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Northern New York Community Foundation

Northern New York Community Foundation

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Retired Lowville Central Schools Superintendent is New Community Foundation Board Chair

July 3, 2024 By admin

Lewis County Attorney Also Appointed to Foundation Board of Directors

     WATERTOWN — Lewis County resident Cheryl R. Steckly was recently named Chair of the Northern New York Community Foundation Board of Directors.

     Mrs. Steckly retired in 2019 as superintendent of Lowville Academy & Central Schools after more than 35 years working in public education.

     She was first appointed to the Community Foundation Board of Directors in 2017 and is now serving in her second five-year term on the Board. She lives in Croghan with her husband, Edward F.

     Victoria “Torie” Hasseler Collins, Esq., also of Lewis County, was recently appointed to the Northern New York Community Foundation Board of Directors.

     Mrs. Collins is a practicing attorney and partner in the Carthage firm Collins, Hasseler & Simser Law.

     She previously served on the Community Foundation’s Cultural, Historical and Recreational Committee and is a past member of the Foundation’s LEAD Council. She lives in Croghan with her husband, Adam, two young daughters.

     “One of our strengths has always been to have voices and perspectives representing the people and places of the areas we serve,” said Rande S. Richardson, Community Foundation executive director. “Cheryl and Torie join a long list of strong leaders from Lewis County, and we are grateful for their long-standing commitment to the betterment of the region.”

     Established in 1929, the Northern New York Community Foundation’s board has 16 members, with representation throughout Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties.

About the Northern New York Community Foundation

     Since 1929, the Northern New York Community Foundation has invested in improving and enriching the quality of life for all in communities across Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties.

     Through partnerships with businesses and organizations, charitable foundations, and generous families and individual donors, the Community Foundation awards grants and scholarships from an endowment and collection of funds that benefit the region. Its commitment to donors helps individuals achieve their charitable objectives now and for generations to come by preserving and honoring legacies of community philanthropy while inspiring others.

     The Community Foundation is a resource for local charitable organizations, donors, professional advisors and nonprofit organizations. It also works to bring people together at its permanent home in the Northern New York Philanthropy Center to discuss challenges our communities face and find creative solutions that strengthen the region and make it a great place to live, work, and play.

Filed Under: Recent News

Northern New York Community Foundation

131 Washington Street
Watertown, NY 13601

Phone: 315-782-7110
Fax: 315-782-0047

info@nnycf.org

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Northern New York Community Foundation

Northern New York Community Foundation

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Working with donors to benefit the community through grants and scholarships since 1929.

We are pleased to announce the inaugural recipients of the Northern New York Community Foundation Friends of the Minna Anthony Common Nature Center Scholarship.

Representatives from the Friends of the Nature Center Board of Directors and the Minna Anthony Common Nature Center recently presented Thousand Islands High School graduate Sophia Cohen and Heuvelton High School graduate Connor G. Young with a $2,500 scholarship.

The two recent high school graduates share a passion for preserving the environment and each plan to pursue undergraduate studies in environmental-related fields of study.

Complete details below.

Minna Anthony Common Nature Center + Friends

#NNYCF #classof2026 #scholars #friendsofthenaturecenter
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First recipients of Community Foundation’s Friends of the Minna Anthony Common Nature Center Scholarship named

nnycf.org

First recipients of Community Foundation’s Friends of the Minna Anthony Common Nature Center Scholarship named July 27, 2026 By admin Recent high school graduates share a passion for the environment...
4 hours ago
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Meet South Jefferson High School rising sophomore Breckan Pelton.

For Breckan, “community means having people you can rely on; friends and family all within a close distance.

“Mannsville isn’t just a place to grow up. This community always strives to take care of one another. It may be a small town in size, but it has a large heart,” Breckan wrote in his winning essay.

Breckan is a Northern New York Community Foundation Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge winner. He chose the Mannsville Free Library to receive a $1,000 grant for its work and mission. 

“In a small village like Mannsville, there aren’t many places for socialization with your friends. When I was younger, my sister and my friends and I would meet at the library, which was always welcoming and featured our book recommendations,” he wrote. “I hope this grant award will provide Mannsville Library the opportuni-ty to purchase new books and host new activities for children so they can have the same memories and expe-riences as I did.”

