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 | Jan 27, 2021 | Building a Stronger Fayette
East End United Community Center (EEUCC) is helping to build a stronger Fayette by supporting local youth. They have received multiple grants from the Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) in the past, including a 2020 Emergency Relief Fund grant.
Keeley Forrestel and Nancy Reed with EEUCC’s Emergency Relief Fund check
EEUCC used the Emergency Relief Fund grant to purchase and distribute toiletries and household supplies to the community during the covid-19 pandemic. On a weekly basis, between 45 and 55 families picked up supply bags at EEUCC.
“We distributed to families we already serve, which helped us stay in touch with the kids, but the supply distribution is also open to the larger community. This was helpful in increasing awareness of other resources we have available, such as a diaper bank, clothing closet, free hot dinners for youth up to age 18, and subsidized childcare,” explained Keeley Forrestel, EEUCC Executive Director.
Like many organizations, EEUCC has adapted programming during the pandemic. Though the typical in-person afterschool programming isn’t currently offered, EEUCC has continued to provide afterschool enrichment opportunities in a virtual setting. They showed their ability to adapt for fundraising as well, placing in the top five for CFFC’s first Fayette Gives in 2020, both for amount fundraised and number of donors.
Keeley Forrestel and Renee Couser with EEUCC’s Fayette Gives check
The CFFC is happy to support organizations like EEUCC that are making a positive impact on Fayette County. We invite nonprofits to complete the Building a Stronger Fayette General Grantmaking application for 2021 funding, which is open now until March 1, 2021. To learn more about current grant opportunities, visit www.cffayettepa.org.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Aug 12, 2020 | Building a Stronger Fayette
Junior Achievement of Western PA is dedicated to educating K-12 students with programs of work readiness, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy/money management. Their experimental, hands-on programs provide students with tools such as leadership, teamwork, and decision-making skills. The CFFC awarded Junior Achievement of Western PA a Spring 2019 grant to support “Empowerment to the Youth of Fayette County.”
“It’s a collaborative effort with the school districts. Each school has different needs, so we help fill in the gaps of work readiness in the schools’ curriculum and provide artifacts that students can include in their portfolios,” explained Nicki Sliko, Education Program Manager.
Junior Achievement empowers students to make a connection between what they learn in school and how it can be applied in the real world, enhancing the relevance of their classroom learning and increasing their understanding of the value of staying in school.
Volunteer community mentors serve as career role models and provide real-world context to classroom topics through in-class instruction. In addition to teaching students important life skills such as saving money, balancing a checkbook, and how to find an keep a job, Junior Achievement also addresses important “soft” skills, such as communication and problem solving.
Once students understand the connection between education and local workplace opportunities, they can better envision how their developed skills can help strengthen the Fayette County workforce and community as a whole.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Apr 2, 2020 | Building a Stronger Fayette
Nearing their 50th anniversary, Adelphoi Village has been expanding their programming to better serve youth in over 30 counties, including Fayette County. The nonprofit serves youth who are at-risk, abused, neglected, delinquent, or struggling with academic or behavior issues. The Adelphoi Albert Gallatin Education Site received a Spring 2019 CFFC grant for the Career Exploration Lab, which provides STEAM programming to support a Career Preparation Initiative.
Adelphoi Village has found that tactile, hands-on learning is most effective and rewarding for the youth they serve and have combined that with preparing students for the workforce. “We want to give the students an opportunity to at least be exposed to various trades,” explained Kerry Ozmeleck, Career Readiness Supervisor/Education Services Liaison.
The Adelphoi Albert Gallatin Education Site serves K-12 students, and provided an Emergency Medical Responder career readiness course for students grades 9-12. All students are able to take the course and complete basic certifications, such as CPR certification, with the opportunity to complete additional certifications if they are interested in learning more, such as EMR certification. This course helps prepare students to work on an ambulance crew, which is an area that shows job growth in the coming years.
Joscelyn Gaston, Education Director, and Susan Takach, Education Supervisor, noted that students are excited to see their names on the certificates and that these hands-on experiences are a confidence-booster for students.
The Career Exploration Lab is equipped with a virtual reality welding system, residential wiring, AC/DC circuitry, an automobile brake training system, coding/robotics, Emergency Medical Responder and CPR training, and horticulture, and Adelphoi Village is expanding these materials to its other education sites as well. In addition to education services, Adelphoi Village operates residential group homes, foster and adoptive care, and in-home treatment options to provide a continuum of services to children, youth, and families.
Mission Statement: Offering outcome-based solutions for abused, neglected, delinquent and other at-risk children and their families through a continuum of treatment and education services that provide a foundation of hope for the future.
Learn more about Adelphoi Village at www.adelphoi.org.
