Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation Awards $1.8 Million in Spring Grants Cycle
Sheffield, Mass.—The board of directors of Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation today announced the recipients of the first round of grantmaking for 2016. The foundation distributed a total of $319,245 in grants to individuals and nonprofits in the four-county region it serves, and grants totaling nearly $1.5 million from donors with charitable funds at the foundation.
In Dutchess County, grants were awarded by the Alice and Richard Henriquez Memorial Fund/Youth World Awareness Program, Dover Education Enrichment Program, Oppenheimer Environmental Fund and Webutuck Quest for Excellence Fund.
Education and Enrichment: Grants to regional schools, school districts and students in Dutchess County totaled $8,787. Select grants include: $1,435 to incorporate Lego robotics into Dover Elementary School’s computer club curriculum; $1,000 for North East Community Center’s three-month reading and writing project for children in second and third grade; and $400 for Dover Middle School’s science challenge competition, which will engage 135 sixth- and seventh-grade students.
Health and Human Services: Grants to nonprofits and individuals providing social and human services totaled $1,495. Grants include: $100 to support The Town of Dover Lions Club’s community service fair, which will connect 460 students to local nonprofit leaders; and $1,395 to Sophia Bucklin of Millbrook, who is building two cinder block houses for families in Masaya, Nicaragua.
Arts and Culture: A total of $1,725 was awarded to arts and cultural organizations in Dutchess County. Grants include: $1,225 for The Wassaic Project’s literacy program for kindergarten and first-grade students; $350 to support the Town of Dover Historical Society’s Exploring Historic Dover Club; and $150 for Dover Plains Library’s “Book a Trip around the World” program, which encourages youth to learn about different places across the globe.
Environment: Grants to environmental organizations and programs in Dutchess County totaled $2,410. Grants include: $1,000 to Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies for a multi-year educational partnership with the Webutuck Central School District; and $1,410 for Hudson River HealthCare to establish a community garden at Dover Elementary School.
A full list of regional grants can be found at www.berkshiretaconic.org/springgrants.
About Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation
For over 28 years, Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation has built stronger communities and helped donors make a difference through charitable giving in northwest Litchfield County, CT; Berkshire County, MA; and Columbia County and northeast Dutchess County, NY. Each year, the foundation distributes over $8 million through grants and scholarships to nonprofits and individuals in the arts and education, health and human services and environmental protection. Berkshire Taconic is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity. You can make a difference. We can help.
SPRING GRANTS AWARDED BY BERKSHIRE TACONIC
ALICE AND RICHARD HENRIQUEZ MEMORIAL FUND/YOUTH WORLD AWARENESS PROGRAM ($27,270)
Grants to students ages 14-22 for international travel and service to help promote peace and justice.
Jacob Borden (Great Barrington, Mass.), examining the concept of “home” through photography in L’Ane Vert, Morocco
Sophia Bucklin (Millbrook, NY), building two cinder block houses for families in Masaya, Nicaragua
Skylar Case (Adams, Mass.), building an orphanage and learning about other local challenges in the Dominican Republic
Ella Hampson (Cornwall Bridge, Conn.), participating in a 10-day community service trip to Peru
Madalyn Henry (Cheshire, Mass.), building an orphanage and learning about other local challenges in the Dominican Republic
Gabriella Makuc (Monterey, Mass.), learning about the role of music in building diverse but unified communities in France and England
Olivia May (Lakeville, Conn.), participating in a community service trip to the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Reservation
Nicholas Monteleone (Lenox, Mass.), providing trail maintenance and restoration at national parks in Costa Rica
Hannah Pouler (Lakeville, Conn.), spending a year at the Regents International School in Pattaya, Thailand
Zenani Santos (Lenox, Mass.), organizing and running a sports day camp for children in Costa Rica
Cristian Umana (Lakeville, Conn.), studying habitat loss and food access in Oslo, Norway
Berkshire Waldorf High School (Stockbridge, Mass.), working with orphans and children and adults with Down syndrome in Cuba
Haiti Plunge, Inc. (Adams, Mass.), building 50 raised gardens for women in Haiti
BERKSHIRE ENVIRONMENTAL ENDOWMENT FUND ($10,000)
Grants to nonprofits, public agencies, schools or civic community entities for projects focused on water quality or land issues.
