North Oak families,” the book’s description said during the time of its publication.

Most recently, the NRZ has announced a collaboration with the Human Resources Agency to distribute Thanksgiving turkeys for neighborhood residents in need.

While maintaining social distancing, these activities have helped provide aid to people in need and raised spirits for neighborhood residents during the challenging months.

But Smith and the NRZ are also looking beyond the immediate challenges, toward the long term advancement of the neighborhood. Since August, the NRZ has been reaching out to local non-profit organizations and agencies to ask each of them to work with the NRZ on, “what the NRZ hopes to achieve and the role that your organization, by virtue of your capabilities, mission and programs, can do to advance the NRZ’s objectives.”

The NRZ sees agencies, including Community Mental Health Affiliates, the Human Resources Agency, the Friendship Center, the Wheeler Clinic, City Hall and the city Police, among others, as having an important role to play the work ahead.

As he looks around the neighborhood, Smith observes that it is not much better off, now, than it was decades ago, with similar economic, housing and quality of life challenges. But he sees that as a sign of the work that is needed, advocating for the community.

The NRZ has continued to hold its meetings, taking advantage of the warm weather to maintain social distancing outdoors by meeting at Willow Street Park. Through those efforts and its community work, North-Oak NRZ has continued to maintain activism that has been the organization’s hallmark for many years.