Friends of English Avenue, Inc. (FEA) is a 501c3 non-profit organization founded on justice, generosity and virtue. Our mission is to make the English Avenue Community a safer and better place to live through green-space development and public safety initiatives, improving our broader community of Atlanta. We welcome your visit to the site and interest in our organization. Learn more about us »
AUGUST 1ST, 2016: YOUTH SUMMER BEAUTIFICATION PROGRAM:
We are very proud of the 10 young men for finishing their 8th and final week of our Youth Summer Beautification Program, where we employ youth (AGES 14-24) from English Avenue to clean up trash, remove overgrowth, an
d plant flowers to improve the physical appearance of the community.
In addition to providing youth participants with work experience, life skills, educational enrichment, and substance abuse courses are integrated into the program, thanks to our partnership with Street Smart Youth Project.
Thanks to our awesome Beautification Coordinator, Everarde Calk, yoga practices are also incorporated on a weekly basis.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 25TH: ROCK FOR PEACE EVENT!!
ROCK FOR PEACE
WHEN: Wednesday, May 25th from 6:30-9:30PM
WHERE: the home of John and Helen Gordon- 3914 The Highlands NW Atlanta, GA 30327
WHAT: The proceeds from this event will be used to fund our after school music program that is currently under development. Our goal is to raise $30,000 to fully fund the music program for the first year
Live music, cocktails, heavy hors d’oeuvres, and a silent auction. Throw on your jeans and come for what is certain to be a good time!
To purchase tickets for this event, click HERE
FEBRUARY, 2016: POLICE HOUSE #2 APPLIANCES:
Special thank you to Northside United Methodist Church for purchasing ALL the appliances for our second Police Housing Project! This puts us one step closer to getting the house ready for an Atlanta Police Officer to move in and make a lasting impact in English Avenue.
We are grateful for Dr. Gil Watson’s leadership, which has resulted in valuable resources and awareness being given to our organization.
In addition to the purchase of a brand new refrigerator, washer, dryer, stove, dishwasher, and microwave, they also bought us 2 new toilets needed for the downstairs bathrooms! 
NOVEMBER 17TH, 2015: WESTMINSTER SCHOOLS VIDEO DOCUMENTARY ON FOOD INSECURITY:
Thank you to the Glenn Institute of Westminster Schools for featuring us in this video documentary,which raises awareness about the prevalence of food insecurity in Atlanta.
NOVEMBER 17TH, 2015: AJC ARTICLE:
We appreciate the AJC giving us an opportunity to share our story. Check out the article by clicking on the following link: Making A Difference in English Avenue
NOVEMBER 11TH, 2015: ANNUAL LUNCHEON:
Join us for lunch to celebrate our 9th year of service in the English Avenue Community! To reserve your seat at the luncheon, RSVP to Suzanne Baker at bakersuz@gmail.com and indicate how many guests will be joining you.
Wednesday, November 11th
11:30AM-1PM
Lindsay Street Baptist Church
550 Lindsay Street NW
Atlanta, GA 30314
SEPTEMBER 25TH, 2015: STREET CLEAN-UP WITH CHICK-FIL-A FOUNDATION: In preparation for an annual community festival known as the Festival of Lights, we perform street clean-ups every year along the festival parade route to reduce litter and beautify the community. Big thank you to the volunteers from the Chick-fil-a Foundation for their hard work to get the streets free of litter and overgrowth!
SEPTEMBER 17TH, 2015: WSB-TV CHANNEL 2 NEWS COVERAGE OF POLICE HOUSE #2: Our first Police Housing Project showed us first hand that moving an Atlanta Police Officer into a formerly vacant home used for criminal activity is the most sustainable way to create stability and peace in the community. We are excited to be one step closer towards implementing our second Police Housing Project on the eastern side of English Avenue!
Check out the latest news coverage from WSB-TV: https://youtu.be/cWCN-HnqbC0
JUNE 10th, 2015: Father’s Day Fundraiser at Onward Reserve: Huge thank you to Onward Reserve owner, TJ Callaway, for donating 15% of the sale proceeds on June 10th to our mission! We appreciate the support of local businesses! 
JUNE 2015: SMART KID, SMART LUNCH SUMMER PROGRAM: FREE lunches will be served to kids (1-18 years old) every Monday starting June 1st and ending August 3rd. Nearly 1 million children in Georgia receive free or reduced lunch at school, a crucial meal that disappears in the summer. Thank you to Action Ministries for making this initiative possible! Check out the news coverage from Channel 2 WSB-TV: http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/needs-increase-local-summer-lunch-programs/nmSW8/
WHEN: June 1, June 8, June 15, June 22, June 29, July 6, July 13, July 20, July 27, August 3 WHERE: Heritage Hall of the Lindsay Street Baptist Church 881 North Avenue, Atlanta GA 30318 TIME: 12PM- first come first serve!
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 29TH, 2015: Buy great clothes for a great cause!
Please join us for a “Sip & Shop” at J.McLaughlin where 15% of the proceeds will be donated to our revitalization efforts of the English Avenue Community!
WHEN: Wednesday, April 29th, 11AM-3PM
WHERE: J. McLaughlin at Peachtree Battle
2341 Peachtree Rd Suite 16
Atlanta, GA 30305
JANUARY 2015: Thanks to the hard work and dedication of our resident farmers, our urban farms produced 3,200 pounds of produce in 2014!
