January Community Work Update!
Hey powerFULL community!
As mentioned in my post on December 23rd, The Decolonizing Bruja Coalition will be less focused on “content” and more into putting community care & mutual aid into ACTION! I’m sending y’all updates on what I’m taking care of “behind the scenes” so you can see what your coin goes towards (if you’re a paid member), or in hopes to encourage others to keep building people power & collective care practices!
For people who need shorter summaries, right below there is a snapshot of what I’m working on. After the snapshot is more in-depth info including pictures! Feel free to let me know if you have any questions! And if you’re working on any revolutionary, new world building, anti-oppression work share below as well! LET’S INSPIRE & ENCOURAGE EACH OTHER!
Coalition Snapshot
Me & my partner Cris spent a lot of 2025 helping to fill Eileen’s Bodega (one of Long Island’s only community fridges) and now we’re working on starting our own!
I am planning on facilitating a Covid Rage Space for lgbtq+ community in February. There’s a poll below for y’all to help pick a topic!
I am still sourcing and posting mask-required events for our weekly-ish newsletter!
Me & Cris are working on producing two markets that prioritize disabled vendors & customers; one virtual and one in-person.
I’m currently scrambling to get several cats that were born in my backyard neutered & spayed before spring, as well as hopefully getting them into a shelter! In the meantime I’m still feeding those cuties daily.
Community Care Rundown
This section goes more in-depth on each bullet point in the snapshot. If you’re interested in filling out the poll for the next Covid Rage Space, feel free to scroll down
COMMUNITY FRIDGES
In 2025, me and Cris were hella successful in helping keep Eileen’s Bodega Community Fridge full of groceries. In November alone we were able to secure over 20 turkeys! One way we secure funds for the fridges is we crochet a cute little stuffed animal to raffle it off to raise grocery funds! Cris also has an incredible gift in hunting down deals; we drove all over the island to snatch up what we could, especially with a lot of snap benefits being cut. There’s no way we’re gonna let our community go hungry!
In our community fridge endeavors, we realized that Long Island has almost no community fridges! I’m from the Bronx/NYC where community fridges are everywhere. To come to Long Island, that is 150 MILES LONG, to only see a small handful of community fridges is DEVASTATING. So me and Cris are starting to figure out how we can open another community fridge. We are currently reaching out to Unitarian Churches and Community Centers to see if we can find a host. In the meantime, we’ll still help fill Eileen’s Bodega. We’re going to be doing another raffle soon for a crocheted Oogie Boogie from Nightmare Before Christmas, and a crocheted Miguel from Coco. The raffle is not open YET, so stay tuned!
COVID RAGE SPACE
We’re bringing back Covid Rage Spaces for lgbtq+ community. These groups had originally started off as grief spaces, but I’ve been so pissed off and seeing so many feel the same. So these will stay as rage spaces until further notice.
Please fill out the poll below to help pick the next topic!
MASK-REQUIRED EVENTS
I am still sourcing and posting mask-required events from ALL OVER the globe to help continue our commitment to accessibility & disability justice. It’s a FREE newsletter if you’re interested in checking what events are out there.
ACCESSIBLE MARKETS
Last summer we started our own spiritual botanica, La Vida de Brujx! It has been so exciting to share our shadow magick tools, decor, and accessories. HOWEVER, it has been incredibly difficult navigating the vendor circuit while living with physical disability & chronic illnesses. We have faced so many unnecessary obstacles because of the lack of accessibility of many spaces. It’s been making us angry, frustrated, etc. SO, we decided we’re gonna try our best to do two of our own markets!
The first one will be a virtual market to support (but not limited to) home & bed bound vendors/customers. The second one will be on Long Island and we are currently looking for places to rent that have accessible entrances, bathrooms, and space for mobility devices. If your’re interested in being a part of either event, feel free to email us at LaVidaDeBrujx@Gmail.com
STRAY CAT CARE
When I moved to Long Island two years ago, there were 3 cats in my backyard! Of course I couldn’t let those babies go hungry. Fast forward to today, 2 of the cats had babies in my backyard last summer and not I’m scrambling to find these lil babies homes! I’ve been calling shelters for MONTHS and all of them are full. I have even called different shelters in Westchester and Upstate, but they won’t take out of town kitties. I am still working on finding a shelter with space, but in the meantime I’m working on getting the kittens and mommas spayed & neutered. ESPECIALLY before kitten season starts again in the spring.
Luckily, I have an animal shelter nearby that has a free TNR (trap and release) program to do free neutering. So, I’ve been busting my butt trying to capture these babies. So far I’ve been able to get 4 kittens spayed. Next Tuesday I am hoping to get two more. WISH ME LUCK!
Thanks for reading, y’all! Looking forward to update you more on next steps on all of our community care projects. If you aren’t a paid member already, please consider joining! Your funds help me continue helping others and put my 20+ years of community organizing experience to some good. Especially here out in Long Island where MAGA country runs strong. Please help me do some good out here!!!