Green Space Revitalization
Why we build this space
In 2018, with support from Triangle Community Foundation and other donors, El Futuro launched Phase 1 of 3 phase to beautify the green space next to our Lakewood clinic and to preserve this natural space for therapeutic benefits and community vitality. This outdoor therapeutic space will conserve and beautify the neighborhood’s open land through a community-centered design process that celebrates a rich and diverse Latino heritage with the incorporation of thoughtful design features and art installations.
After having the idea of building a place to gather with our community, we went to our patients, local businesses, and neighbors and asked, “What were play spaces look like for you during your childhood?” What we heard was that they didn’t have big plastic playgrounds, rather, they played in fields, trees, and streams! This resonated with us, because many of us were creek kids – spending hours playing in creeks and rivers.
How does this project relate to mental health?
Our intention is to create a space in which immigrant families, who too often feel excluded, isolated, or unwanted, can feel like they truly belong, are welcomed and included, and can contribute their best gifts in their new community. There’s an increased emphasis on the public health epidemic of loneliness. Studies demonstrate the negative mental and physical health impacts of our modern culture in the United States. Through beautifying the green space in intentional, therapeutic ways, we hope to cultivate a familial and communal environment. This has become even more essential during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through intentional design features, space is meant to mimic the look and feel of public plazas found in Central and South America, as well as agrarian regions that many immigrant families find familiar.
Are you interested in helping us maintain our garden and green space? Please visit our get involved page on how you could volunteer.
Project Timeline
Check out these local companies with whom we have partnered!
Bull City Brick & Restoration is a Latino-owned business that was founded on the principle of helping Bull City’s residents take on projects, regardless of the size or task.
Tributary strives to engage people with the outdoors by designing spaces that are ecologically diverse, culturally sensitive, and inherently interactive.
Whitaker Waterscapes is a family-run business. They have created many outdoor spaces that stand out, yet blend in beautifully
with the natural settings.
Cindy Rassi, AmeriCorps Community Engagement and Garden Coordinator
Cindy Rassi is currently an AmeriCorps Service Member positioned at El Futuro as the Therapeutic Green Space and Community Engagement Coordinator. Cindy is originally from Colombia, where she obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Interior Architecture. She came to the USA twenty years ago, and her own immigration experience and her work with non-profits and families with children in underserved communities in the Boston area prompted her to follow her path in Spiritual Care. Cindy received a Master of Divinity from the School of Theology at Boston University and began working as a hospice and hospital chaplain. She is interested in how social determinants of health, ecological justice, and faith manifest and impact Latino families and individuals and the spiritual challenges they experience. Cindy moved from Massachusetts to North Carolina recently. She lives with her husband, their three children, their dogs Kira and Gizmo, and “Luna,” her 16-year-old cat. Cindy practices meditation, yoga, and Ayurveda in her free time and enjoys reading about Buddhism, climate change, and science fiction.
Alvely Alcántara, LCSW
Rossy C. Garcia, MEd 
Katy Sims, MD 
Everardo Aviles, LCSW, LCAS (Eve)
As a medical anthropologist and social work researcher, Dr. Gulbas’ research embodies interdisciplinarity through the integration of applied theories of health and human development with qualitative and ethnographic methodologies. Her work seeks to understand how people—children, families, and providers—navigate complex sociocultural landscapes in the pursuit of mental health. Most of her work, to date, focuses attention on developing more robust interpretations of suicide risk. With funding from the National Institutes of Mental Health, this body of research has contributed to advancements in theoretical and empirical knowledge of the broader contexts within which youth suicide risk is situated. 
R. Gabriela Barajas-Gonzalez is a developmental psychologist and an assistant professor of Population Health at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. Dr. Barajas-Gonzalez is the principal investigator of a study that examines the impact of immigration-related threat and stress on school communities. She earned a PhD in developmental psychology from Columbia University and hold a BA in human biology from Stanford University. Dr. Barajas-Gonzalez is the daughter of Mexican immigrants and a first gen college student.
Dr. Parra-Cardona is an Associate Professor in the Steve Hicks School of Social Work (SHSSW) at the University of Texas at Austin. At the SHSSW, he serves as Coordinator for Mexico and Latin American initiatives. He also serves as Area Director for Research at the UT Austin Latino Research Institute. Dr. Parra-Cardona’s program of research is focused on the cultural adaptation of evidence-based parenting interventions for low-income Latinx populations in the US and Latin America.
Bianka Reese, PhD, MSPH is a research scientist and program evaluator specializing in adolescent and young adult sexual and reproductive health. Her previous research in the experiences of Latinx LGBTQ+ youth stems from her work as the Research and Evaluation Manager at SHIFT NC (Sexual Initiatives For Teens), where she led largescale evaluations of multilevel, community-based sexual health promotion initiatives and research projects aimed at elevating the voices of diverse youth in North Carolina. Dr. Reese is currently the Senior Research Strategist at Creative Research Solutions, LLC, an award-winning national evaluation, research, and assessment firm.
Tania Connaughton-Espino, MPH is an independent researcher focused on adolescent and young adult sexual and reproductive health. Her interest in the experiences of Latinx LGBTQ+ youth stems from her previous work with SHIFT NC (Sexual Initiatives For Teens), where she led the training and evaluation department, conducted capacity-building workshops for youth serving professionals including on the topic of how to be more affirming of LGBTQ youth, and from her extensive experience working with the Latinx population in NC.
Maru Gonzalez, EdD is an Assistant Professor and Youth Development Specialist in the Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences at North Carolina State University. Her areas of inquiry include youth development with a focus on activism, social justice, and the experiences of LGBTQ+ young people across familial, school, and community contexts. 
Nayeli Y. Chavez-Dueñas, PhD
Hector Y. Adames, PsyD