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Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Fund Announces $32,500 in Grant Awards

July 10, 2019 By admin

Nearly a Dozen Organizations Receive Support for Community-Based Projects and Initiatives

     BOONVILLE — Eleven organizations that serve residents of Boonville, Constableville and Westernville will receive 2019 grant awards from the Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund at the Northern New York Community Foundation.

     Grants totaling $32,500 will support programs and projects that broadly impact the quality of life for residents from the three communities. Nearly 20 organizations applied for funding in the second year the opportunity has been made available. In 2018, the Sawyer Community Fund awarded $30,000 to 12 community-based organizations.

      “Thanks to the generosity of Mr. and Mrs. Sawyer, this is one of the most far-reaching and meaningful ways to forever impact the communities they loved and worked hard to support,” said Max DelSignore, Northern New York Community Foundation assistant director.

     The Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund was established in 2018 as a geographic-specific fund to support programs, projects and initiatives that broadly impact and enhance the quality of life in Boonville, Constableville and Westernville in perpetuity. The Sawyers were passionate about the quality of life in their community, participating in many community activities and volunteering for several local organizations. Through the community fund, the Sawyer family established a lasting charitable resource that will positively impact these communities forever.

     The following organizations will receive 2019 grant funding from the Sawyer Community Fund:

  •      Erwin Library and Institute — $5,400 to help repair building front steps, complete outside stone work, and launch new multi-generational programs for local residents. Programming will begin this summer through the fall.
  •      Boonville Cemetery Association — $5,000 to help expand the cemetery and identify additional sources of funding for an expansion project.
  •      Dodge Pratt Northam Art and Community Center — $4,150 to help improve a sound system to enhance the music and theater programs. Funding will also support the center’s FIRST LEGO League robotics program.
  •      Constable Hall Association — $4,000 matching grant to help complete major repairs to the hall’s chimney and roof that will help protect the association’s assets and artifacts. This award is a matching grant to generate additional community support for the project.
  •      Village of Boonville — $4,000 to help the village purchase playground equipment at Erwin Park and install a wheelchair swing and interactive play station for all residents.
  •      Boonville Black River Canal Museum — $2,750 to help purchase equipment and materials to reduce moisture, mold and mildew and preserve artifacts and displays in future years.
  •      Friends of Erwin Park — $2,000 to aid in support for the first phase of a “master renewal project” at the park, which includes installation of a splash pad.
  •      Constableville Fire Company Inc. — $1,500 to help acquire an industrial washing machine to appropriately clean turnout gear.
  •      Village of Constableville — $1,500 to help landscape the playground with new bedding chips and installation of a new border to keep the chips in the space. The funding also supports supplies to paint- and stain-tired sections of the playground.
  •      Adirondack Community Chorus — $1,200 to purchase music for upcoming performances in the 2019-2020 season. The organization plans to conduct three major concerts during the season, including one during the Christmas season. Funding may also be designated to cover costs of any special instrumentalists performing at the concerts.
  •      North Country Proudly Honors Inc. — $1,000 to fund the placement of flag banners along community streets to honor local military veterans and service members. Grant funding will also support a planned yearbook of honorees and framed banners for family sponsors to receive at a banner reception.

     The application for the next grant cycle for funding from the Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund will be available in February 2020.

About Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer

     Mr. and Mrs. Sawyer participated in many community events and activities through the years and served on local boards and committees. Mr. Sawyer was a Boonville native, served in the United States Army, and enjoyed a career at Layng Furniture Company and as a supervisor at Boonville’s Erwin Park. Most notably, he was a talented musician. He played tenor saxophone in his high school band and clarinet with the Boonville Village Band. He frequently played with three separate drum and bugle corps in Boonville and Rome. Mr. Sawyer died in 2008.

     Mrs. Sawyer completed a successful career of more than 45 years at Rome Savings Bank and was an avid follower of the stock market. She also served on the finance committee of Boonville United Methodist Church. She assisted organizations such as the Daughters of the American Revolution, Dodge Pratt Northam Art and Community Center, the Erwin Library, and the Boonville Cemetery. Mrs. Sawyer died in 2015.

