by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Jan 1, 2025 | CFFC News
The Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) is accepting applications for the spring grant cycle. Local nonprofits can apply for six grant opportunities, each with its own criteria. The deadline to apply is March 1, 2025.
Building a Stronger Fayette Fund: supporting projects/programming or nonprofit capacity building. These awards are made with the combined funding from the Building a Stronger Fayette Fund; Fayette County Charities Endowment; Franklin K. and Jean Smith Family Fund; GIVE Fayette County campaign, Levi Komarinski Memorial Fund; Thompson Fund.
Burchinal Family Endowment Fund: supports charities that provide health and medical care for Fayette County residents.
Catalyst for Change Grant: CFFC is looking for a big idea that can affect change and growth in Fayette County. There will be three steps for the selection process: letter of inquiry; full application; presentation to the CFFC board of directors. The project should be a true collaboration between two or more nonprofits, showing a collective effort to address county needs. The project should incorporate county-wide impact, both in the number of people impacted by the project and the geographic reach of the project’s impact. Projects will be viewed favorably if they spark economic growth and anticipate sustainability.
Community Beautification Fund: supports landscape improvements (including but not limited to planting of trees, shrubs, and flowers) for community beautification projects.
Mary and John J. Depcrymski Memorial Fund: supports organizations that provide transportation for Fayette County senior citizens.
Jack and Diane Hughes Family Fund: supports projects and programs in the areas of community gardens and/or science/environmental education.
Click here to apply through CFFC’s online grant system.
“In 2024, the foundation awarded $22,734 in the spring grant cycle, supporting ten local nonprofits. Those awards were made possible through generous donations to the Building a Stronger Fayette Fund, and through four field of interest funds with specific areas of focus,” said Renee M. Couser, CFFC Executive Director.
Crosskeys Human Services was awarded $3,131 last year to support their meal deliveries to about 200 elderly community members. Their service area of Brownsville and Republic is very rural and widespread, traversing rough roads and unpaved driveways. “Two of our vehicles had to have major work due to the rocky roads that are traveled in the delivery of the meals,” said Sr. James Ann Germuska, Executive Director.
Photo courtesy of DVSSP from their Board Training
Domestic Violence Services of Southwestern PA was also awarded funding last spring. “It becomes problematic when we are trying to enter reporting information or complete time-sensitive tasks, and our outdated computers are running so slow that staff struggle to access the programs they need,” said Megan Hegedus, CEO. Their $2,500 capacity building grant enabled them to update the office computers at their Fayette County Safe House.
CFFC is including the Catalyst for Change Grant letter of inquiry in this year’s spring grant cycle. Money raised from the foundation’s Gala of Giving event has funded two $50,000 Catalyst for Change Grants so far. This year, applicants can request up to $75,000 for a collaborative, county-wide project.
Pictured from left to right: Bonnie Ryan, Karen Merryman, Beth Konick, Dawn Hunchuck-Piccolomini, Renee Couser, Carrie Willetts, Garnet Gordon, Meredith Aumer
“This past fall, we awarded a Catalyst for Change Grant to support new moms at WVU Medicine Uniontown Hospital with car seats and training. In 2023, the first Catalyst for Change Grant was awarded to Main Street Theatre Company’s musical showcase for Fayette County high schools. We’re excited to see more creative, impactful projects for this year’s round of requests,” said Couser.
Applications must be submitted through CFFC’s online grant system, and more information can be found on the grants page at www.cffayettepa.org. Please direct questions to Rebecca Wardle, Communications & Grantmaking Coordinator, at 724-437-8600 x203.
Applicant Tutorial
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Oct 7, 2024 | Building a Stronger Fayette
Photo courtesy of DVSSP from their Board Training
Around each corner was a touch of purple and a smiling face during a site visit to Domestic Violence Services of Southwestern PA (DVSSP). Their signature purple color raises awareness of domestic violence, and their team provides safe housing, counseling, legal advocacy, and other critical services to those who are abused or being threatened with abuse. To support their impact in the community, the Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) has awarded DVSSP two capacity building grants from the Building a Stronger Fayette Fund.
In 2023, the Building a Stronger Fayette Fund grant provided a half-day training for board members and a six-session training for the soon-to-be CEO. At the time of the grant, DVSSP was preparing for a transition of CEOs and was looking to provide additional education that would “position the organization for future growth and maturity”.
Megan Hegedus started her role as CEO in 2024, and her training was developed specifically for new or emerging Executive Directors and CEOs, addressing the various elements of being a nonprofit CEO. She explained that Nonprofit Sidekick, the facilitator of the trainings, also helped board members identify their strengths and how to use them to best support DVSSP’s work.
DVSSP staff members
In 2024, DVSSP was awarded a capacity building grant to update the office computers at their Fayette County Safe House. “It becomes problematic when we are trying to enter reporting information or complete time-sensitive tasks, and our outdated computers are running so slow that staff struggle to access the programs they need,” said Hegedus.
“The stronger our local nonprofits are, the stronger our entire community will be. CFFC is happy to provide funding for tools and resources that will help,” said Renee M. Couser, CFFC Executive Director.
