09/23/2026
Sharing our story to spread hope here and in communities over 🧡
This past Saturday, our Executive Director, Aldo R. Juárez-Romero, had the honor of presenting "Acción Comunitaria" (Community in Action), a workshop at the 2026 Talleres de la Concentración de Iglesias Bautistas Latinas in New Jersey. This event brings together Hispanic and Latino Baptist congregations to strengthen families, church leadership, and more.
Aldo took part in conversations exploring how faith communities can activate the institutions and resources already in place. He also shared our story, spanning nearly 60 years in Schenectady, beginning in 1967 with a covenant among member faith communities and growing a food-access effort from a church basement in the 1970s. What began as a Christian-funded effort has formally become an interfaith organization, a shift rooted in the same conviction that brought us here in the first place: that dignity, justice, and the work of feeding our neighbors belong to the whole community, not just those who share our pews.
Today, the Sycamore Collaborative welcomes more than 20 faith communities that stand alongside our government partners, community organizations, and 300+ volunteers each year to reach thousands of families facing food insecurity.
“It was a privilege to share that history with faith leaders who understand, better than most, that lasting change doesn't come from charity alone — it comes from organizing: connecting people of faith, people in need, and the institutions with the resources to make real, sustained change. Grateful to The Rev. Dr. Luciano Marquez, Associate Regional Pastor for Latino Ministries with the American Baptist Churches of New Jersey, and everyone at CIBL–ABCNJ for the invitation.”
