by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Apr 13, 2021 | CFFC News, Grants, News Releases
The Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) received a $15,000 gift from the EQT Foundation for the Building a Stronger Fayette Endowment. This endowment was created in 2020 to support CFFC’s general grantmaking program.
The Building a Stronger Fayette Endowment is an important part of the CFFC’s annual competitive grantmaking, accepting grant requests from nonprofits for the following funding priorities: arts and culture; education; community and economic development; health and human services.
Left to right: Renee Couser – CFFC Executive Director; Joy G. Huston – CFFC Grantmaking Committee Chair; Ellen Rossi – EQT Foundation President
The EQT Foundation’s generous donation to the Building a Stronger Fayette Endowment will have a direct impact on local nonprofits and, in turn, the Fayette County residents they serve. Established in 2003, the EQT Foundation is a dedicated resource for financial, in-kind, and volunteer support for communities touched by EQT’s business. They prioritize the following categories for their funding: community enrichment; education and workforce; environment.
“We value meaningful engagement with the communities where EQT operates. Fayette County is one of those important communities, so the EQT Foundation is happy to support the CFFC’s Building a Stronger Fayette Endowment,” said Ellen Rossi, President of the EQT Foundation.
The Building a Stronger Fayette Endowment will help Fayette County in a variety of ways for years to come. “This endowment was created to support our nonprofit community in perpetuity, and will award grants each year. The promise of lasting impact, and the CFFC’s ability to support a variety of causes, makes this a unique opportunity to continue ‘building a stronger Fayette’,” said Renee Couser, Executive Director of CFFC.
The entire community can help ‘build a stronger Fayette’ by making a donation to the Building a Stronger Fayette Endowment. Checks can be made payable to CFFC and mailed to 5 South Mt. Vernon Avenue, Uniontown, PA 15401. Please write BASF on the memo line. Online donations can also be made at www.cffayettepa.org. If you have any questions on how CFFC can assist you with your charitable giving, please call 724-437-8000 x1.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Feb 19, 2021 | Building a Stronger Fayette
The CFFC’s Burchinal Family Endowment Fund focuses on health and medical care. Throughout the covid-19 pandemic, our need for front line workers who provide those services has been strongly reaffirmed.
Fayette Emergency Medical Services (Fayette EMS) is one of the local organizations who has put themselves at risk, worked extra hours, and continued to respond to calls day in and day out. They were awarded a $6,000 grant from the Burchinal Family Endowment Fund in 2020 to support general operations.
“While this has been an exceptionally challenging year for Fayette EMS, we are extremely proud of the continuous level of care we have been able to provide to the residents of Fayette County during the covid-19 pandemic,” stated Beth Burd, Director of Finance & HR Coordinator.
The grant application provides the option to request funding for a project/program or for operating support. Requests to support operations were popular in 2020, especially since the pandemic affected organizations’ typical programming, decreased revenue as a result of cancelled fundraisers, and added costs for personal protective equipment and sanitization.
“We are grateful to have been awarded the 2020 Burchinal grant to help us with the costs of PPE and other supplies needed to keep our staff safe and healthy so we can better serve our community, as well as the generous mask donations through the CFFC Mask Initiative,” added Burd. The CFFC has provided a total of 12,000 masks to Fayette EMS, and Mask Initiative requests are still being accepted on a rolling basis at www.cffayettepa.org.
Thank you to all first response and healthcare organizations who continue to serve the Fayette County community. We invite you to visit www.cffayettepa.org to review eligibility and apply for the 2021 Burchinal Family Endowment Fund.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Jun 3, 2019 | Building a Stronger Fayette
City Mission – Living Stones, Inc. helps about 500 homeless men, women and children annually, working step-by-step to help people achieve self-sufficiency. The CFFC awarded City Mission a 2018 spring grant, and recently a 2019 spring grant, to support the Emergency Shelters. Their services include food, clothing, transportation, case management, resident management, utility and rental assistance and referrals to community agencies.
In March 2018, the government’s Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) that City Mission had utilized for 20+ years was eliminated in favor of permanent housing initiatives for the homeless. Irmi Gaut, Executive Director, said she continually looks for grant opportunities and is working with the Board, churches and community to help bridge the gap in funding.
Emergency Shelters provide time for individuals to gather documentation for permanent housing, find employment, address root causes of their homelessness and plan for long-term self-sufficiency. City Mission also provides transitional and permanent supportive housing and operates Home Again as a therapeutic residential facility and Promise House as an independent living program, both for youth.
The men’s emergency shelter and the women’s and children’s emergency shelter both have sleeping quarters, a shared kitchen, bathroom, living room, dining room and laundry as well as an office and living quarters for staff. Shelter clients may stay for 30-60 days while they work with City Mission staff to find a job and plan for permanent housing.
Staff members Michelle Lindsey, Director of Youth Services, and Kelly Snyder, Emergency Shelter Supervisor, expressed the value of maintaining facilities’ security, cleanliness and good conditions to help City Mission clients feel safe, respected and motivated to be successful. Visit citymissionfayette.org for more information.