- English Avenue Urban Farm-2,100 lbs. in 2014, founded in 2012, managed by Jamaica Wricketts.
- Elm Street Urban Farm-1,235 lbs. in 2014, founded in 2013, managed by Dariel Vaughn
NOVEMBER 21ST, 2014: Thank you to everyone who came to our Annual Luncheon at the Lindsay Street Baptist Church. We had over 120 people attend, and we are overwhelmed by the support! We enjoyed sharing our successes from 2014, and are even more excited about our upcoming projects that will be implemented in 2015-2016.
Click the following link to watch the 2 minute WSB-TV news clip on our 2014 Annual Luncheon: http://www.wsbtv.com/videos/news/home-once-site-of-botched-raid-is-bring-new-life/vC3dC7/
JUNE 30TH, 2014: Click the link below to see the WSB-TV video showing the transformation made at the Elm Street Urban Farm from 2013-2014!
Big thank you to the Cox Conserves Heroes Program for bringing funds and awareness to our urban farming initiatives in English Avenue! http://www.wsbtv.com/videos/news/cox-conserves-fea-update/vChYjC/
TUESDAY, JUNE 24TH from 5:30-8:00 PM: Join us to dedicate our new Elm Street Urban Farm, where we are growing the English Avenue tomato! We are inviting donors, community residents, friends, and partners (FACAA, Cherokee Garden Club, and The Westminster Schools 5th Grade Class) to attend a barbecue and family gathering.
The event is called “Atlanta Joins Hands with English Avenue”. We are planning a fun and uplifting event with live music, great food, and games for kids. And you will get to see the beautiful Urban Farm that you helped make possible. So, we hope you can attend.
MARCH 27TH, 2014: We’d like to extend a HUGE thank to you Paul Morgan with RainHarvest Company, Inc. for the time, effort, and expense it took to install our rain water irrigation system at the Elm Street Urban Farm! Paul and his dedicated crew spent over two days installing the underground piping and drip lines that will allow us to adequately irrigate our crops using rain water. Paul, we couldn’t do it without you! Check out the RainHarvest Company website to find out more about what they do: http://www.rainharvestcompany.com/
MARCH 7th, 2014– Check out this 3 minute video about the English Avenue Community and the mission of Peace Preparatory Academy to raise the educational standards and opportunities for the youth in English Avenue, Vine City, and the Westside Community.
We are honored to have our Community Urban Farm featured in this video. We are even more honored to have Peace Prep’s Founder and English Avenue resident, Benajmin Wills, as a part of our Board. http://youtu.be/gouAMrpfF9I
FEBRUARY 9TH, 2014– We are excited to have these hand made benches installed at the Elm Street Urban Farm! Even better, all the benches were made by English Avenue residents. Placing benches in the urban farm will encourage residents to come sit down and enjoy the 
green space and will improve social bonds.
Big thank you to Jesse Phillips, an English Avenue resident who began this bench building initiative. Jesse Phillips explains why he started this initiative below:
“As a concerned neighbor, I’ve found that handouts don’t help people in the long run – the create dependency & entitlement. However, providing a fair exchange of payment for service is empowering and dignified.
So, I tried to find a way to give money for work. Initially I paid guys to wash my car and sweep the porch. But you can only do that so many times. The need in our neighborhood is so great, I wanted to try and find a sustainable way to provide work for my neighbors. So I happened upon this bench building idea. One of our neighbors built a bench from some pallets we had in the back yard, and it looked pretty cool. So I decided to try and expand on that. I made a few more benches with him, then we sold them to my friends. Then we built a few more and they started catching on with other folks.
We’re still in the start-up stages and I’m losing more money than I’m making, but I’m able to provide weekly work for 2 guys for 4 hours/week each + 1 guy who brings pallets. They make about $10/hr. I’m hoping to reach sustainability soon.”
JANUARY 9TH, 2014- A non-profit organization in English Avenue, GROW Montessori, is launching their first “Baby University” on March 1, 2014 to empower and equip mothers in English Avenue and Vine City. This free, 8-week course will cover topics such as infant CPR, car seat safety, positive discipline, soothing techniques, vocabulary enrichment, home safety, and baby massage. Free food and childcare will be provided at each class.
-Learn more about the “Baby University”: http://www.growmontessori.org/
DECEMBER 26TH, 2013- Check out the article written by Atlanta Intown on the Friends of English Avenue: http://www.atlantaintownpaper.com/2013/12/friends-english-avenue-celebrate-changes-community/ 
FEA Founder and Co-Founder, John Gordon and Reverend Anthony Motley, speak the the Centennial Block Party Celebration at the Lindsay Street Baptist Church.
NOVEMBER 12TH, 2013– Congrats to FEA Founder, John Gordon for being named the 2013 Cox Conserves Hero for his environmental work in the English Avenue Community! FEA was awarded $10,000 as a result of this victory! Thank you to Cox Enterprises, the Trust for Public Land, and Channel 2 WSB-TV for recognizing and supporting unsung heroes who are making changes in the greater Atlanta community every day.
John was pleased to accept this award on behalf of the English Avenue residents, who will be the beneficiaries of this generous gift.
NOVEMBER 3RD, 2013– Our Urban Farm is coming along well in our third Fall season. We have produced over 1,600 pounds of produce thus far in 2013! Stay tuned for information on what fruits and vegetables we’ll be harvesting!
Our amazing resident farmer, Jamaica, harvesting lettuce.