City of Memphis AmeriCorps VISTA Information

The City of Memphis has partnered with AmeriCorps VISTA, a national service program designed to strengthen and develop programs that eliminate poverty. Together we are passionate and committed alleviating poverty in Memphis and Shelby County. Since VISTA’s founding in 1965, 180,000 VISTA’s have served across the United States. The City of Memphis AmeriCorps VISTA program was established in 2014. Currently, CoM has 15 VISTA members serving 40 hours a week for 1 full year at local nonprofit, government offices, and faith-based organizations, all focusing on anti-poverty projects. City of Memphis VISTA's have been responsible for: • Increased awareness of affordable healthy food options among economically disadvantaged by 480% in 2017. • Recruited volunteers who served 6,471 hours for the Grizzlies Foundation in 2017. • Recruited volunteers who served 555 hours to the Woman's Foundation for a Greater Memphis in 2017. • Generated $3,083 in in-kind donations for Memphis Tilth (formerly known as Grow Memphis) in 2016. • Developed academic materials which improved 260 student’s literacy and math performance in 2016. • Established training in which 216 economically disadvantaged individuals on the topic of financial literacy in 2016.