Staten Islander is top candidate to revitalize Sandy Ground

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Livingston resident David McGoy was reading about the plight of Sandy Ground — the nation’s oldest free Black settlement still inhabited by descendants of its pioneers — this past February in the Staten Island Advance.

As he read the detailed story, McGoy, who is a nonprofit professional, said his “heart went out to the community,” which at the time was dealing with a flooded century-old white ranch home that houses the community’s museum. The structure was — and still is — uninhabitable, with a dilapidated roof and pervasive mold infestation. In addition, the Sandy Ground Historical Society had lost its non-profit status, board members died or moved away, and its executive director was ready to retire. The community and all its history — which is not only part of Staten Island’s and New York’s history, but the history of the United States — was on the verge of obliteration.

That’s when McGoy thought to himself, “What can I do?”

Having grown up in the West Brighton Houses, McGoy immediately wanted to lend a helping hand to this historic community located in his home borough. He started to inquire about how he could assist Sandy Ground among his peers and acquaintances who serve on various local nonprofit boards.

Since that first Advance/SILive.com story published on Feb. 9, the Staten Island community and beyond have reached out with overwhelming support to help Sandy Ground rebuild. With a restored nonprofit status and help from various organizations, the process has begun, including a grant from The New York Landmarks Conservancy to help restore the museum and rid it of its mold problem.

And McGoy may soon play a big part in the recovery of the community.

The Sandy Ground Historical Society Board will vote on Thursday to induct McGoy as interim executive director, as Sylvia Moody D’Alessandro, who has been at the helm of the organization for many years, retires, said Julie Moody Lewis, president of the Sandy Ground Historical Society and D’Alessandro’s daughter.

“I work with organizations to help them fundraise and build their development departments. I’ve worked adjacent to a lot of CEOs and executive directors over the years…and, coincidentally, Sylvia and my aunt were best friends growing up,” said McGoy, who is director of strategic growth for Cause Effective. The company is described on its website as that which works with nonprofits to “raise more money, build greater board engagement in fundraising, activate boards of directors and leverage anniversary campaigns and special events so they can achieve long-term community change”

“Sandy Ground is a part of American history that’s little known. So I think the opportunity to raise awareness about its rich history and preserve it is very important. … And I feel like a lot of my professional work is so aligned with what is needed there right now, he added.

Among the many hats he wears, McGoy also is a member of the Richmond University Medical Center Board and Community Board 1, and serves on the Governance Committee of the Association for Nonprofits Specialists.

“I’m also on the steering committee for a group called the Racial Equity Endowment Fund, which is basically a giving circle,” he said. “We have folks who are putting in a little of our own money, raising a little bit of money, and we secure matching dollars to give unrestricted grants to Black-led nonprofits around the city. I’m very proud to say that we were able to get Sandy Ground $5,000.”

McGoy’s salary is expected to be funded by Staten Island nonprofit foundations.

FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS

If voted in by the Sandy Ground Historical Society Board, McGoy says his first order of business is to come up with a financial plan that will help rebuild the museum, add experts in different areas to its board and “reengage the community of stakeholders,” McGoy said.

SANDY GROUND HISTORY

Settled in the 1820s, Sandy Ground is the third recorded community in New York where African Americans owned land, according to city Landmarks Preservation Commission.

The first recorded Black landowners in Sandy Ground were Moses K. and Silas K. Harris, brothers from New Jersey who initially came to the area to work as gardeners in the 1820s. They also owned property in Manhattan, according to Moody Lewis. Early on, the community was most known for its fertile strawberry crops that would yield an abundance of the fruit.

In the 1850s African American oystermen from Maryland became attracted to the area because of the abundant oyster beds of the Raritan Bay. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the community became self-sufficient and thrived as it housed a range of professionals and tradesmen, from blacksmiths and store owners to teachers and midwives. Soon, Sandy Ground became a community where African Americans found prosperity and freedom from persecution.

Today, Sandy Ground is tucked away amid dense housing and paved roadways that serve as a main bus route for two public schools. But, if you look closely while driving along Woodrow or Bloomingdale roads, you can see the remaining homes and landmarked structures in Sandy Ground that still exist today.

There are several properties in the community designated New York City landmarks: two tan clapboard Baymen’s cottages on Bloomingdale Road, which are 120-year-old-plus homes once owned by the prosperous oystermen who came to the community in the 1850s; the A.M.E. Zion Church, built on Bloomingdale Road in 1897; the Rev. Isaac Coleman and Rebecca Gray Coleman home at 1482 Woodrow Rd.; and the Rossville A.M.E. Zion Church Cemetery on Crab Tree Avenue, a peaceful respite where both weathered and newer headstones tell the story of the community’s pioneers who once lived, worked and thrived there.

ABOUT DAVID MCGOY

After attending PS 18 and I.S. 27, McGoy graduated from Staten Island Academy, and his family relocated to Delaware. He attended Howard University and spent several years working in commercial banking, before moving back to Staten Island. Since then, he has been a nonprofit professional who has held positions in direct service, administration and management.

Read the full Sandy Ground series here: silive.com/topic/sandy-ground.

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