Berkshire Environmental Action Team (Pittsfield, Mass.), protecting and restoring river and stream connectivity for all species that need to travel to survive
Greenagers (Great Barrington, Mass.), providing programs that engage youth with the Housatonic watershed in diverse and active ways
Housatonic Valley Association (Lee, Mass.), collecting available Housatonic water quality and quantity data
Tamarack Hollow Nature & Cultural Center (Windsor, Mass.), conducting a scientist-led bird census to determine what birds are living and breeding at Tamarack Hollow
DOVER EDUCATION ENRICHMENT PROGRAM ($7,003)
Supports programs that emphasize excellence, innovation and creativity for students and teachers in the Dover Union Free School District.
Dover Elementary School (Dover Plains, NY), incorporating Lego robotics into the school’s computer club; giving students the opportunity to complete a project using the scientific method
Dover High School (Dover Plains, NY), hosting a pre-prom assembly about drunk driving and drug use, as well as a drug- and alcohol-free after-prom party
Dover Middle School (Dover Plains, NY), implementing a science challenge competition
Dover Plains Library (Wingdale, NY), teaching students to read more about places around the world
Hudson River Health Care (Dover Plains, NY), establishing a community garden at Dover Elementary School
Town of Dover Historical Society (Dover Plains, NY), facilitating a history club that allows 15 fourth-grade students to increase their knowledge of the Town of Dover’s history
Town of Dover Lions Club (Dover Plains, NY), hosting a community service fair with 13 local nonprofits for 300 middle school students, followed by a service learning project
Wingdale Elementary School (Wingdale, NY), creating take-home science bags for parents of second grade students to become more involved in their children’s science education; continuing the “Book Buddies” project for 350 students that promotes reading in conjunction with honoring Dr. Seuss’s birthday; creating a portable store with products that will motivate students; running a “Literature in Math” program to help children develop a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts
FUND FOR COLUMBIA COUNTY ($33,435)
Annual grants to help Columbia County organizations provide programs and services in the arts and culture, education, environment, health and human services. For the 2016 grant cycle, the fund prioritized projects that involve two or more nonprofit a/o governmental organizations working in collaboration to maximize services and better serve Columbia County residents.
Art School of Columbia County (Ghent, NY), collaborating with Camphill Ghent to offer four arts programs for the elderly, disabled and developmentally challenged
Behold! New Lebanon (New Lebanon, NY), support for a living museum of contemporary rural American life
Coarc (Mellenville, NY), producing a short film, “This We Know,” in collaboration with I AM: International Foundation
Columbia County Youth Theater (Chatham, NY), presenting a live, family-friendly performance at the Chatham Summer Street Festival in collaboration with the Mac-Haydn Theatre and the Columbia Film Club
Columbia Opportunities, Inc. (Hudson, NY), offering a four-week summer literacy enrichment program for at-risk youth
Common Ground Dispute Resolutions, Inc. (Catskill, NY), teaching conflict resolution skills to young women of Perfect Ten After School; creating a peer mediation program at Ichabod Crane High School
Hawthorne Valley Association (Ghent, NY), increasing the availability of financial assistance for participants in its Children’s Day programs
High and Mighty Therapeutic Riding and Driving Center (Ghent, NY), providing therapy for children in foster care
Hudson Area Library (Hudson, NY), launching an oral history archive, including processing oral histories for preservation and hosting community engagement events
Hudson Opera House (Hudson, NY), hosting a hip-hop class and Bindlestiff Family Cirkus workshops in partnership with the Hudson Department of Youth
Kite’s Nest (Hudson, NY), hosting a five-week summer leadership training for teenagers
Mental Health Association of Columbia-Greene Counties (Hudson, NY), supporting families visiting their loved ones in prison and youth programs for those directly impacted by incarceration
North Chatham Free Library (North Chatham, NY), enhancing its life-long learning institute for older adults
PS/21, Inc. (Chatham, NY), offering a West African dance and drum workshop and a theater workshop in partnership with Perfect Ten After School and Greater Hudson Promise Neighborhood
Roeliff Jansen Community Library (Hillsdale, NY), offering a series of presentations about financial literacy at all stages of life
The Sylvia Center (Kinderhook, NY), offering its farm and food literacy program for high school culinary students
KINDERHOOK ARTS AND HUMANITIES FUND ($6,871)
Supports programs that emphasize excellence, innovation and creativity for students and teachers in the Ichabod Crane Central School District.
