\u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>His inspiring spirit made friends and family feel deeply connected and appreciated. He worked hard, loved the outdoors, and made those around him always smile. After unexpectedly passing away last year, it remained important to Riley\u2019s family and friends to honor him in an enduring way.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>The Riley Basford Legacy Fund <\/b>has been established at the Northern New York Community Foundation to honor the life of the 15-year-old Potsdam Central School student. The charitable mission and purpose of the fund is to support youth in their pursuit of safe and meaningful experiences throughout their lives and in the community.<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>\u201cOur hope for Riley\u2019s legacy fund and its outreach is to help us heal by supporting the community that supported us in our darkest days and continues to want to honor and remember Riley with us,\u201d said Mary Rodee, Riley\u2019s mother, and Darren Basford, Riley\u2019s father.<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>The Riley Basford Legacy Fund supports three important focus areas. A top priority is to provide funding for education, training, and awareness to St. Lawrence County schools for programs and projects centered on cyberbullying and cyber safety, anti-bullying, and character education.<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>\u201cWe believe the best way to remember Riley is to foster strong relationships with youth and educate all community members about the hazards of social media,\u201d Mrs. Rodee and Mr. Basford said.<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>Riley\u2019s fund will also support students with demonstrated needs at Potsdam Central School and help students enrolled at St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES with funding to secure materials for classes or help BOCES graduates entering the workforce.<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>\u201cHonoring and remembering Riley with this legacy fund is very important to us,\u201d said Mrs. Rodee and Mr. Basford. \u201cHaving the support of the Community Foundation to guide us in starting this fund during our time of grief has been comforting and uplifting.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>The Community Foundation will help steward the application process for the Riley Basford Legacy Fund. An advisory committee of family, friends, and citizens will partner with the Community Foundation to determine grants from Riley\u2019s fund from time to time.<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>\u201cTo have the trust of Riley\u2019s family and play a small role in creating a lasting legacy for him is a great privilege,\u201d said Max DelSignore, Community Foundation assistant director. \u201cThe fund\u2019s purpose and who it supports will ensure Riley will be remembered as a difference-maker in the Potsdam community and across St. Lawrence County forever. The Community Foundation is honored to help fulfill this mission for him and his family.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>\u201cRiley\u2019s nickname was \u2018Rizer,\u2019\u201d added Mrs. Rodee and Mr. Basford. \u201cWe are being called to be \u2018Rizers.\u2019 A \u2018Rizer\u2019 identifies and offers support to others in need, and a \u2018Rizer\u2019 also asks for and takes help when they need it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>To help build the Riley Basford Legacy Fund<\/b>, please make gifts to the Northern New York Community Foundation, 131 Washington Street, Watertown, N.Y. 13601<\/b>, and designate your gift to the Riley Basford Legacy Fund. You may also access secure online giving at nnycf.org<\/b><\/a>. To learn more about the application and fund\u2019s purpose, contact Mr. DelSignore at max@nnycf.org<\/b><\/a>, or 315-782-7110<\/b>.<\/p>\n About the Northern New York Community Foundation<\/b><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>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.<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>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.<\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>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.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Late Potsdam Teen Remembered Through Efforts to Support Students, Community \u00a0 \u00a0 POTSDAM \u2014 Riley Basford was a positive force for good in his Potsdam community. \u00a0 \u00a0 His inspiring spirit made friends and family feel deeply connected and appreciated. He worked hard, loved the outdoors, and made those around him always smile. After unexpectedly …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["type-post","category-recent-news","entry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4589","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4589"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4589\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4595,"href":"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4589\/revisions\/4595"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4589"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4589"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4589"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/nnycf.org\/new\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/NNYCF_RileyBasford_021722-754x1024.jpg\")