Westchester Community Foundation Awards $3.2M To 66 Nonprofits

Michael Woyton

PEEKSKILL-CORTLANDT, NY — Among $3.2 million in 2021 grants from the Westchester Community Foundation to 66 nonprofits, $25,000 will go to Riverkeeper Inc.

Meant to help improve the quality of life for Westchester residents, the grants address a wide range of needs, including COVID-19-related challenges, WCF officials said.

Also, Copland House in Cortlandt Manor will be getting $13,000, and New Era Creative Space in Peekskill will get $5,000.

The grants went to a wide range of non-profits for a wide variety of reasons. Topping the list, five organizations received grants totaling $567,000 to address the increased need for mental health services:

  • WESTCHESTER MEDICAL CENTER FOUNDATION: $50,000 to support a pilot clinic for individuals experiencing lingering symptoms related to COVID-19.

  • THE HARRIS PROJECT: $62,000 to expand use of a therapy protocol that combines treatments for mental health and addiction.

  • OSSINING UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT: $160,000 to address mental health needs of public-school students and their families in the Ossining and Peekskill school districts.

  • SAINT JOSEPH’S MEDICAL CENTER: $250,000 to increase access to behavioral health crisis services and suicide prevention at its St. Vincent’s Hospital Westchester division.

  • WESTCHESTER JEWISH COMMUNITY SERVICES: $45,000 to provide free mental health and substance abuse services to 90 college students in Westchester through May of 2022.

“The Westchester Community Foundation has always worked hard to address pressing problems with innovative approaches,” said Executive Director Laura Rossi. “In the wake of the pandemic, we have prioritized access to behavioral health services. These grants will provide help to people in our communities so they can cope and thrive.”

Other grants were in 11 categories.

Arts & Culture

  • BETHANY ARTS COMMUNITY: $20,000 to support two nine-month fellowships for emerging artists.

  • CARAMOOR CENTER FOR MUSIC AND THE ARTS: $10,000 to support concerts of Germanic music.

  • CLAY ART CENTER: $18,000 to support a one-year residency for an emerging ceramic artist from Westchester.

  • COPLAND HOUSE: $13,000 for a two-year grant to support performances of German-influenced music in Westchester.

  • FINE ARTS ORCHESTRAL SOCIETY OF YONKERS: $13,000 to support a free concert and lecture series featuring the works of German composers in 2022 and 2023.

  • HOFF-BARTHELSON MUSIC SCHOOL: $6,000 to support instruction in and performance of Germanic music during a week-long music festival in 2021.

  • HUDSON CHORALE INC.: $13,000 for a two-year grant to support concerts highlighting German composers in 2022 and 2023.

  • JACOB BURNS FILM CENTER: $44,000 to support residencies for a total of four emerging filmmakers over two academic years.

  • JAZZ FORUM ARTS: $10,000 to host 16 free outdoor concerts at two venues in Tarrytown.

  • NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE, INC.: $7,500 to support an arts and technology program for Tarrytown seniors.

  • NEW CHORAL SOCIETY OF CENTRAL WESTCHESTER: $13,000 to support German choral concerts.

  • THE PICTURE HOUSE REGIONAL FILM CENTER: $15,000 to produce a German film festival.

  • WESTCHESTER ORATORIO SOCIETY: $13,000 to support three performances of German choral works in 2022 and 2023.

Civic Affairs

  • ACTION CENTER, INC. DBA ENERGY JUSTICE NETWORK: $15,000 to lead a campaign to eliminate County reliance on incinerating solid waste.

  • COMMUNITY RESOURCE CENTER: $97,000 to engage immigrants in advocacy for immigrant workers' rights and for affordable housing.

  • COMMUNITY VOICES HEARD: $97,000 to engage low-income residents in advocacy for improved housing conditions.

  • GENERATION CITIZEN: $20,000 to provide civic engagement lessons and advocacy experience to high school students in Ossining, Peekskill, and White Plains.

  • FAMILY SERVICE SOCIETY OF YONKERS: $20,000 to advocate for affordable housing policies that benefit kinship caregivers.

Community Development

  • COMMUNITY CAPITAL NEW YORK: $35,000 to provide free technical assistance and business coaching to low- and moderate-income small business owners.

  • THE ACCELERATION PROJECT, INC.: $35,000 to provide free technical assistance and business coaching to low- and moderate-income small business owners.

Conservation and Environment

  • CHILDREN’S ENVIRONMENTAL LITERACY FOUNDATION (CELF): $27,000 to promote environmental literacy in schools in Ossining, Port Chester, Tarrytown, White Plains, and Yonkers.

  • FEDERATED CONSERVATIONISTS OF WESTCHESTER COUNTY: $20,000 to support environmental justice organizing in Mount Vernon.

  • RYE NATURE CENTER, INC.: $20,000 to conduct the planning phase of restoration of the Blind Brook riparian buffer within the Rye Nature Preserve.

  • GROUNDWORK HUDSON VALLEY: $28,000 to implement an action plan for the Saw Mill River watershed.

  • LONG ISLAND SOUND STEWARDSHIP FUND: $10,000 for a collaborative fund to protect and restore the Long Island Sound.

  • RIVERKEEPER, INC.: $25,000 to protect drinking water for residents of Buchanan, Cortlandt, Ossining, and Peekskill.

  • SAVE THE SOUND: $48,000 to pilot an environmental-justice skills and advocacy program for young people in Mount Vernon.

