History

The Alexandre Foundation grew out of the activist work of its founder Eunide Alexandre in the 1990s. When Ms. Alexandre began volunteering to help her senior and immigrant neighbors, word quickly spread that she could help people solve their problems, and more and more people sought her assistance.

Ms. Alexandre became aware of a wide range of problems facing her neighbors in the Briarwood complex, many of whom, alone and unaided, were struggling with tenant issues such as illegal evictions and exploitative landlords and real estate agents. In response, she established a tenant association to help them voice their concerns and solve their housing problems. Ms. Alexandre worked to bring Clare Schulman, Queens Borough President, to Briarwood to ensure that the neighborhood problems were resolved. Schulman worked with the tenants to further resolve any problems.

With the housing crisis resolved, the tenant association turned its attention to other community issues and Ms. Alexandre continued to help individuals, including aiding new Americans without a voice or representation in the community. Because she had served as a caregiver to her ailing grandmother who suffered from advanced Parkinson’s, Ms. Alexandre created the Briarwood Parkinson's Support Group to provide companionship and aid for individuals with the disease.

Ms. Alexandre realized that her community activism could benefit from a formal vision which would bring a sharper focus on the needs of the community. She created the Alexandre Foundation in 2002.