Applications for 2025 Grant Support Now Open to Qualified Organizations Serving St. Lawrence County Residents
WATERTOWN — The Rock Charitable Fund of the Northern New York Community Foundation welcomes representatives from qualified charitable organizations, houses of worship, cemeteries, or governmental entities that serve St. Lawrence County residents to attend one of four grant application workshops scheduled next month.
The Rock Charitable Fund is now accepting applications for 2025 grant support. At least $125,000 in competitive funding is available this year. Applications are due Friday, September 5, 2025.
Grant application workshops are:
- Thursday, June 5, 5:30 p.m., at the St. Lawrence Power & Equipment Museum Pavilion Building, 1755 State Route 345, Madrid
- Monday, June 9, 5:30 p.m., Crapser Hall (above the Badenhausen Public Library), 897 State Route 11C, Brasher Falls
- Tuesday, June 10, 6:30 p.m., Clifton-Fine Community Center, 4208 State Route, Star Lake
- Tuesday, June 17, 5:30 p.m., Hammond Village Hall, 24 South Main Street, Hammond
Those interested in attending any workshop should RSVP to Community Foundation Philanthropy Associate Emily Pfeil, emily@nnycf.org, or 315-782-7110, at least three days before the workshop.
“The Rock Charitable Fund is committed to honoring Marjorie’s legacy by supporting projects that preserve the historical and spiritual fabric of St. Lawrence County or assist our local veterans,” Community Foundation Director of Philanthropy Kraig Everard said. “These workshops are a great opportunity for applicants to learn more about the grant process, ask questions, and strengthen their proposals.”
Grant support is available to qualified organizations whose missions and efforts align with the fund’s charitable purposes, which are: for the maintenance and preservation of churches and other houses of worship and cemeteries in St. Lawrence County; for the preservation and maintenance of places of legitimate historical significance in the county; and to benefit and/or assist veterans of the United States military who reside in St. Lawrence County for their medical and/or recreational needs. Grants in support of veterans cannot be made directly to individuals.
All organizations applying for funding must do so through the Community Foundation’s online Grant Lifecycle Manager, which may be accessed at bit.ly/grant-portal.
The Community Foundation administers this permanent charitable legacy fund in collaboration with a seven-member St. Lawrence County-based board of advisors that reviews applications and makes funding recommendations. Advisors include Ruth McWilliams, South Colton; Erik Backus, Potsdam; Fred Hanss, Hannawa Falls; Colin Hostetter, Lisbon; Chris Rediehs, Canton; Mark Thompson, Watertown; and Keith Zimmerman, Canton.
Since the Rock Charitable Fund began grantmaking efforts in 2019, it has awarded nearly $705,000 in grant funding to support 43 projects at 39 St. Lawrence County organizations, including churches, cemeteries, places of historical significance and those supporting veterans of the United States military.
In 2024, 11 projects were awarded grant funding totaling $148,460 that include: $36,500 to Notre Dame Catholic Church, Ogdensburg, to support the restoration of a highly visible large stained-glass transept window; $25,040 to the Unitarian Universalist Church of Canton to help replace two heating systems; $20,000 to the Bayside Cemetery Association to help restore an urn-bearing tower adjacent to the cemetery’s gatehouse building; $16,133 to the Clark-Robinson American Legion Post 68, Norwood, to complete a floor replacement project; $20,814 to St. Olympia Orthodox Church, Norwood, to support a restoration project and complete a facility assessment; $10,587 to the Frederic Remington Art Museum, Ogdensburg, to help replace a gift shop window, the largest window in the museum; $6,533 to the Pierrepont Hill Cemetery Association to help plant Green Mountain Boxwoods along the north and east border of the property; $5,680 to the Town of Waddington to help conduct a building condition assessment for the old Waddington Town Hall; $2,900 to the Flackville Cemetery Association, Lisbon, to help update landscaping, improve the driveway, and complete monument work; $2,600 to the United Methodist Church of Norwood to stop rainwater runoff from further damaging the church’s historic steeple; and $1,673 to the Purmort Cemetery Corporation, Heuvelton, to help remove a dying tree and repair a large headstone.
Organizations that have received a grant award from this charitable fund must wait three years before applying for new funding. Awards to support veterans may only be made to qualified veteran organizations and cannot be made directly to individuals. Grants are not, however, restricted to Veterans Service Organizations and can be awarded to any nonprofit to help with programs or initiatives that directly support veterans.
The Rock Charitable Fund was established at the Community Foundation in 2019 through a bequest from St. Lawrence County resident and retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Marjorie J. Rock, who passed away in February 2017 at the age of 96.
Requests for funding will not be considered for work that begins before Dec. 31, 2025. Successful applicants will have up to three years to complete their project or program. Applications and guidelines for the Rock Charitable Fund may be accessed through the Foundation’s Grant Lifecycle Manager portal. However, applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the Community Foundation to discuss requested amounts and project details before submitting grant proposals.
Complete grant proposals must be submitted online by 5 p.m., Friday, Sept. 5, 2025. Grant decisions will be made in December. The Community Foundation will notify all applicants of the status of their proposal by Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. Contact Ms. Pfeil, with any application or grant questions at emily@nnycf.org or 315-782-7110.
About Marjorie J. Rock
Ms. Rock grew up in St. Lawrence County and graduated from Heuvelton High School in 1937. In 1941, she graduated from the three-year nursing program at Flower Fifth Avenue School in New York City. The following year, she joined the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, serving in North Africa and Italy during World War II. After the war, she attended Teachers College at Columbia University where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in 1948 and a Master of Arts in 1950.
She spent six years teaching in nursing programs, first as an instructor for Hartford Hospital in Connecticut and later at New York City’s Lennox Hill Hospital. She returned to active Army service in 1954 to assist with medical courses for enlisted personnel and helped to establish a medical education system, particularly in the United States, Japan, and Germany. She served as a supervisor, chief nurse, instructor and director of an advance medical technician school. Her last overseas duty was in Vietnam.
In 1970, she retired from the U.S. Army as a Lieutenant Colonel and returned to St. Lawrence County, joining her mother in Ogdensburg to help with her care. She earned many honors during her Army service, including the Bronze Star and Army Commendation Medal. Her only sibling, a brother, was killed in 1944 while piloting a P-47 Thunderbolt plane over Normandy. For the rest of her life, Ms. Rock made St. Lawrence County her home while traveling with friends, caring for others, and assisting her church and other organizations, including the Army Nurse Corps Association and other veterans’ groups. She maintained a keen interest in documenting local history and furthering the education of others in the county.
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.