The Community Foundation for the Alleghenies is pleased to announce that it has awarded grants totaling $336,974 to 87 projects during its Fall 2023 Grant Round. These grants support organizations in CFA’s four-county region individually, as well as 14 multi-county programs.
The grants range from five hundred dollars to more than seven thousand dollars, and serve the community in a variety of ways: feeding and sheltering those in need of resources; beautifying neighborhoods; purchasing equipment for local fire and emergency service crews; filling educational gaps in arts and sciences; upgrading technology and shoring up infrastructure for nonprofit facilities; empowering grassroots organizations to implement and expand youth programs; supporting urban green spaces and other environmental improvements; and much, much, more.
A press conference announcing the Fall 2023 grantees was held on Tuesday, November 21, at the Sandyvale Memorial Gardens and Conservancy on Hickory Street in Johnstown. Sandyvale was a $7,500 grant recipient. The funds will enable Sandyvale to build a garage to house landscaping equipment and to renovate and add restroom facilities to an on-site building. This will allow for the expansion of educational programming during the winter months. “Sandyvale is grateful for this grant from the Community Foundation which will ultimately enable us to expand our educational programming for the region’s students, adults, seniors, the physically challenged, and surrounding low-income communities.” Said Diana Kabo, President and Events/Educational Program Coordinator at Sandyvale Memorial Gardens and Conservancy.
More than $90,000 in funding will be distributed in Cambria County, supporting the Sandyvale project, as well as initiatives for the arts, neighborhood beautification, support services for people with cancer and their families, addiction counseling services and support, and early childhood education projects, like the Alternative Community Resources Program’s “Exploring STEM Opportunities for Youth.”
More than $71,000 is being directed to Somerset County, where nearly half of the grants are meeting essential community needs. Local volunteer fire companies are great examples, with approximately $18,000 in funding dedicated to upgrading necessary life-saving equipment. Food and utility assistance continue to be top priorities providing much-needed weekend meals to students in need, along with the Salvation Army’s Winter Warmth program, which funds heating assistance to low-income families.
Indiana and Bedford counties received more than $50,000 each to support similar projects, like updating essential fire protection equipment, childcare facility expansion, and children’s educational and recreational programming.
“Year-round, it’s our pleasure to hear from our donors and help them to support their specific interests. But twice a year, during our Spring and Fall Grant Rounds, we have a better chance to hear directly from the nonprofits in our region. They work tirelessly in many different sectors and offer all sorts of programs and projects. So, their applications are insightful in painting the broad picture of the changing needs of our community,” said Mike Kane, CFA president and executive director. “From this past grant round, I can tell you that the need is extensive. A total of 105 applications were submitted requesting more than $600,000 in funding so we, unfortunately, could not support them all. We encourage anyone who wants to be able to make a contribution that can be used toward a wide variety of needs to visit our website and make a gift to our Fund for the Future, or reach out to us to learn more.”
A complete list of the grants in all four counties is available here.