Art School of Columbia County (Ghent, NY), creating a program for students in the Kinderhook School District that combines art with literature
Ichabod Crane High School (Valatie, NY), continuing the project, “Inheritances X,” which allows students to create personal poetry and explore poetic genres; taking students studying humanities on a field trip to New York City to see a live opera performance and visit an art museum
Ichabod Crane Middle School (Valatie, NY), taking sixth-grade students to the Albany Institute of History and Art to view the Egyptian gallery; continuing an interdisciplinary unit about ancient Greece and Greek myths
Ichabod Crane Primary School (Valatie, NY), hiring the Puppet People to perform for kindergarten and first-grade students, followed by a puppet-making workshop; allowing fifth-grade students to attend the annual Youth People’s concert of the Empire State Youth Orchestra at Proctors Theatre
PS/21, Inc. (Chatham, NY), offering a one-day dance residency to the sixth grade students at Ichabod Crane Middle School
LANESBOROUGH INITIATIVE FOR EXCELLENCE FUND ($4,437)
Supports programs that emphasize excellence, innovation and creativity for students and teachers in the Lanesborough School District.
IS183 Art School of the Berkshires (Stockbridge, Mass.), offering its “Learning through the Arts” program at Lanesborough Elementary School
Lanesborough Elementary School (Lanesborough, Mass.), taking fifth grade students on a field trip to Howe Caverns; purchasing kits for students to build circuits and learn about electricity; purchasing tablets or small laptops to increase students’ ability to access technology and enhance learning in the classrooms
LEE EDUCATION ENRICHMENT FUND ($10,200)
Supports programs that emphasize excellence, innovation and creativity for students and teachers in the Lee-Tyringham School District.
Flying Cloud Institute (New Marlborough, Mass.), offering an after-school science club for girls; offering a residency where second grade students and teachers will work with visiting specialists in science and art
IS183 Art School of the Berkshires (Stockbridge, Mass.), offering its “Learning through the Arts” program at Lee Elementary School
Lee Elementary School (Lee, Mass.), providing a school-wide assembly with Food Play Productions, a nutrition media company, to promote healthy eating and lifestyles
Lee High School Band (Lee, Mass.), commissioning composer Matthew Quayle to write a new work for the band; offering a world drumming class as a new elective for seventh-grade students
Lee Middle and High School Drama (Lee, Mass.), presenting a full-scale production of “Legally Blonde”
Lee Public School Wellness Committee (Lee, Mass.), purchasing badminton nets for the morning fitness club; hosting Jeff Bauman, survivor of the Boston Marathon bombing, to speak to the school and community about his experience
Lee Youth Drama (Lee, Mass.), studying and performing the Broadway junior version of Annie
SculptureNow (Becket, Mass.), offering sculpture projects and out-of-school tours of the SculptureNow exhibition at the Mount to students at Lee Middle and High School
MADELEINE B. WILDES FUND ($10,633)
Grants to nonprofits serving residents of Lakeville and Salisbury who require assistance due to sickness or financial need.
