Our Stories
#BeTheFirst Fashion Guru and Community Volunteer
Tyrone Freeman first came to Urban Upbound over five years ago. After working in high-end fashion and operations for over 30 years, he found himself unemployed and unfamiliar with the...
#BeTheFirst Green Energy Expert
January 2016, Urban Upbound celebrated with Mark Guzman as he secured a full-time position at the Association for Energy Affordability, an agency contracted by Con Edison to make public housing developments...
#BeTheFirst UU Student, Macaulay Honor, and Aspiring Investment Banker
Ali joined the Urban Upbound College Access Program for the SAT Prep, and continued participating for application mentoring, and FAFSA and financial aid counseling. Ali is a first generation college...
#BeTheFirst Immigrant and Single Mother Blazes a Path to Independence
Kumarie Francis was born in Trinidad & Tobago, and moved to the United States fifteen years ago. As a single mother of four and an immigrant, she knows first-hand the...
Wesley Bryant
Wesley, a senior at Evangel Christian High School and resident of Ravenswood Houses, enrolled in Urban Upbound’s College Access Program in September of 2012. He attended Urban Upbound’s SAT...
Shanna Ray
Shanna Ray, a Queensbridge resident, was unemployed and had a strong desire to continue contributing to her household income. Shanna enrolled in Urban Upbound’s Workforce Development program and worked with...
Jennifer Roman
When Jennifer Roman enrolled in Urban Upbound’s Jobs-Plus program, she had been unemployed for two years and was overwhelmed with her student loan debt and other aspects of her financial...
Freddie Cosmo
Freddie Cosmo learned about Urban Upbound’s Financial Fitness program from the NYC Office of Financial Empowerment website. When Freddie started working with Urban Upbound’s financial counselor, he was between jobs...
Robert Hugee
Robert Hugee, a resident of Ravenswood Houses, struggled with finding work after he was laid off and had experienced several personal setbacks. Robert joined Urban Upbound’s Workforce Development program where...
Shuave Jackson
Shuave Jackson grew up in Queensbridge Houses, the largest public housing development in the nation. At the age of four, Shuave lost her mother to cancer. We got to know...
Joanne Butler
Joanne Butler calls the Urban Upbound Federal Credit Union a “caring institution.” She opened a savings account at the credit union in 2012 after hearing about it from an Urban...
Kurtar Barlas
Three years ago Kurtar Barlas was a very worried man. He received threatening letters from credit card companies and was struggling to repay high interest rate debts. A widower, Kurtar had...
Christina Barron
For Christina Barron, college was a mystery. No one in her family had gone to college. And in Astoria Houses, where she lives, most of her neighbors had never set...
Once deep in debt, Johanna Flores is pursuing her dream of owning her own home
When Johanna Flores found out her parents had fallen into hard times she knew she had no choice but to help. Her father was ill and had lost his job....
Good Food For Thought
Constantina Hernandez has two young children and little income coming in. She knew about food stamps but the paperwork to apply was simply overwhelming. An immigrant from Mexico, she speaks...
Friendly Chinese Kitchen
When Ling Hing Wong opened a Chinese restaurant in 1979 across the street from the Queensbridge public housing development, few people gave him much of a chance to succeed. After all, that...
Back On Track
Mayria Negron, a 48 year-old Ravenswood resident and a single mother of three children, was laid off from her job as a Nutritionist Aide at Mount Sinai Hospital in June...
Urban Upbound Tax Prep Provides a Second Chance
Marleny Acevedo lives in Queensbridge houses with her husband and their two children. Marleny came to Urban Upbound in need of tax preparation services. An Urban Upbound Tax preparer informed Ms. Acevedo...
Arika Akhtar
Arika Akhtar, an 18 year-old Queensbridge Houses resident, became very interested in applying to college. Arika was very afraid and confused by the application process and getting funding for school....
Wayne Wallace
Wayne Wallace, a local entrepreneur, started Patties and Pastries restaurant on 13th Street & 40th Avenue in Long Island City, New York. The 300 square foot shop was an overwhelming...
Dion Moore
Dion Moore, father of two, was laid off from a trucking company after working there for over 13 years. He turned to Urban Upbound for help, where he received one-on-one...
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