by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Jun 10, 2025 | CFFC News
Each charity* that participates in one or more of these three trainings will receive a $50 cash prize on Fayette Gives day. These 30-minute trainings will be held via Zoom. You will register for each webinar separately. Multiple representatives from your charity are encouraged to participate in these trainings — each must register for the webinar to receive the Zoom meeting link via email.
June 24 at 2:00 p.m.
Registration and Accessing Your Account
Click here to sign up for this webinar!
July 22 at 2:00 p.m.
Profile Completion and Promoting Fayette Gives
August 26 at 2:00 p.m.
Prizes and Payout
*Limit one prize per charity. Charity must register, meet eligibility requirements, and be a participating charity for Fayette Gives 2025.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Jun 9, 2025 | Building a Stronger Fayette
Seniors in the Carpentry program at Connellsville Area Career & Technical Center (CACTC) were recognized on May 8 in a ceremony lead by Nick Farris, the Carpentry instructor. Farris introduced each student, shared their plans for after graduation, and gave insight to their personality and work ethic. After their bio, each student received a tool bag filled with equipment and a boxed circular saw. The Carpentry program was also presented with a grant award from the Sturge Hughes Memorial Fund.
The Sturge Hughes Memorial Fund, held at the Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC), has awarded a grant to CACTC for nine years in a row to help build up the trade programs. The fund was created by Regina Hughes in honor of her late husband, Sturge, to continue his legacy in the community and in the carpentry industry. Previous grants have also supported the Masonry program at CACTC.
Jerry Matthews, retired CACTC Carpentry instructor, recalls Regina sitting down with him and asking “how can I help?” Her generosity has provided support for field trips, projects, tools, and other needs of the program.
Regina’s son, Jeff Butela, and grandson, Ryan Butela, spoke to the seniors about their careers as home builders — both in management and hands-on construction. They emphasized the value of trade skills, whether the students would pursue it as their primary career or keep it as another tool in their toolbox for the future (pun intended).
The Sturge Hughes Memorial Fund is a meaningful way for the family to honor Sturge and his dedication to helping young people learn, start a career, and grow in the carpentry field. Regina shares that same passion for mentoring the younger generation, which she applied during her career at a utility company and continues to do through her charitable giving.
Photo courtesy of CACTC: Ryan Butela, Nick Farris, Rebecca Wardle, Jeff Butela
“These Carpentry students are learning workforce-ready skills. Their projects building sheds, picnic tables, and benches are able to go straight out into the community, and the foundation is happy to facilitate support for that,” said Renee M. Couser, CFFC Executive Director.
CACTC provides thirteen (13) technical programs and academic courses. Part of the Connellsville Area School District, 9th and 10th graders can attend technical programs during morning or afternoon sessions, while 11th and 12th grade students can attend full-time. This year, there were eleven (11) seniors in the Carpentry program.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Jun 2, 2025 | CFFC News
The sixth annual Fayette Gives “day of giving” will take place on November 6, 2025 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. During this fundraising marathon, participating charities receive donations from the public to support their services in Fayette County. Charities that wish to participate must register online at www.fayettegives.org by August 29.
To participate, charities must be a 501c3 nonprofit, must not be a private foundation, must be located in or providing services in Fayette County, and must file an annual 990.
Fayette Gives is hosted by the Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) in an effort to build a stronger Fayette County by supporting local charities and engaging the community in philanthropy. In its first five years, Fayette Gives has raised over $2.5 million for more than one hundred (100) Fayette County charities.
“This is a one-stop-shop for charitable giving. We want to make it easy for everyone to give back and support the good work of our amazing Fayette County charities,” said Renee M. Couser, CFFC Executive Director.
Each participating charity will have a profile on the website, where the public can learn more about their mission and how they impact the community. Starting in early September (exact date TBD), CFFC will accept check donations, IRA contributions, and donor advised fund donations. Online donations will be available for a 12-hour period on November 6 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. at www.fayettegives.org. Cash prizes will be awarded each hour during Fayette Gives day, to incentivize donations and boost fundraising.
