August 14, 2020 HBI Makes Way for Wellness and Technology at the Eustis Street Fire House
HBI is pleased to announce that The Wellness Collaborative (TWC), a new non-profit organization devoted to eliminating health care disparities in Boston’s African American communities, and the Timothy Smith Network (TSN), a foundation that provides technology resources to children and families throughout Roxbury, will be headquartered at the Eustis Street Fire House at 20 Eustis Street, beginning this week.
TWC will move into the building as a new tenant and TSN, which has been in the Fire House since 2011, will move from the first floor to the second floor of the historic building. HBI is moving to its flagship building — the 1718 Old Corner Bookstore — in downtown Boston.
TWC is HBI’s partner on a proposal for redevelopment of the c 1880’s Owen Nawn Factory in Nubian Square. HBI is one of two developers vying for the re-activation of the Nawn Factory through an RFP process with the City of Boston’s Department of Neighborhood Development. TWC’s new operations at the Eustis Street Fire House will help the new organization incubate its business plan and operations in order to be prepared to scale up to the full occupancy of the Nawn Factory building, should HBI be designated.
HBI has been headquartered in the Eustis Street Firehouse for nine years. Built in 1859 for the independent Town of Roxbury, the building is Boston’s oldest remaining fire house. When HBI was designated to redevelopment the building in 2008, the building had fallen into serious disrepair. After a $2.5 million dollar project, the building was restored and made ready for two office suites.
HBI is very grateful for the support and encouragement it has received from the community over the years and feel very sad to be leaving our friends and our daily lives in Nubian Square. But we are laser-focused on several historic preservation projects in Roxbury, including the Owen Nawn Factory, the 1825 David Dudley House (167 Centre St), the 1910 St. James African Orthodox Church at 50 Cedar Street, and St. John St. James Episcopal Church. We look forward to continuing our collaborations with the neighborhood.
More things to know:
About The Wellness Collaborative: TWC, founded by three Black women – an internist, a pediatrician and a psychologist – aims to eliminate health care disparities through education, insight and best practices that promote sustainable personal and community health, wellness and resilience.
TWC’s target population is delineated by zip codes, where study after study has shown that African American communities experience disparate care and health care outcomes, regardless of education or income level.
The foundation of the nonprofit is its interdisciplinary approach and membership, committed to providing a think tank that researches and identifies asset-based best practices and trends for improving wellbeing.
TWC promotes and provides advocacy skill building and agency for its target communities, and hosts educational forums, interactive sessions, one on one consultations, nutritional counseling, behavioral-physical health trainings, family and small group wellness workshops. These include ethno-cultural modalities as well as historical reference points and frameworks. TWC’s new location in Roxbury, Boston’s historic Black community, ideally positions them to carry out their mission.
For more information, visit https://thewellnesscollaborative.org/
About the Timothy Smith Network:
The Timothy Smith Network (TSN) is renewing its lease at the Eustis Street Fire House, and moving its headquarters and coordinating office to the building’s second floor.
Working in partnership with many community organizations, TSN provides comprehensive technology education services to residents of the greater Roxbury community. Its 24 partner organizations are social service agencies, health centers, community development corporations, stand-alone community technology centers, and faith-based organizations throughout the Greater Roxbury area.
People of all ages have access to state of the art computer technology and to programs as rich in diversity as the neighborhood the network serves. These programs build the capacity of the people of Roxbury as they acquire the knowledge and skills critical to success in our increasingly technology-driven world.
For more information on the Timothy Smith Network, visit https://www.timothysmithnetwork.org/