  • WESTCHESTER LAND TRUST: $23,000 to restore native plants and create public access for an undeveloped land parcel in New Rochelle.

Emergency Response/COVID-19

  • NEIGHBORS LINK: $100,000 to provide client assistance grants to families and individuals to meet their basic needs.

  • HEALTH SERVICES

  • NEW YORK-PRESBYTERIAN LAWRENCE HOSPITAL: $15,500 to expand services to cancer survivors.

  • TOWN OF GREENBURGH: $9,000 to support vaccine outreach in the Town of Greenburgh to reduce vaccine hesitancy and help residents access vaccinations.

Human Justice

  • HUDSON VALLEY JUSTICE CENTER: $100,000 to provide free legal services to low-income immigrants facing eviction.

  • MAKE THE ROAD NEW YORK: $35,000 to provide free workplace and immigration legal services.

  • PACE UNIVERSITY WOMEN’S JUSTICE CENTER: $24,750 to increase trained bi-lingual support available to victims of domestic violence.

  • WORKER JUSTICE CENTER OF NEW YORK: $35,000 to provide legal counseling and representation for low-wage workers who are the victims of workplace abuse.

Hunger & Homelessness

  • CARITAS: $100,000 to increase the amount of farm-fresh produce and other perishables available to food pantries and feeding programs.

  • COMMUNITY CENTER OF NORTHERN WESTCHESTER: $36,000 to provide food to hungry Ossining residents.

  • EPISCOPAL CHARITIES OF THE DIOCESE OF NEW YORK: $200,000 to support Westchester food pantries through an expanded bulk-purchasing system from a food wholesaler.

  • HILLSIDE FOOD OUTREACH: $75,000 to provide food delivery to 750 low-income families referred by the County and medical facilities.

  • WESTHAB: $7,900 to provide a sports program to homeless youth in Yonkers.

Jobs and Workforce Development

  • THE GUIDANCE CENTER: $80,000 to provide a youth workforce development program in Mamaroneck, Mount Vernon, and New Rochelle.

  • WESTHAB: $100,000 for workforce training leading to construction careers.

  • WORKFORCE PROFESSIONALS TRAINING INSTITUTE (WPTI): $70,000 to provide professional development for Westchester workforce development agencies.

Special Projects

  • NEW YORK STATE CENSUS EQUITY FUND: $10,000 to support a funder collaborative working to ensure a fair and open redistricting process in New York State.

  • TRI-STATE TRANSPORTATION CAMPAIGN: $30,000 to support organizing for equitable transit in Westchester County.

Technical Assistance

  • NONPROFIT WESTCHESTER: $40,000 to support a countywide compensation study and expand the capacity of the agency.

  • ROCKWOOD LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE: $70,000 to support the leadership capacity of emerging nonprofit leaders in Westchester.

  • THE ADVOCACY INSTITUTE: $15,000 to train grassroots social justice groups in legislative advocacy.

Youth Development

  • AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN OF WESTCHESTER: $21,500 to support a scholarship program in honor of the life and legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr.

  • BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF MOUNT VERNON: $60,000 for a two-year grant to support a youth leadership program in Mount Vernon.

  • BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF NEW ROCHELLE, INC.: $70,000 for a two-year grant to support the Youth for Unity program, which focuses on inclusivity, diversity, and community.

  • BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF NORTHERN WESTCHESTER: $35,000 to expand a program that builds resiliency, responsibility, and self-advocacy skills in young people ages 8 to 18.

  • CENTER FOR COURT INNOVATION: $50,000 to support a coordinator for a pilot program diverting young people from the courts.

  • CITY OF WHITE PLAINS YOUTH BUREAU: $60,000 for a two-year grant to expand a social justice program for youth in White Plains.

  • CLUSTER COMMUNITY SERVICES: $15,000 to support a restorative justice program.

  • FAMILY TIES OF WESTCHESTER, INC.: $15,000 to continue to build the Youth Advisory Council.

  • GOOD FOR GIRLS: $20,000 to support a mentoring and leadership development program for girls in White Plains.

  • NEW ERA CREATIVE SPACE: $5,000 to provide a leadership and empowerment program for adolescent girls in Peekskill.

  • HER HONOR MENTORING: $50,000 to expand a virtual mentoring program for young women in Westchester high schools.

  • PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF THE TARRYTOWNS: $5,000 to hire young people as summer camp counselors.

  • WESTCHESTER JEWISH COMMUNITY SERVICES: $150,000 for an early childhood literacy program in Tarrytown and to support poor Jewish boys and girls.

  • WESTCHESTER LIBRARY SYSTEM: $158,500 to support the Digital Equity Initiative program in four Westchester communities.

  • WESTCHESTER PARKS FOUNDATION: $5,000 to help homeless youth from Mount Vernon and White Plains attend summer day camp.

Grants were made possible because donors included the Foundation in their wills and, more recently, people contributed to its Westchester COVID-19 Response Fund to help support residents as the county recovers from the pandemic, WCF officials said. Since 1975 the Westchester Community Foundation has worked to improve the quality of life in Westchester by promoting responsible philanthropy, investing in transformative ideas and effective organizations, and connecting donors to critical local needs. The Foundation is a division of The New York Community Trust, one of the largest community foundations in the U.S., with assets of more than $3 billion. For more information, visit the website.

This article originally appeared on the Peekskill-Cortlandt Patch

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