“It reframed how I read every application: not just ‘is this a good project,’ but ‘who actually has power in this group, and does that match who they say they serve?’”

The following is a reflection from Kwaku Asare, who has participated as a Community Grant Reader, Grow Grantmaking Committee member, and Seed Committee member, in addition to being a member of a grantee group. 

I'm a Worcester County-based community organizer and climate justice advocate, currently serving as a Core Member and Community Lead with RENEW.* My background blends nonprofit program leadership with a deep commitment to environmental and economic justice in the neighborhoods I call home. I believe community power, people organizing around their own needs, is what actually moves systems. 

I first signed up to be a Community Grant Reader when RENEW co-founder Jeuji Diamondstone introduced me to Grassroots Fund, seeing a fit between RENEW's values and the Fund's. I'd also helped write one of our grant applications and answered Program Managers' follow-up questions along the way. So when the opportunity came to join the final Grow Grantmaking Committee, I went for it, was selected, and the rest is history. 

What keeps me coming back to Grassroots Fund is that I've been on the applicant side myself – I know what it's like to write a grant and go through that process. Being on the Grantmaking Committee lets me see what groups are working on and where I can help if their approach doesn't quite match the requirements yet, so they can strengthen their applications and ultimately get their communities the support they need.

What’s stuck with me most from the experience has been the Guiding Practices themselves, especially Shifting Power in Decision-making the idea that a group's leadership should directly represent its community, with real transparency in how feedback happens. It reframed how I read every application: not just "is this a good project," but "who actually has power in this group, and does that match who they say they serve?" 

Another memory that has stuck with me is from an in-person Grantmaking Committee gathering at a Methodist church in Worcester. Between sessions, a group of us got into a wide-ranging conversation, everything from the ocean to land to space. It reminded me these spaces aren't just about scoring applications; they're a genuine community of people who care deeply about big questions, and about each other. 

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*RENEW builds community power around sustainability and environmental justice across Worcester, cultivating partnerships with municipal agencies, nonprofits, and civic stakeholders. Kwaku’s focus at RENEW has centered on facilitating board meetings and community events, and translating our programmatic work into communications that build trust with funders, government officials, and the public.