A neighborhood is something we make together.
We don’t want to serve the community. We want to belong to it.
Good Neighbors Brooklyn brings people together around shared tables, practical care, and the ordinary work of becoming neighbors. We begin with dinner—and keep showing up.
100+ Monday nights.
Start with dinner.
Every Monday at Roots Cafe, newcomers and longtime Brooklynites share a meal, practice English, build friendships, and help one another find a way forward. Come hungry. There is room at the table.
Dinner becomes friendship.
We begin with food, not as a program, but as neighbors passing plates around a table. English is practiced through real conversation, with patience, laughter, and room to make mistakes.
Over time, friendship becomes the kind of community that helps with apartments, court dates, new jobs, hard weeks, and reasons to celebrate.
Mentorship
For young immigrants navigating life in a new country, one dependable relationship can make an enormous difference.
Mentors show up consistently—sharing meals, answering questions, celebrating milestones, accompanying young people to appointments or court, and helping them navigate school, work, housing, and the immigration process.
Over time, these ordinary acts of friendship can become a steady source of belonging, encouragement, and practical support.
No special expertise is required. Good Neighbors provides guidance and connects mentors with legal and community support when it is needed.
Become a mentor.
CHiPS
Good Neighbors partners with CHiPS Soup Kitchen on Fourth Avenue to meet immediate needs with food, care, and consistency. Join us for a one-time project or serve regularly. On the second Sunday of each month, we make sandwiches together following the service at Trinity Grace Church and deliver them to CHiPS.
The Frances Residence & Safe Families
The Frances Residence provides temporary housing for mothers with infants and toddlers who need safe shelter and supportive community during a vulnerable season. While caring for their young children, these mothers are working toward greater stability for their families.
Through our partnership with Safe Families, we are building a consistent circle of support around the mothers and children at Frances Residence. Trained volunteers serve as mentors and childcare helpers, offering practical support, encouragement, and room to breathe.
You can get involved by sharing meals, spending time in conversation, helping with childcare, or responding to everyday needs—all within a trained and supported Safe Families volunteer network.
Vocal NY
VOCAL-NY (Voices of Community Activists and Leaders) is a statewide grassroots membership organization that builds power among low-income New Yorkers directly impacted by HIV/AIDS, the drug war, mass incarceration, and homelessness. Through community organizing, leadership development, advocacy, direct services, and direct action, VOCAL-NY equips its members to fight for lasting change.
Good Neighbors partners with VOCAL-NY by hosting a monthly community dinner-a place to share food, strengthen relationships, and build community.
Running Rights & Land
Good Neighbors partners with Touching Land to host a fall running club that brings together neighbors and people seeking asylum. The group meets weekly to run, build relationships, and learn about the rights of undocumented people. At the end of the season, participants cross the finish line together in a community race.
The Free Store
Good Neighbors partners with Brooklyn Open Hearts to host a free store offering seasonal clothing, hygiene supplies, food pantry staples, books, and other everyday essentials. Everything is free, and everyone is welcome.
The Free Store takes place on the third Saturday of every month at Grace Hansen United Methodist Church.
You can support the Free Store by donating items or volunteering. Donations may be dropped off daily at Roots Cafe from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. or on Sunday mornings at Trinity Grace Church. Volunteers are also needed to help set up, welcome neighbors, organize supplies, and clean up before and after each Free Store.
Get Involved
Get Involved
Throughout the year, we partner with organizations across Brooklyn to care for our neighbors and strengthen our shared community. Together, these efforts form Good Neighbors Brooklyn—a growing network of people showing up with food, friendship, practical support, and a willingness to stay connected.
Want to learn more or find a place to join in? Fill out the form below, and we’ll be in touch soon.