October 9, 2020 Press Releases

Community Foundation Awards Over $2 Million in Stabilization Grants to 70 Organizations

Grants target nonprofits that have been financially impacted by pandemic

October 9, 2020—The Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts (CFWM) has announced it has awarded $2.05 million in stabilization grants to 70 nonprofit organizations, targeting nonprofits that have been negatively impacted by the pandemic financially.

All grant awards are for general operating support. Maximum grant awards were $50,000 and will provide for up to six months of operation.

Those awarded include organizations that serve the most vulnerable populations in the region, work to advance equity and opportunity and have deep roots in the community. Forty-seven awardees were those whose missions reflect CFWM’s strategic priorities: a strong start for all children; workforce development and college readiness; and arts and creativity to support self-expression, economic vitality, and connection. The other 23 awardees include human service organizations, as well as health, mental health, food, housing and youth service providers in the region.

One grant recipient is Riverside Industries, a nonprofit located in Easthampton that provides individualized services combining life skills development, rehabilitation, and employment options for adults living with developmental disabilities. According to Charlene Gentes, President and CEO, “Riverside had to close for months because of COVID-19 and therefore experienced a significant financial loss. In order to help us recover and rebuild we applied to and were awarded a $40,000 stabilizing grant from the Community Foundation. These much needed funds will help to rebuild our future and sustain our fifty-two year old mission, as well as purchase necessary Personal Protection Equipment to keep our employees and clients safe as they return to Riverside. It has been an unprecedented time and we are very grateful for the continued support of the Community Foundation.”

Springfield’s Martin Luther King Jr. Family Services, whose mission is to nurture and develop the skills, opportunities and spirit of families in Greater Springfield and the surrounding communities, is another Stabilization grant recipient. According to Ronn Johnson, President and CEO, “The COVID-19 pandemic has left many of our agencies feeling insecure about our existence for the coming 6 months and beyond. For MLKFS, this grant award will provide much-needed funds to stabilize our infrastructure and increase our capacity for the provision of services to a population that has been disproportionately affected by the Coronavirus. The MLK Board, staff and I are extremely appreciative of the contributors to CFWM who have made this Fund possible. Also for the leadership of CFWM for being such great stewards of these Stabilization funds and the grant making process.”

The stabilization grants are part of the next stage of CFWM’s COVID-19 response effort in Franklin, Hampshire and Hampden counties. The Foundation has committed to a multi-year approach focusing, sequentially, on the resiliency, re-envisioning and rebuilding of nonprofits in the region. This response will include monetary and non-monetary support.

According to Katie Allan Zobel, President and CEO of the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts, “We recognize that our community depends on a healthy nonprofit sector and these are particularly challenging times for nonprofits in our region. These stabilization grants are intended to help nonprofits continue their critical work and adapt to the current reality. Our aim is to help ensure that they are able to continue their critical work throughout, and beyond our current crisis.”

Funding for these grants came from numerous endowed funds at CFWM, as well as the COVID-19 Response Fund, which was supported by hundreds of donors from our region and beyond. To date, the Response Fund has awarded more than $7.5 million in grants to nonprofits in Western Massachusetts that are on the front lines of serving vulnerable populations affected by the crisis.

The nonprofits that received stabilization grants from CFWM include:

Blues to Green (Huntington); Community Music School of Springfield; Drama Studio (Springfield); Empowerment Through The Arts (Shutesbury); Enchanted Circle (Holyoke); Happier Valley Comedy (Hadley); Leverett Craftsmen and Artists (Leverett); Longmeadow Historical Society; Musica Franklin (Colrain); Northampton Arts Council; Northampton Center for the Arts; Springfield Symphony Orchestra; Stone Soul (Springfield); The Art Garden (Shelburne Falls); The Northampton Academy of Music; The Performance Project (Northampton); Voices From Inside (Greenfield); Workshop 13 (Ware); Young at Heart Chorus (Florence); Brick House Community Resource Center (Turners Falls); Community Adolescent Resources and Education Center (Holyoke); MassHire Springfield Career Center; Gray House (Springfield);

International Language Institute of Massachusetts (Northampton); Leadership Pioneer Valley (Springfield); McKnight Community Development Corporation (Springfield); Providence Ministries for the Needy (Holyoke); Riverside Industries (Easthampton); Sunshine Village (Chicopee); Urban League of Greater Springfield; Valley Educational Associates (Hatfield); Work Opportunity Center (Agawam); All Out Adventures (Northampton); Amherst Community Connections; Big Brothers Big Sisters of Franklin County (Greenfield); Cancer Connection (Northampton); Caring Health Center (Springfield); Children’s Advocacy Center of Franklin and North Quabbin (Greenfield); Community Health Center of Franklin County (Greenfield); Gandara Mental Health Center (West Springfield); Greater Springfield Habitat for Humanity (West Springfield); Homework House (Holyoke); Just Roots (Greenfield); LifePath (Greenfield); North Quabbin Citizen Advocacy (Orange); Northampton Survival Center ; Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity (Florence); Pioneer Valley Project (Springfield); Pioneer Valley Workers Center (Northampton); Quabbin Mediation (Orange); Rivera & Rivera Act Against Foreclosure (Springfield);

Safe Passage (Northampton); Somali Bantu Community of Springfield ; South End Community Center (Springfield); Valley Eye Radio (Springfield); All Our Kids (South Hadley); Boys & Girls Club Family Center (Springfield); Boys & Girls Club of Greater Westfield; Christina’s House (Springfield); Community Upliftment Program (Springfield); Friends of Children (Hadley); Hampshire Regional YMCA (Northampton); Ludlow Boys & Girls Club/Randall Boys & Girls Club; Martin Luther King Jr. Family Services (Springfield); Montague Catholic Social Ministries (Turners Falls); Springfield Boys & Girls Club ; Springfield Day Nursery Corporation; Treehouse Foundation (Easthampton); West Springfield Boys & Girls Club; Womanshelter Companeras (Holyoke).