“Fayette Gives offers a tremendous opportunity for nonprofits, businesses, and individuals to see a more complete picture of the amazing services that are available to Fayette County,” said Paula Millsaps, Founding Director/President of Joel 2 Missions.
“Fayette Gives provides us with non-restricted funding that we can use on anything we need for our initiatives in the County,” said Laurel Ross, Planner/Grant Writer of Private Industry Council of Westmoreland/Fayette.
CFFC is accepting sponsorship for Fayette Gives. Please direct questions to Rebecca Wardle, Communications & Grantmaking Coordinator at rebecca@cffayettepa.org or 724-437-8600 x203.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | May 27, 2025 | CFFC News
The Community Foundation of Fayette County’s (CFFC) Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) Program offers tuition assistance for Pre-Kindergarten and K-12. Tuition assistance is available to Fayette County, PA students attending a participating private school. Please contact your school administrator to inquire about the school’s participation in this EITC Program.
To apply for this tuition assistance, you must contact your school administrator to obtain an EITC Tuition Assistance Application, which are available now.
Submit your completed application to CFFC, 5 South Mt. Vernon Ave., Uniontown, PA 15401. All applications must be post-marked on or before July 31, 2025.
Families who will receive tuition assistance are typically notified in October.
We are grateful for the generosity of our Pennsylvania business partners. For more information on how your business can receive tax credits and participate in this program, please visit the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) website.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | May 22, 2025 | CFFC News
The Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) has selected eleven (11) projects for spring grant awards. The Building a Stronger Fayette Fund, CFFC’s general grantmaking fund, awarded $25,000. Four field of interest funds, which support specific areas of focus, awarded $11,603.
“The foundation is able to support a variety of organizations and causes, thanks to generous donors. Each of the awarded nonprofits is serving the community in a meaningful way, and we look forward to sharing more details about these projects in the coming months,” said Renee M. Couser, CFFC Executive Director.
Participants and staff members at the Fayette County Community Action Agency’s Senior Center
Building a Stronger Fayette Fund: supporting projects/programming or nonprofit capacity building
These awards are made with combined funding from the Building a Stronger Fayette Fund; Fayette County Charities Endowment; Franklin K. and Jean Smith Family Fund; GIVE Fayette County; Levi Komarinski Memorial Fund; Thompson Fund.
Domestic Violence Services of Southwestern PA – Legal Advocacy Equipment
Dress for Success Pittsburgh – Employment Readiness
Fayette County Community Action Agency – Senior Activity Center
Fayette Friends of Animals – Spay/Neuter/Vaccine Clinics
Mary House, Inc. – Confidence in Dentistry Care
The Salvation Army – Uniontown Corps – Feeding Program Enhancements
Touchstone Center for Crats – Staff Expansion Equipment
Renee Couser, Tammy Barnhart, and Tanya Vokes with the Dress for Success mobile unit
Photo courtesy of FFOA: Luke Szymanski, Keeley Forrestel, Amanda Mehalic, and Rebecca Wardle outside of the Fayette Friends of Animal shelter
Burchinal Family Endowment Fund: supports charities that provide health and medical care for Fayette County residents
Wesley Health Center, Inc. – Health Services
Marilyn Weaver and Renee Couser at Wesley Health Center
Community Beautification Fund: supports landscape improvements (including but not limited to planting of trees, shrubs, and flowers) for community beautification projects
Borough of Dunbar – Flowers for Dunbar & Honor Roll
Mary and John J. Depcrymski Memorial Fund: supports organizations that provide transportation for Fayette County senior citizens
Crosskeys Human Services, Inc. – Transportation for Elderly Meals
Photo courtesy of Crosskeys Human Services: Bernie, a volunteer for Crosskeys’ meal delivery program
Jack and Diane Hughes Family Fund: supports projects and programs in the areas of community gardens and/or science/environmental education
Crosskeys Human Services, Inc. – Park and Garden Area
To learn more about the Community Foundation of Fayette County’s grants, visit the Building a Stronger Fayette page.