     In 2017, the Kenneth V. Sawyer and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Scholarship Fund was established through the Northern New York Community Foundation to benefit Adirondack Central School graduates. The endowed fund will award two scholarships each year forever, supporting the business and music pursuits of high school graduates from the district.

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 in communities across Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties.

    Through partnerships with businesses and organizations, generous individual donors and families, and charitable foundations, 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 enduring legacies of community philanthropy while inspiring others.

    The Community Foundation is a resource for donors, local charitable organizations, and professional advisors. 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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Working with donors to benefit the community through grants and scholarships since 1929.

Meet Taya Coller, an eighth grader at Edwards-Knox Central School District.

For Taya, “Community means teamwork and people helping other people. When people are a part of a community, they look out for each other and work together.”

“In my community neighbors help each other,” Taya wrote in her winning essay. “Our hospital helps people recover from injury or disease.”

As a 2021-2022 Northern New York Community Foundation Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge winner, Taya had a chance to present a grant to the St. Lawrence Health Foundation at Gouverneur Hospital, an organization she chose for its work to help those in the community who need it most. 

“Gouverneur Hospital best embodies my definition of community because it helps make the community a better place by looking out for other people,” Taya wrote. “For example, the hospital vaccinates people to try to help stop the spread of diseases like the flu, and hospital workers work together as one big team.” 

Taya met had a chance to meet Christina Latta, Gouverneur Hospital vice president for nursing, and present a $500 Youth Giving Challenge grant that will help the hospital continue its critical work. The grant is supported by donors to the Friends of the Foundation Annual Community Betterment Fund, a partnership with Community Bank, N.A., and a leadership gift from an anonymous donor. 

Pictured, from left, Diane Easton, Community Bank branch manager; Christina Latta, Gouverneur Hospital; and Taya Coller, Edwards-Knox Central School eighth grader and Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge winner.

Taya is one of dozens of thoughtful youths who looked inside her community to help an organization that works to improve quality of life for its residents. The 2021-2022 Giving Challenge asked 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. Taya’s essay is one of 20 chosen from 193 submissions.

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

#NNYCF #ThoughtfulGiving #YouthGivingChallenge #CommunitySpirit

Meet Taya Coller, an eighth grader at Edwards-Knox Central School District.

For Taya, “Community means teamwork and people helping other people. When people are a part of a community, they look out for each other and work together.”

“In my community neighbors help each other,” Taya wrote in her winning essay. “Our hospital helps people recover from injury or disease.”

As a 2021-2022 Northern New York Community Foundation Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge winner, Taya had a chance to present a grant to the St. Lawrence Health Foundation at Gouverneur Hospital, an organization she chose for its work to help those in the community who need it most.

“Gouverneur Hospital best embodies my definition of community because it helps make the community a better place by looking out for other people,” Taya wrote. “For example, the hospital vaccinates people to try to help stop the spread of diseases like the flu, and hospital workers work together as one big team.”

Taya met had a chance to meet Christina Latta, Gouverneur Hospital vice president for nursing, and present a $500 Youth Giving Challenge grant that will help the hospital continue its critical work. The grant is supported by donors to the Friends of the Foundation Annual Community Betterment Fund, a partnership with Community Bank, N.A., and a leadership gift from an anonymous donor.

Pictured, from left, Diane Easton, Community Bank branch manager; Christina Latta, Gouverneur Hospital; and Taya Coller, Edwards-Knox Central School eighth grader and Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge winner.

Taya is one of dozens of thoughtful youths who looked inside her community to help an organization that works to improve quality of life for its residents. The 2021-2022 Giving Challenge asked 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. Taya’s essay is one of 20 chosen from 193 submissions.

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

#NNYCF #ThoughtfulGiving #YouthGivingChallenge #CommunitySpirit
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Meet Aidan O’Shaughnessy, a Watertown City School District seventh grader at Case Middle School Case Middle School.

For Aidan, “A community is a group of diverse people that are brought together by where they live, as well as religion, school, and sports. People in a community care about each other and share common interests.” 

As a 2022-2023 Northern New York Community Foundation Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge winner, Aidan had a chance to present a grant to Watertown Urban Mission, an organization he chose for its work to strengthen the quality of life in the community. 

