Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation

Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation Awards over $23,000 to Nonprofits in Southern Berkshire County

May 5, 2011

SHEFFIELD, MA—The South Berkshire County Fund, a fund of Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, has recently awarded five grants to nonprofit organizations serving Alford, Egremont, Great Barrington, Lee, Lenox, Monterey, Mount Washington, New Marlborough, Otis, Richmond, Sandisfield, Sheffield, Stockbridge, Tyringham, and West Stockbridge.

In light of dwindling resources both public and private, and concerns with the overlap of services, the fund gave priority to collaborative proposals that maximize efficiencies to deliver services directly to constituents in need.

The following nonprofits received grants:

Elder Services of Berkshire County, Inc: $6,983 to help provide over 45,000 hot, nutritious, noontime meals expected to serve to approximately 600 South Berkshire seniors at senior centers and community centers in south county through their Meals on Wheels program between October 1, 2011 and September 30, 2012.

Railroad Street Youth Project: $7, 500 to partner with the Elizabeth Freeman Center to provide sexual health education/violence prevention courses to all four grades at Monument Mountain and Mt. Everett High Schools and training for 25 students from Bard College at Simon's Rock as youth educators and leaders.

Construct, Inc.: $2,895 to fund the Cultivate Community Project, a collaborative effort of Construct and Berkshire Grown to provide vulnerable south county individuals with opportunities to improve their well-being through teaching skills in vegetable gardening.

Volunteers in Medicine Berkshires: $6,000 for Volunteers in Medicine and Tapestry Health to together provide weekly, evening clinics offering reproductive health care and family planning services to underserved residents of South Berkshire County.

The South Berkshire County Fund is also sponsoring the participation of Berkshire South Regional Community Center in the Nonprofit Learning Program. The Nonprofit Learning Program is an intensive program that provides nonprofit executive directors and board members with training in governance, management and fundraising.

The South Berkshire County Fund is led by a committee of local residents which reviews applications and awards grants based on the excellence of the proposed project or service, its impact on the organization or community, and the ability of the organization to carry out the project.

Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation builds stronger communities and improves the quality of life for all residents of northwest Litchfield County, CT; Berkshire County, MA; and Columbia County and northeast Dutchess County, NY, acting as an agent for positive change in the region. Since 1987, Berkshire Taconic has managed a growing collection of charitable funds created by individuals, families and businesses. Each year, the foundation distributes over $7 million through grants and scholarships for programs in the arts and education, health and human services and environmental protection, helping thousands of donors achieve their philanthropic goals and hundreds of nonprofits carry on their good work. Berkshire Taconic is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity.

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