Overall Needs – The Rocketown Investment Plan
In January 2010, Nashville’s Metro Council approved the replacement of the convention center with the Music City Center project. While this project is slated to bring significant revenue to the Nashville community, it also required several downtown organizations and businesses to relocate. Rocketown is one of those organizations – we vacated our Sixth Avenue location in April 2010.
We received funds from the city for our property that we used to purchase a new building at 601 Fourth Ave. South. However, those funds do not allow us to have the same amount of space for the quality services we currently offer to the youth of Middle Tennessee. We opened in August 2010, but we still need to pay for the construction that has occurred as well as we still need additional construction to be able to offer what we offered before.
Additionally, we need to be able to serve the kids who come here better. We have partnered with J.C. Napier homes, a local housing project, to offer after-school services to the kids who live there. This increases the number of scholarships we offer as well as the number of kids we feed through the Rocketown Food Program. We have more kids who need personalized attention, and we need more staff to build those relationships and offer more services.
The Rocketown Investment Plan is designed to address all of these needs. Raising $3.8 million by December 2011 allows the completion of our new location and to continue and improve operations at Rocketown. These funds will allow us to relocate the skatepark and build a small gymnasium, expanded program space, a small music venue where local bands and high school kids can gain performance experience, two music practice rooms, and centrally-located office space. These funds will also allow us to expand programs, increase our tutoring and mentoring services, and offer more outreach opportunities to at-risk youth who are in need of a safe place like Rocketown.
All donations made under the Rocketown Investment Plan will provide 60% of your contribution to support capital expenses and 40% to support operational costs. This allows your gift to be used in the most efficient capacity while meeting the greatest amount of need. Additionally, any gift you make through the Rocketown Investment Plan by December 31, 2010 will be matched through the generosity of the Cal Turner Family Foundation up to $500,000.
None of us alone can change the world. But together, we can change the world for good, one kid at a time. We do that by investing our time, talent, and treasures. It is an investment that will reap enormous dividends in their lives and impact the next generation of Nashville’s teens…and beyond.
