The Northern New York Community Foundation’s board of directors recently approved matching grants totaling $12,500 to two non-profit organizations providing services in St. Lawrence County.
The Community Foundation will award a $10,000 matching grant to St. Lawrence NYSARC to establish and build an endowment fund for the agency’s Dodge Pond Camp. The fund will be administered and stewarded by the Community Foundation. Dodge Pond Camp, a longtime program of St. Lawrence NYSARC, offers outdoor and camping experiences for children and youth with developmental disabilities. The two-week summer program provides activities such as swimming, hiking, fishing, boating and more. The endowment will serve as a permanent revenue source to support the camp in perpetuity.
The Foundation’s board of directors also agreed to a $2,500 matching grant to the Volunteer Transportation Center to increase support for services provided in St. Lawrence County. The agency expanded its services into the county in 2013. The center offers transportation to seniors and others in need across the county. This grant was also funded, in part, through the Peter Van de Water Fund for St. Lawrence County.
“The Community Foundation continues to look for meaningful ways to build partnerships with non-profit organizations and donors in St. Lawrence County. Both NYSARC and the Volunteer Transportation Center are providing essential services, and these grants will help support them both now, and in the future,” said Rande S. Richardson, Community Foundation executive director.
The Community Foundation also recently relocated its St. Lawrence County extension office, to join in sharing space with Grasse River Heritage, at 30 Court Street in Canton.
The Northern New York Community Foundation makes grants to support the work of non-profit organizations and provides scholarships to individuals in Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence Counties. This work is made possible by donors who have established permanent, charitable funds with the Foundation during their lifetimes or through their wills and have a general, broad and enduring interest in supporting the quality of life in the North Country.