Aside from competitive grant awards, DVSSP receives annual grants from CFFC’s Strawberry Patch Fund, a fund that was created through an estate gift to support designated charities in perpetuity. This endowment has granted over $21,000 to DVSSP through yearly distributions.
DVSSP is headquartered in Brownsville and serves Fayette, Greene, and Washington Counties. To raise money for their services to Fayette County, they have participated in Fayette Gives for the past fours years and have raised over $10,000.
CFFC is happy to support local nonprofits like DVSSP through various philanthropic efforts, thanks to the many people who join in charitable giving.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Sep 12, 2024 | CFFC News
The Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) has been selected to participate in the Appalachian Regional Commission‘s (ARC) READY Community Foundations, which provides a no-cost, six-week training program to enhance our programming, operations, fundraising, and financial impact in Fayette County, PA. CFFC is one of thirty (30) community foundations chosen for the program, and one of five (5) serving Appalachian Pennsylvania.
Two CFFC staff members will participate in six weeks of virtual, cohort-based training courses to strengthen CFFC’s financial and endowment management, community-rooted fundraising, grantmaking, mission and strategy development, and more.
“ARC remains committed to providing our Appalachian communities with the resources they need to build toward a prosperous future, including training to strengthen community foundation capacity,” said ARC Federal Co-Chair Gayle Manchin. “Through the training provided by READY Community Foundations, Appalachia’s philanthropic organizations will be better able to respond to community needs and foster economic development in the areas they serve.”
“This program aligns perfectly with our new Strategic Plan, addressing items related to staff training, capacity building, and growing our foundation’s impact. We look forward to better serving and supporting Fayette County, PA through the takeaways that this opportunity will provide!” said Renee M. Couser, CFFC Executive Director.
Following completion of the training, CFFC will apply for up to $25,000 (no match required) for an internal capacity-building project that will bolster our philanthropic impact in Fayette County, PA.
Supported with funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, READY Community Foundations is the fourth and final track under ARC’s capacity-building initiative, READY Appalachia. Since July 2022, READY Appalachia has provided training and access to funding to 41 Local Development Districts (LDDs), 75 nonprofits, and 90 local government entities to help them better serve their communities.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Mar 12, 2024 | Building a Stronger Fayette
Pictured: Mark A. Smith, CEO; Annette Buffer, Board President; SueAnne Antonucci, Board Member
When Mon Valley Academy for the Arts (MVAA) learned that capacity building grants were available in spring 2023, it struck a chord. The organization had purchased the former American Legion in Brownsville to open a new location, called the Peter J. Daley Cultural Center, in addition to their space in Charleroi. The Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) awarded a capacity building grant, from the Building a Stronger Fayette Fund, to support their purchases of office supplies and equipment.
As you enter the building, your eyes scan from late Brownsville band director Sammy Bill’s hand-written music and photos displayed on the wall, to the mural of black and white photos of entertainers who performed at the Twin Coaches in Rostraver. Their upstairs space has a renovated practice area and rooms for music lessons. Among the musical instruments, chairs, and music stands, MVAA’s appreciation of history and their passion for gathering the community around music is palpable.
The nonprofit aims to inform, entertain, and engage the community -and region- in lifelong learning and cultural experiences for all ages. MVAA offers musical instruction, art exhibits, a free summer concert series, various ensembles for musicians and singers, and more. With the expanded space available for instruction and performances, they anticipate 150-200 Fayette County students to participate in art and music programming each year.
CFFC’s capacity building grant helped MVAA set up the Peter J. Daley Cultural Center with office equipment essentials, including a phone, laptop, printer, dry-erase board, shelving unit, notepads, pencils, and binders.
“The CFFC grant award this year had a major impact on the record keeping and daily activities of the Mon Valley Academy for the Arts. Without the capacity grant and the office equipment purchased, MVAA’s track to self-sustainability would be a much longer and a more difficult objective,” said Mark A. Smith, CEO of MVAA. In April, they will celebrate the one-year anniversary of the Peter J. Daley Cultural Center.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Feb 6, 2024 | Building a Stronger Fayette
“Our mission is to best serve our community. To do that, we need to pay attention to detail, refine what we’re currently doing, and plan for the future. This grant helped us do those things,” said Steve Strange, Executive Director at East End United Community Center (EEUCC). The nonprofit hosted a Board Retreat in 2023 with funding from the Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC).
Steve Strange, EEUCC Executive Director, at the CFFC spring 2023 grant presentation
EEUCC’s mission is to advance the growth and well-being of our community by providing individuals with educational, social, cultural, and economic opportunities. The center has recently seen an increase in their daycare program and out-of-school time programming. With the addition of multiple new board members in recent years and planning for a building expansion, Strange explained that the Board Retreat was an opportunity to “become more intentional in refining long-term planning”.
The funds were awarded through CFFC’s capacity building grant cycle of the Building a Stronger Fayette Fund. “This CFFC grant allowed us to work with Nonprofit SideKick to strengthen our board,” said Strange, referencing a consulting company that works with nonprofits.
CFFC is happy to support the work of nonprofits like EEUCC. Through philanthropy, the foundation is able to aid their efforts in building a stronger Fayette.
Group photo submitted by East End United Community Center.
