Elm City Congregations Organized (ECCO)

When Pedro Curbelo helped found ECCO in 1993, his plan was to help transform his New Haven, Conn., neighborhood. But he found that the group's work also transformed his life. ECCO began when neighbors in the St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church parish banded together to close down a liquor store and illegal drug market across from an elementary school. Now made up of 19 diverse congregations and housing and neighborhood groups, ECCO is tackling some of the biggest issues facing area poor and working people; training community leaders to exercise responsible, accountable power; and helping to rewrite public policy. The results include cleaner neighborhoods, elimination of scores of prostitution and drug hot spots, and legislation affecting living wages, guns, and liquor stores near schools. Curbelo, a retired industrial engineer, was a beneficiary of ECCO's training for community leaders, which gave him the tools to help organize his community and also manage employees at a local manufacturing company. Curbelo says the group started "as a dream" but has become so much more. In just 10 years, ECCO has evolved from a small group of people closing a liquor store to a community-wide initiative preparing to launch a $2.5 million, 500-home rehabilitation and construction project that will provide affordable one- and two-family homes to poor and low-income coalition members and the public.

ECCO leader Pedro Curbelo and his wife, Luz, stand in front of rehabilitated homes that provide affordable housing for inner-city families in New Haven, Connecticut. Photo by Melanie Stengel

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