Case Studies
Massaro Community Farm
“Accomplishing its mission: Keep Farming. Feed People. Build Community.”In 2008 Jon Gorham joined with other local residents of Woodridge, CT to undertake the audacious project of rejuvenating an abandoned 57-acre farm. The barn, the farmer’s house and the poultry shed were all collapsing. As the project’s first Development Director, Jon spearheaded a two-year funding campaign that brought in over $500,000 to jumpstart the project. Today in 2026, the project is a model certified organic farm with over 300 subscribers to its CSA program while donating over 10,000 pounds of fresh organic produce each year to soup kitchens.
About 20% of America’s energy is used to produce food. Wastefully, one third of all food grown never makes into a person or animal’s mouth. For over a decade Massaro Farm has implemented a number of innovative regenerative agricultural practices. One of them is to use solar Photo Voltaic (PV) arrays. The farm raises chicken in a solar powered, mobile house which is moved every two weeks while the hens are producing eggs for the CSA subscribers.
Friends Center For Children
“Creatively addressing the American crisis in early childhood education”New Haven has a long-standing and urgent need for accessible high-quality early childhood care and education, especially for infants and toddlers. The vision for Friends Center for Children (FCfC) is to expand its reach to meet this need while helping make New Haven a model for Ideal Learning. FCfC is working to help more families access the kind of early childhood education that can make a world of difference in a child’s life. Teachers in the program can qualify for free housing within walking distance of the Center
Congresswoman Jahana Hayes
“Forcefully advocating for meaningful change in CT’s 5th District”In the 2024 fall election Congresswoman Jahana Hayes was targeted by the Trump team as a winnable seat for the GOP. A grassroots team of volunteers worked tirelessly to help the Congresswoman retain er seat by doing all of the following: write postcards, phone bank, canvass, attend fundraisers and use innovative new education and fundraising tools such at the nesting, origami boxes. The Congresswoman beat her 2024 opponent by a margin 10x greater than when she won in 2022.