Breckan recently met with Mannsville Free Library Director Anne Fuller and presented a $1,000 Youth Giving Challenge grant that will help the library continue its work. The grant is made possible by gifts to the Friends of the Foundation Community Betterment Annual Fund, corporate support from Community Bank, N.A. and a major gift from an individual donor.

Pictured, from left: Anne Fuller, Mannsville Library director, and Youth Giving Challenge winner and South Jefferson High School rising sophomore Breckan Pelton.

We are grateful to Breckan for his thoughtful effort. We are even more impressed that he is one of dozens of tri-county youths who looked inside their communities to recognize an organization that works to improve quality of life. Breckan is the son of Shelbie and James Pelton, Mannsville. 

The 2025-2026 Youth Giving Challenge asked seventh, eighth, and ninth-grade students from Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties to explain in an essay what community means to them and to choose a nonprofit that embodies their definition of community. Breckan’s essay is one of 20 chosen from nearly 80 submissions that came from 26 different tri-county schools.

Look for more photos and stories behind the Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge in the coming weeks.

#NNYCF #MannsvilleFreeLibrary #CommunitySpirit #YouthGivingChallenge

Meet South Jefferson High School rising sophomore Breckan Pelton.

For Breckan, “community means having people you can rely on; friends and family all within a close distance.

“Mannsville isn’t just a place to grow up. This community always strives to take care of one another. It may be a small town in size, but it has a large heart,” Breckan wrote in his winning essay.

Breckan is a Northern New York Community Foundation Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge winner. He chose the Mannsville Free Library to receive a $1,000 grant for its work and mission.

“In a small village like Mannsville, there aren’t many places for socialization with your friends. When I was younger, my sister and my friends and I would meet at the library, which was always welcoming and featured our book recommendations,” he wrote. “I hope this grant award will provide Mannsville Library the opportuni-ty to purchase new books and host new activities for children so they can have the same memories and expe-riences as I did.”

Breckan recently met with Mannsville Free Library Director Anne Fuller and presented a $1,000 Youth Giving Challenge grant that will help the library continue its work. The grant is made possible by gifts to the Friends of the Foundation Community Betterment Annual Fund, corporate support from Community Bank, N.A. and a major gift from an individual donor.

Pictured, from left: Anne Fuller, Mannsville Library director, and Youth Giving Challenge winner and South Jefferson High School rising sophomore Breckan Pelton.

We are grateful to Breckan for his thoughtful effort. We are even more impressed that he is one of dozens of tri-county youths who looked inside their communities to recognize an organization that works to improve quality of life. Breckan is the son of Shelbie and James Pelton, Mannsville.

The 2025-2026 Youth Giving Challenge asked seventh, eighth, and ninth-grade students from Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties to explain in an essay what community means to them and to choose a nonprofit that embodies their definition of community. Breckan’s essay is one of 20 chosen from nearly 80 submissions that came from 26 different tri-county schools.

Look for more photos and stories behind the Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge in the coming weeks.

#NNYCF #MannsvilleFreeLibrary #CommunitySpirit #YouthGivingChallenge
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3 days ago
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Outstanding job

Way to go Breckan!!!

Excellent job Breckan!

Congratulations!!

Great job Breckan!!

Congratulations Breckan!

Way to go, Breckan!

Well done Brecken!

Congratulations to both Breckan and the Mannsville Free Library. This is great!!

WTG Breckan! (Richard🤣🤣) I'm really proud of you!

Congratulations Breckan! Such a great feeling.

So thoughtful

Congratulations, Breckan! We love the Mannsville Library, too.

I love this! Breckan is a kind, caring, intelligent young man and we are so fortunate to have him as part of our community.

Congratulations.

Congratulations Breckan! 👏👏

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We are proud to introduce the Class of 2026 Shaw Harbor Foundation scholars.

Nine members of the class of 2026 were awarded scholarships from the Shaw Harbor Foundation, a Northern New York Community Foundation charitable fund, during the Seventh Annual Appreciation & Recognition Dinner at The Barracks Inn, Sackets Harbor, last month. 

Class of 2023 Shaw Harbor Scholar Kevin Bou-Abdallah, Clarkson University; Class of 2024 Shaw Harbor Scholar Rebecca M. Leonard, Rochester Institute of Technology; and Class of 2025 Shaw Harbor Scholar Henry B. Goss; St. Lawrence University, were also named 2026 recipients of the Shaw Harbor Distinguished Undergraduate Award ($1,000).

