Over five decades ago, a seed was planted in Schenectady County that would grow into a thriving organization dedicated to providing healthy food and a sense of community for those without access to those most basic needs.

At the time, the focus was serving the community, and the need was pressing. A name was registered to get the operation up and running. A product of its times, Schenectady Inner City Ministry, Inc, quickly became known by its acronym SICM.

In 2020, the organization began a process of taking stock of its purpose, its potential, and the future it wanted to carve out for the community and beyond. As part of the process of fine-tuning and preparing for the future, the organization made some important discoveries.

As a result, with a new structure and strategic plan in place, the organization decided to claim a name for itself that reflects the vision for the future while honoring its roots in the past.

Sycamore Collaborative

This name claims the strength and resilience of a tree that is known to thrive in challenging urban environments–a tree that brings beauty, shade, and enhanced air quality wherever it grows. The sycamore tree also carries sacred significance for a number of faith and wisdom traditions, where it symbolizes persistence, connectivity, protection, and clarity. There is also a nod to the organization’s past in the way the beginning of the name is pronounced; along with the intention of the renewed organization to expand its presence to do and be more.

We invite you into this new chapter of our story, with a new identity, that was in some ways there all along. You are invited to be a part of the growth, reach, and new heights we aspire to for our shared community today and in the future we’ll create together.