New Museum Will Further Tell the Powerful Stories of the Negro Leagues Baseball Players

The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (NLBM) announced it has been awarded a $1 million grant from Bank of America in support of the museum’s $25 million capital campaign to build a new 30,000 square-foot facility. This funding will enable the NLBM to provide the latest state of the art technology that will be used to promote diversity, inclusion, and equity through the lens of America’s unsung baseball heroes who overcame tremendous social adversity to play baseball.  The announcement was made at the NLBM with bank and museum officials alongside Congressman Emanuel Cleaver; Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas; Frank White, Jr., Jackson County Executive; Kathy Nelson, President & CEO, Kansas City Sports Commission and John Sherman, Chairman & CEO Kansas City Royals.

To coincide with the bank’s commitment of the new museum, Major League Baseball alumni players David DeJesus, Rajai Davis, and Dexter Fowler will take part in a Bank of America “Play It Forward” baseball clinic on Saturday, May 6 for 50 area youth from the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. The Clinic coincides with the celebration of the winning spirit of the Kansas City Monarchs and is held on the anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s first game with the team.

The new state of the art facility will be built adjacent to the Buck O’Neil Education and Research Center (BOERC) which will now be housed in the former Paseo YMCA. That historic building is where Andrew “Rube” Foster established the Negro Leagues in 1920. With help from the anchor grant, the new NLBM, in combination with the BOERC, will create a “Negro Leagues Campus” that will become the gateway into Kansas City’s famed Historic 18th & Vine District. This will be a catalyst for economic growth in a vastly underserved, predominantly African American community.

The bank’s support will allow the NLBM to expand programming, create dynamic interactive displays, house a gallery to showcase new exhibitions, feature a larger gift shop, and include a more expansive archival and storage space.

“Thanks to the generosity and continued support of Bank of America, the future of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum begins today,” said Bob Kendrick, museum president. “Our growth from a one-room office to becoming America’s National Negro Leagues Baseball Museum has been an amazing journey. Now, we’re building an organization that will continue to preserve and celebrate the triumphant story of the Negro Leagues but also fortify our position as one of the nation’s most important civil rights and social justice institutions,” Kendrick said.

The grant is part of Bank of America’s overall commitment to strengthening the Kansas City community by addressing key issues fundamental to economic opportunity and social progress. It also builds on Bank of America’s efforts to advance racial equality and opportunity for communities of color. The new facility will integrate a blend of technology and nostalgia to create an immersive culturally enriched experience that enlightens students and adults about a precious piece of baseball and Americana that has been excluded from the pages of American history books.

“We share NLBM’s mission to preserve and celebrate the rich history of African American baseball and its impact on the social advancement of America,” said Matt Linski, president, Bank of America Kansas City. “Our commitment recognizes the importance – culturally and economically – of the 18th & Vine District to Kansas City today and we hope it will be an example for other funders to follow. Additionally, this grant is paramount to ensuring greater understanding and better appreciation of the many contributions African Americans have made and continue to make, including Jackie Robinson breaking the Major League color barrier.”

This announcement is the latest in a series of investments that Bank of America has made in the Kansas City community. Bank of America has invested more than $13 million in grants and sponsorships since 2020 as well as capital investments to help small businesses, affordable housing, and other economic revitalization projects benefiting communities throughout Kansas City.

Bank of America’s relationship with the NLBM dates back to the 1980s with bank leaders having served on the original 18th & Vine Authority Board that established the district. Bank of America funded the exhibition Discovering Greatness that traveled to all Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) campuses to reach young African Americans who might otherwise have been unaware of their Negro Leagues heritage. In 2008, the museum presented Bank of America the prestigious Buck O’Neil Legacy Award. In 2019, the museum was selected for Neighborhood Builders®, Bank of America’s signature philanthropic program and received $2000,000 grant for operational funding and leadership training.   President Bob Kendrick has provided thought leadership at numerous Bank of America events including Courageous Conversations over the past three years and at the recent opening of the Barrier Breakers exhibition at Dodger Stadium. The NLBM has been part of the bank’s Museums on Us® program for many years.

For more information, please visit: www.nlbm.com/pitchforthefuture

Bank of America Giving $25 Million in Support Black and Latino Financial Insitutions Across the US

The National Alliance of Latino CDFI Executives (NALCE), an initiative of the National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders, and the African American Alliance of CDFI CEOs (The Alliance) will receive $25 million in total funding from Bank of America to support minority-led CDFIs in their networks. Both alliances represent over 130 Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) led by people of color that possess the cultural competency to specifically serve Latino and African American communities.

Compared to minority-led CDFIs, white-led CDFIs have a median asset size 2.5 times larger, according to a HOPE Policy Institute study of CDFI Fund activity over a 15-year period. This is an example of how even the very institutions that have been erected to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities can sometimes mirror the biases that exist in society.

NALCE and The Alliance will use this investment to grow the capacity of their member CDFIs. CDFIs are locally-based institutions that best know the issues faced by their low- and moderate-income minority communities and can bring to bear the cultural and linguistic skills to serve them. As a result, NALCE and The Alliance members are uniquely positioned to offer low-cost loans, access to capital and financial counseling services to individuals and businesses nationwide.

“This example of Black and Latino alliances working collaboratively will serve as a model for other coalitions to effectively reach diverse communities of color,” said Marla Bilonick, President & CEO of NALCAB and NALCE Chair. “CDFIs are one of the most impactful vehicles for equitable economic investment in traditionally underinvested communities, yet the very CDFIs that are most qualified to serve OUR communities struggle to be equitably capitalized. This collaboration demonstrates that opportunities and impact are literally doubled when we work together.”

“We are thrilled to partner with NALCAB for this announcement as we further build our partnership. This is a historic investment from Bank of America that recognizes the importance of minority-led CDFIs and advances economic empowerment in their communities,” said Lenwood V. Long, Sr, President & CEO of The Alliance. “Having the opportunity to be part of this coalition and investment fuels our movement's capacity and promises a path to larger future investments in developing the pipeline of Latino and African American-Led CDFIs.”

Bank of America is the largest private investor in CDFIs in the United States, with more than $2 billion in loans and investments currently disbursed in more than 250 CDFIs in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. “We are working across our company to address important societal priorities, including racial equality and economic opportunity,” said Dan Letendre, CDFI Executive at Bank of America. “NALCAB and The Alliance member CDFIs are uniquely positioned to understand the issues faced by their communities and bring to bear the necessary financial and cultural skills to serve them.”

Photos of slave descendants donated to Smithsonian

A "time capsule" of photographs documenting the descendants of enslave African-Americans on a long-isolated island off the South Carolina-Georgia coast will have a new home at the Smithsonian's African-American history museum.

Bank of America, which has a vast art collection it lends to museums, donated a collection of 61 photographs by Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe, the wife of the late tennis player Arthur Ashe, to the museum on Monday. Officials tell The Associated Press the bank will also give $1 million to help build the $500 million museum. This is the bank's second $1 million donation.

Read more here: http://www.nola.com/arts/index.ssf/2014/03/photos_of_slave_descendants_do.html