Eleven Local Organizations Will Share $40,000 in Support for Community Projects
BOONVILLE — Eleven organizations that serve residents of Boonville, Constableville and Westernville were recently awarded 2020 grant funding from the Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund of the Northern New York Community Foundation.
Grants totaling $40,000 will support programs and projects that broadly impact the quality of life for residents in the three communities. More than a dozen organizations applied for funding in the third year this opportunity has been made available. In 2019, the Sawyer Community Fund awarded $32,500 to 11 community-based organizations.
“Mr. and Mrs. Sawyer left an enduring legacy that will impact the communities they worked so hard to support during their lives,” said Max DelSignore, Northern New York Community Foundation assistant director. “Their generosity will be felt in a very meaningful way while helping local organizations strengthen the place they loved for generations to come.”
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 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 2020 grant funding from the Sawyer Community Fund:
- Erwin Library and Institute — $9,000 to complete general building repairs and weatherization, update the children’s library, and purchase new furniture.
- Boonville Black River Canal Museum — $5,000 to help install a new roof on the museum’s Mule Barn, which is the centerpiece the museum campus.
- Boonville Cemetery Association — $5,000 to continue efforts to digitize and preserve headstones and markers for future reference, genealogical research, and historic preservation.
- Dodge Pratt Northam Art and Community Center — $5,000 to purchase equipment for the center’s First LEGO League robotics program. Funding will also support an after-school drama program.
- Flywheels and Pulleys Association — $5,000 to complete electrical upgrades at existing facilities. The association works to prominently feature the importance and history of antique power equipment and machinery in the region.
- Friends of Erwin Park — $4,000 for way-finding signage on a half-mile trail connector the organization is developing in collaboration with the Village of Boonville.
- Village of Boonville — $4,000 to complete trail development that will connect two existing trails, which will lead to the creation of a 1-mile trail within the footprint of Erwin Park in the village. Grant funding will help purchase stone and other landscaping materials.
- Western Town Library — $900 to support technology upgrades to enhance overall operational efficiency. This community library serves 3,000 patrons from across the area.
- Boonville Area Chamber of Commerce — $800 to purchase two new speakers and an amplifier for use during a wide range of community events throughout the year.
- Boonville Search and Rescue — $800 to complete facility and landscaping repairs, including installation of new flooring, which was damaged after a water main break.
- Constableville for Tomorrow — $500 to enhance the skating experience at its pavilion rink and purchase new youth hockey skates. Facility upgrades are being completed in partnership with the Village of Constableville.
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.
The application for the next grant cycle for funding from the Kenneth V. and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Community Fund will be available in early 2021.
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.