Our Story
In 2016, founder Leonardo Uzcategui escaped life-threatening persecution from Venezuela and sought asylum in NYC. Thanks to the generosity of a fellow Venezuelan, he found shelter, necessities, health services, and employment. When his father joined him, Leo experienced how difficult it is to find safe and adequate housing. The NYC Affordable Housing program changed their harsh reality.
Fundavenyc emerged from the shared experiences of Leo and our founding members in 2021. Their groundwork proved key for our quick and effective response to the 2022 wave of asylum seekers and migrants. Today, Fundavenyc’s family includes over 200 volunteers from around the world, and our programs have assisted thousands.
What is Fundavenyc?
Fundavenyc (pronounced FOON-DA-VE-NIK) is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit and New York City Housing Ambassador organization certified by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD). We strive for the advancement of our community by paving the way, providing resources, and building tools for positive development.
What We Believe
We know the advancement of immigrant communities has always been key to the growth and development of New York City. We also understand we cannot wait for, nor solely depend on, the City’s stretched resources to provide necessary support and opportunities for our community. Fundavenyc is stepping in to empower our global family to build a solid foundation in NYC.
What Makes Us Different
Our team is majority immigrant, many Venezuelans and South Americans who risked their lives to escape persecution and difficult conditions in their home countries. The intimate, first-hand understanding of our global family’s needs sets us apart in providing effective short-term assistance and building long-term solutions for asylum seekers and migrants. Our additional emphasis on relationship-building ensures the creation of a strong community, which contributes significantly to resolving the struggles our city faces.
Juan Vargas
Juan Vargas
Juan has always been passionate about sports, especially soccer, and has been a soccer director from a young age. After fleeing to Peru to escape political persecution in Venezuela, he became captain of the ANFAP national team.
Tragically, Juan lost a limb in an accident in 2021. That alongside xenophobia pushed him to cross the notorious Dairen jungle on crutches to enter the United States in 2022.
Juan is now our Soccer Team Director and a Housing Ambassador. He is also part of NYC Football Club’s Metro New York Amputee team.
Karla & Ricardo Vargas-Ortiz
Karla & Ricardo Vargas-Ortiz
Karla and Ricardo are the parents of two beautiful children, Miguel and Milan. The Vargas-Ortiz family fled from Venezuela and obtained asylum status in New York. The family of four experienced many challenges, especially inaccessible high rent.
We helped Karla apply for her family to NYC Housing Connect 2.0 in December 2020. By June 2021, they received word that their application had been selected for review. After eight months, three rejections, and two appeals, the Vargas-Ortiz family was finally approved for a two-bedroom apartment with a monthly cost of $1,071, <30% of their income.
Karla and Ricardo are now volunteers. They have helped over ten families get approved for affordable housing.