Class of 2026 Shaw Harbor Leadership scholars: 

Luxi A. Liston, World-Changer Award ($5,000); Parishville-Hopkinton Central School; University of Rochester, pre-med-neuroscience

Mackenzie A. Salisbury, Perseverance Award ($3,000); Belleville Henderson Central School, Jefferson Community College, criminal justice

Garett J. Nier, Harmony & Humanity Award ($3,000); Carthage Central School; SUNY Oswego, communications

Porter Lonsbery, Intellectual Curiosity Award ($2,000); Thousand Islands Central School; Jefferson Community College, social sciences & Spanish

Chris-Dre McIntosh, Advocacy Award ($2,000); Watertown High School; University at Buffalo, political science

Aveline M. Hellings, Community Impact Award ($1,000); LaFargeville Central School, SUNY Oswego, business administration/global & international studies

Class of 2026 Shaw Harbor Scholars ($1,000): Audrey I. Jareo, Watertown High School; East Carolina University, biomedical engineering; Sarah B. Storrin, Parishville-Hopkinton Central School; SUNY Potsdam, adolescence education: social studies; and Easton J. Willard, Morristown Central School, St. Lawrence University, biochemistry

Top photo, from left: Class of 2026 Shaw Harbor Scholars Easton J. Willard, Chris-Dre McIntosh, Shaw Harbor Foundation founder John Shaw McNeely, Garett J. Nier, and Porter Lonsbery. Front row, from left: Audrey J. Jareo, Mackenzie A. Salisbury, Luxi A. Liston, Sarah B. Storrin, and Aveline M. Hellings.

Bottom photo, from left: Luxi A. Liston, Class of 2026 World-Changer Award recipient, and John Shaw McNeely, Shaw Harbor Foundation founder.

#NNYCF #ShawHarbor #ClassOf2026 #ScholarsImage attachment

We are proud to introduce the Class of 2026 Shaw Harbor Foundation scholars.

Nine members of the class of 2026 were awarded scholarships from the Shaw Harbor Foundation, a Northern New York Community Foundation charitable fund, during the Seventh Annual Appreciation & Recognition Dinner at The Barracks Inn, Sackets Harbor, last month.

Class of 2023 Shaw Harbor Scholar Kevin Bou-Abdallah, Clarkson University; Class of 2024 Shaw Harbor Scholar Rebecca M. Leonard, Rochester Institute of Technology; and Class of 2025 Shaw Harbor Scholar Henry B. Goss; St. Lawrence University, were also named 2026 recipients of the Shaw Harbor Distinguished Undergraduate Award ($1,000).

Class of 2026 Shaw Harbor Leadership scholars:

Luxi A. Liston, World-Changer Award ($5,000); Parishville-Hopkinton Central School; University of Rochester, pre-med-neuroscience

Mackenzie A. Salisbury, Perseverance Award ($3,000); Belleville Henderson Central School, Jefferson Community College, criminal justice

Garett J. Nier, Harmony & Humanity Award ($3,000); Carthage Central School; SUNY Oswego, communications

Porter Lonsbery, Intellectual Curiosity Award ($2,000); Thousand Islands Central School; Jefferson Community College, social sciences & Spanish

Chris-Dre McIntosh, Advocacy Award ($2,000); Watertown High School; University at Buffalo, political science

Aveline M. Hellings, Community Impact Award ($1,000); LaFargeville Central School, SUNY Oswego, business administration/global & international studies

Class of 2026 Shaw Harbor Scholars ($1,000): Audrey I. Jareo, Watertown High School; East Carolina University, biomedical engineering; Sarah B. Storrin, Parishville-Hopkinton Central School; SUNY Potsdam, adolescence education: social studies; and Easton J. Willard, Morristown Central School, St. Lawrence University, biochemistry

Top photo, from left: Class of 2026 Shaw Harbor Scholars Easton J. Willard, Chris-Dre McIntosh, Shaw Harbor Foundation founder John Shaw McNeely, Garett J. Nier, and Porter Lonsbery. Front row, from left: Audrey J. Jareo, Mackenzie A. Salisbury, Luxi A. Liston, Sarah B. Storrin, and Aveline M. Hellings.

Bottom photo, from left: Luxi A. Liston, Class of 2026 World-Changer Award recipient, and John Shaw McNeely, Shaw Harbor Foundation founder.

#NNYCF #ShawHarbor #ClassOf2026 #Scholars
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4 days ago
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Congratulations!

Yas Mac!!!!

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