UpRoot. ReImagine. ReBuild

Building resilient communities of health through integrated health and nutrition services rooted in a politic of racial liberation and economic justice.

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2023 CFHE IMPACT REPORT

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Eating Better Together

The Eating Better Together program serves children and families, provides access to healthy meal options, and increases nutrition literacy and knowledge. We seek to reduce the stigma associated with learning about nutritional health, any experience of food insecurity, and engaging in healthy behaviors.

2023 Impact Report

We address health and hunger issues in low-income and predominantly minority communities that are most commonly affected by a lack of healthy food options, unaffordability of healthy foods, and comprehensive wellness services.

Ujamaa Cafe

Ujamaa Cafe are cashless, grab-and-go, de-surveilled food access points that provide an innovative model for offering healthy food options to diverse patrons, sharing nutritional information, and supporting the local small business economy through strategic partnerships with food businesses and entrepreneurs.

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Coalition News

Dr. Leeja Carter, CFHE CEO & founder featured on AFROTECH along with the history and impact of CFHE’s Ujama Cafe and nutritrion program.

Dr. Leeja Carter, CFHE CEO & founder featured on AFROTECH along with the history and impact of CFHE’s Ujama Cafe and nutritrion program.

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Ujamaa Cafe Launches at Newark School of Data Science & Information Technology

Coalition Equity cut the ribbon at their newly launched Ujamaa Cafe, Sankofa Youth Incubator, & Youth Stem programs in partnership with the Newark School of Data Science & Information Technology.

Ujamaa Cafe Launches at Marion P. Thomas Charter School

Ujamaa Cafe launches at Marion P. Thomas Charter School along with announcing with their Sankofa Youth Incubator Program.
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Eyewitness News New York Features Ujamaa Cafe & CFHE CEO

St. Luke's Food and Clothing Pantry Gets Community Fridge

PATERSON, NJ – Visitors to the St. Luke’s Baptist Church food pantry now have access to healthy, premade meals thanks to the installation of a mobile refrigerator by the Coalition of Food and Health Equity.

First COVID, now inflation. $52M program to feed NJ's hungry is keeping restaurants open

When New Jersey launched a pilot program in December 2020, the idea was to fight the pandemic-prompted economic downturn on two fronts.

Jersey City Group Gets State Funding to Continue Fight Against Food Insecurity

New Jersey Development Authority (NJEDA) Sustain & Serve NJ Program which is seeking to purchase five million meals from more than 430 restaurants statewide.

30 NEW JERSEY NONPROFITS TO RECEIVE $17.5 MILLION IN GRANTS THROUGH NEW PHASE OF NJEDA PROGRAM SUPPORTING RESTAURANTS AND FAMILIES IN NEED

TRENTON, N.J. (July 8, 2022) – The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) today announced plans to award grants totaling $17.5 million to 30 nonprofit organizations through Phase 3 of its successful Sustain & Serve NJ program. Sustain & Serve NJ provides eligible entities with grants to support the purchase of meals from New Jersey restaurants that have been negatively impacted by COVID-19 and the distribution of those meals at no cost to recipients. The additional $17.5 million in awards announced today brings total program funding to $52.5 million.

COVID crisis created opportunity to feed North Jersey's hungry and save local restaurants

COVID-19 was a massive disrupter, but for some, like Leeja Carter, the pandemic proved serendipitous — in her case to help minority-owned restaurants and the poor, hungry and elderly.

Carter's Coalition for Food and Health Equity, a Black- and woman-led nonprofit that places hunger within the larger context of racial health equity and promotes economic equity within historically marginalized communities, is rooted in 2020's economic tempests.

United Passaic Organization closes out May with Two Huge Events

(PASSAIC, NJ) -- On Saturday, May 21, United Passaic Organization hosted a National Community Action Month kick-off celebration and resource fair. Three days later, UPO hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its full-service food pantry - equipped with a community refrigerator and free Saturday meals from a food truck - at Mt Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church.

“I am so overjoyed because the residents of Passaic finally have a rebirth of UPO,” Hall said. “For over 41 years, UPO has been in the City of Passaic. To have this rebirth of innovative and creative resources is astonishing. It’s so refreshing to be a part of this.”

Passaic's new food pantry offers an innovative approach to defeating hunger

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Upcoming Events

Joy Run 5k
Sun, Sep 22
Cooper River Park
Sep 22, 2024, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM EDT
Cooper River Park, N Park Dr, Pennsauken Township, NJ 08109, USA
Sep 22, 2024, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM EDT
Cooper River Park, N Park Dr, Pennsauken Township, NJ 08109, USA
Get ready for a day of joyful movement and collective freedom! The Joy Run 5k is an annual community event and fair, inviting participants of all ages to move for our collective wellness, joy, and liberation. Register, become a sponsor, or vendor!
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Vendors Wanted - Joy Run Community Fair
Sun, Sep 22
Cooper River Park
Sep 22, 2024, 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM EDT
Cooper River Park, 5300 N Park Dr, Pennsauken Township, NJ 08109, USA
Sep 22, 2024, 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM EDT
Cooper River Park, 5300 N Park Dr, Pennsauken Township, NJ 08109, USA
Calling all Vendors! We are excited to announce the upcoming Joy Run, taking place on September 22nd at Cooper River Park in Pennsauken NJ. As part of this event, we are inviting vendors to participate and showcase their products and services to a vibrant and enthusiastic community of runners.
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Margaritas for Meals - Bingo Boo Bash
Wed, Oct 30
The Table JC
Oct 30, 2024, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM
The Table JC, 400 Claremont Ave, Jersey City, NJ 07304, USA
Oct 30, 2024, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM
The Table JC, 400 Claremont Ave, Jersey City, NJ 07304, USA
Calling all ghouls and goblins! Tickets are on sale for Margaritas for Meals - Bingo Boo Bash! A fun time that includes the very best in spooky raffle prizes, margaritas, tacos, and bingo!
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Food Justice is a Black Maternal Health Imperative

Tonni Oberly, MPH, CHES, CLC

Apr 15
5 min

Food Justice is a Black Maternal Health Imperative

Tonni Oberly and Kelly Davis of the NBEC discuss the ways the quest for food justice is part of the journey towards birth justice.

Help us keep the Ujamaa Cafe fridges stocked and meeting the nutrition needs of children, seniors, cancer patients, and our most vulnerable communities across New Jersey and Philadelphia. Donate today.

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