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Northern New York Community Foundation

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Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge Awards $10,000 in Grants to Charitable Organizations

January 28, 2019 By admin

Initiative Marks Second Year, Expands into St. Lawrence County    

     The Northern New York Community Foundation, in partnership with Community Bank, announces $10,000 in Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge grants to 20 North Country nonprofits across the region. 

   Now in its second year, the Community Spirit Youth Giving Challenge has grown to include schools in St. Lawrence County. This year’s program committee received and reviewed 87 applications from seventh- and eighth-graders.

     Schools participating in the 2018 challenge include: Lewis County — Beaver River Central School; Lowville Academy and Central School; Jefferson County — Case Middle School-Watertown City Schools; General Brown Central School; Indian River Central School; Sackets Harbor Central School; Thousand Islands Central School; St. Lawrence County — Clifton-Fine Central School; Hammond Central School; and Ogdensburg Free Academy.

     The initiative was launched in 2017 to engage middle school students in exploring the meaning of community and empower them to recommend grants to support their concepts of strengthening the quality of life in the region. Students write an essay that articulates their definition of community and explains what makes it a great place to live, work and play. Students are then asked to name a charitable organization that makes their community a better place.

     Consistent themes of “community” that appeared most often in the applications were: “people working together,” “taking care of each other,” “shared values,” “feel safe,” “supportive,” and “able to be yourself.”

     Charitable organizations students selected for funding range from those that provide support for basic human needs to those that enrich the region with arts and culture, environmental preservation, health care and the preservation of regional history.

     “Initiatives such as this help fulfill our shared responsibility of honoring community legacies by helping to inspire a multigenerational approach to civic engagement and investment,” said Rande S. Richardson, Community Foundation executive director. “The program also successfully involves our younger youths in community philanthropy and paves the way for future stewardship of or region’s strength.”

     A $2,500 gift from Community Bank helped to continue the program for a second year while the Community Foundation provided $7,500 for a total of $10,000 available grant money.

     A committee judged and scored the applications with results as follows:

Jefferson County

  •      $500, American Cancer Society, Watertown, Ryan Podvin, Case Middle School, Watertown City Schools
  •      $500, Food 4 Families — Food Bank of Central New York for Watertown City Schools, Charlie Johnson, Case Middle School, Watertown City Schools
  •      $500, Jefferson County SPCA, Watertown, Zachary Kilburn, Case Middle School, Watertown City Schools
  •      $500, Mental Health Association of Jefferson County, Watertown, Trinity Thomas, Case Middle School, Watertown City Schools
  •      $500, North Country Arts Council, Watertown, Kaidance LaFave, Case Middle School, Watertown City Schools
  •      $500, Stage Notes / Performance With A Purpose, Watertown, Maya Voss, Case Middle School, Watertown City Schools
  •      $500, Watertown Lyric Theater, Watertown, Olivia Urf, Case Middle School, Watertown City Schools
  •      $500, Indian River Lakes Conservancy, Redwood, Peyton Gasser, Indian River Central School
  •      $500, Victims Assistance Center of Jefferson County, Watertown, Lakaiya Butcher, Indian River Central School
  •      $500, River Hospital, Alexandria Bay, Leo Greene, Thousand Islands Central School
  •      $500, Save the River, Clayton, Franchesca Cartaya, Thousand Islands Central School
  •      $500, Thousand Islands Performing Arts Fund, Clayton, Alexandra Ives, Thousand Islands Central School
  •      $500, Watertown Urban Mission, Watertown, Rebecca Leonard, Thousand Islands Central School

Lewis County

  •      $500, American Maple Museum, Croghan, Kennedy Becker, Beaver River Central School
  •      $500, Friends of Lewis County Hospice, Lowville, Loryn Schack, Beaver River Central School
  •      $500, Lewis County Humane Society, Lowville, Katelyn Adams, Beaver River Central School
  •      $500, Lewis County Opportunities — Croghan Food Pantry, Croghan, Valery Zehr, Beaver River Central School
  •      $500, Make-A-Wish Foundation Central New York, Syracuse, Colin Kempney, Lowville Academy and Central School

St. Lawrence County

  •      $500, Salvation Army of Ogdensburg, Ogdensburg, Trevor Mooney, Ogdensburg Free Academy
  •      $500, St. Lawrence Valley SPCA, Ogdensburg, Audrey Harradine, Ogdensburg Free Academy

     In the coming weeks, the Community Foundation and Community Bank will work with winning students to coordinate visits to their respective charitable organizations to present grants and learn more about the organization they chose to support.

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