Chore Service (Lakeville, Conn.), providing direct service, non-medical help to at-home seniors and disabled residents in the Salisbury/Lakeville area
EXTRAS (Salisbury, Conn.), providing child care for families in need in the Salisbury/Lakeville area
Geer Foundation (Canaan, Conn.), providing the Dial-a-Ride program in response to the growing need for transportation in Litchfield County
Housatonic Youth Service Bureau (Falls Village, Conn.), providing clinical counseling services to children, youth and families living in the Salisbury/Lakeville area
MARGARET DERWIN “BLUE SKY” SCHOLARSHIP FUND ($105,000)
Named in memory of a beloved 2005 graduate of Housatonic Valley Regional High School. One junior at the school receives as much as $25,000 annually toward tuition and other costs to attend the four-year, U.S. college or university of his/her choice, and up to $5,000 for an overseas community service program this summer.
Sara VanDeusen (East Canaan, Conn.)
NORTHWEST CORNER FUND ($45,750)
Grants to nonprofits that improve the quality of life for residents of northwest Litchfield County.
Foundation for Community Health (Sharon, Conn.), launching a substance abuse awareness initiative
QUAILWOOD FUND ($23,620)
Grants to nonprofits or public entities that improve the quality of life for residents of Red Rock, NY.
Columbia Land Conservancy (Chatham, NY), continuing to improve the Schor Public Conservation Area
Red Rock Historical Society (East Chatham, NY), painting the outside of the building
Red Rock Volunteer Fire Co. (East Chatham, NY), continuing to serve the residents of Red Rock
SALISBURY CENTRAL SCHOOL EDUCATION ENRICHMENT ENDOWMENT FUND ($18,846)
Grants to support the organization and operation of extracurricular programs, education enrichment activities and experimental programs at Salisbury Central School.
SOAR, Inc. (Sharon, Conn.), providing extracurricular programs, educational enrichment activities and experimental programs at Salisbury Central School
TACONIC HILLS ARTS AND HUMANITIES/EDUCATION ENRICHMENT FUND ($11,161)
Grants for programs that emphasize excellence, innovation and creativity for students and teachers in the Taconic Hills Central School District.
The Millay Colony for the Arts, Inc. (Austerlitz, NY), continuing and expanding its program of bringing resident artists to Taconic Hills High School
Pascal RIOULT Dance Theatre, Inc. (New York, NY), offering a dance residency to the sixth grade students of Taconic Hills Central School District
Roving Actors’ Repertory Ensemble (Copake, NY), offering a week-long workshop for students participating in the Willy Wonka musical
Taconic Hills Jr. High School (Craryville, NY), taking eighth grade students on a field trip to the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
Taconic Hills High School Model UN (Craryville, NY), attending the Model UN Conference
Taconic Hills Elementary School (Craryville, NY), providing a trip for all sixth grade students to see a performance of “The Lightning Thief” in Albany; taking fifth grade students on a field trip to Howe Caverns
Taconic Hills High School (Craryville, NY), attending a two-week trip to Dominica to further students’ scientific knowledge and gain field research skills; creating a mentor group for students to discuss school issues; participating in Fall Festival of Shakespeare
WEBUTUCK QUEST FOR EXCELLENCE FUND ($5,019)
Grants for projects that support the development of language and literacy for children in pre-k, kindergarten, first, second and third grade in the Webutuck Central School District.
North East Community Center (Millerton, NY), offering a three-month reading and writing project about foods and cooking styles to children of the Webutuck School District
The Wassaic Project (Wassaic, NY), offering an art workshop that introduces stop motion animation through storytelling to kindergarten and first grade students in the Webutuck School District
Webutuck Central School District (Amenia, NY), partnering with the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies to revitalize the school’s nature trail, which will be used by science classes to study local organisms and collect long-term data
Webutuck Elementary School (Amenia, NY), purchasing recording devices to enable students to enhance their fluency in reading and writing by listening to themselves read; establishing a library for third grade students to use in class and for take-home reading; purchasing LeapReader reading sets for kindergarten students; hosting an evening workshop for parents about the importance of reading to their children; launching the Sphero SPRK (school-parent-robot-kids) enrichment program to help students increase their knowledge of science, technology, engineering and math through hands-on activities
