The story of STCH is also the story of Riverwood or South Tulsa. To understand our role in the community, we must understand the changes impacting the community. A multi-unit housing boom began in the 1970’s making Riverwood a great place to rent or buy. By the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, ownership in many of the apartment complexes changed from local to out-of-state ownership. With this came a conversion of the housing into Section 8. Before long, crime rates were rising and the area began deteriorating.

South Peoria Neighborhood Connection Foundation (SPNCF) was formed in 1994 to address neighborhood change, subsidized apartment expansion, poverty, and crime. By 1995, additional program components were added including a food pantry, computers, afterschool tutoring, and more with support from ORU social work students, Family & Children’s Services, Hillcrest Hospital, and the Red Cross.

Over the years, STCH has supported community-based neighborhood work and advocacy. Some highlights include the development of the first small area plan in 1998, the update of the plan in 2008, community block parties in 2012 and 2014, the collaborative submission of a grant to the Department of Justice to reduce crime through community policing and the subsequent implementation of that grant, the planning and implementation of Ignite the Change in November 2017 and much more.

SPNCF adopted South Tulsa Community House as it’s DBA name in 2012 to incorporate a broader service reach in South Tulsa. We now serve the 5 census tracts in Riverwood and six additional census tracts that border Riverwood’s boundaries.

The quadruple murders at Savanna Landing (formerly Fairmont Terrace) in 2013 was a blow to the community and those who lost loved ones. The 61st and Peoria area has been neglected through the years and this incident did refocus attention on the area.

In April of 2014, STCH collaborated with funders to acquire and renovate our current facility at 5780 S. Peoria. The new 8,000 square foot facility has broadened STCH’s ability to serve the needs in our community.

STCH board members, staff, volunteers and community stakeholders collaborated to develop STCH’s new strategic plan in 2017. With this plan came revisions to the mission, vision, and organizational values while converting the old mission tagline into our purpose statement (Help A Little, Empower A Lot.)

In June 2019, SPNCF and STCH will celebrate 25 years of service to our neighbors in Riverwood. We are proud to play an important role in helping to facilitate community-based change. There is more work to do but we are excited about the future of Riverwood!