“The Urban Mission makes Watertown a better place. Some people in our community face big challenges. The winters are long and cold, and some people may not have the resources to stay warm. The people at Urban Mission help find them a warm place to sleep and provide them with housing assistance,” Aidan wrote in his winning essay. “They provide so much to the community that they need as much support as they can get.”

Aidan recently met with Urban Mission Executive Director Cherelyn VanBrocklin and presented a $1,000 Youth Giving Challenge grant that will help the nonprofit continue its vital work and mission. The grant is supported by donors to the Friends of the Foundation Annual Community Betterment Fund, a partnership with Community Bank, N.A., and a leadership gift from an anonymous donor. 

Pictured, from left, Aidan’s mother, Colleen O’Shaughnessy; brothers Sam and William Considine; father, Matthew Considine; Case Middle School student and Youth Giving Challenge winner Aidan O’Shaughnessy; Watertown Urban Mission Executive Director Cherelyn VanBrocklin; and Community Bank representative Cheyanne Blundon.

Aidan is one of dozens of thoughtful youths who looked inside his community to recognize an organization that works to improve quality of life locally. The 2022-2023 Youth Giving Challenge asked 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. Aidan s essay is one of 10 chosen from 124 submissions that came from 11 different tri-county schools.

Look for more photos and stories behind the Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge in the coming weeks.
#NNYCF #ThoughtfulGiving #YouthGivingChallenge #CommunitySpirit

Meet Aidan O’Shaughnessy, a Watertown City School District seventh grader at Case Middle School Case Middle School.

For Aidan, “A community is a group of diverse people that are brought together by where they live, as well as religion, school, and sports. People in a community care about each other and share common interests.”

As a 2022-2023 Northern New York Community Foundation Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge winner, Aidan had a chance to present a grant to Watertown Urban Mission, an organization he chose for its work to strengthen the quality of life in the community.

“The Urban Mission makes Watertown a better place. Some people in our community face big challenges. The winters are long and cold, and some people may not have the resources to stay warm. The people at Urban Mission help find them a warm place to sleep and provide them with housing assistance,” Aidan wrote in his winning essay. “They provide so much to the community that they need as much support as they can get.”

Aidan recently met with Urban Mission Executive Director Cherelyn VanBrocklin and presented a $1,000 Youth Giving Challenge grant that will help the nonprofit continue its vital work and mission. The grant is supported by donors to the Friends of the Foundation Annual Community Betterment Fund, a partnership with Community Bank, N.A., and a leadership gift from an anonymous donor.

Pictured, from left, Aidan’s mother, Colleen O’Shaughnessy; brothers Sam and William Considine; father, Matthew Considine; Case Middle School student and Youth Giving Challenge winner Aidan O’Shaughnessy; Watertown Urban Mission Executive Director Cherelyn VanBrocklin; and Community Bank representative Cheyanne Blundon.

Aidan is one of dozens of thoughtful youths who looked inside his community to recognize an organization that works to improve quality of life locally. The 2022-2023 Youth Giving Challenge asked 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. Aidan 's essay is one of 10 chosen from 124 submissions that came from 11 different tri-county schools.

Look for more photos and stories behind the Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge in the coming weeks.
#NNYCF #ThoughtfulGiving #YouthGivingChallenge #CommunitySpirit
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Jeannette Remp Sawyer passed away in 2015, and her husband, Kenneth V. Sawyer in 2008. This year, they will award up to $60,000 to nonprofits working to strengthen the quality of life for residents of the communities they cherished during their lifetimes.

Nonprofit organizations that serve Boonville, Constableville, and Westernville, should apply for 2023 grant support from the Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund through the Community Foundation's online Grant Lifecycle Manager portal by Friday, April 21.

Complete details: www.nnycf.org/sawyer-fund-2023-#NNYCFN#thoughtfullegaciesacies
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Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund Accepting Grant Proposals for 2023 Support

www.nnycf.org

Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund Accepting Grant Proposals for 2023 Support March 22, 2023 By admin Up to $60,000 Available for Nonprofits Serving Three Communities WATERTOWN — No...
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