Over $700,000 in New Grants from Connecticut Community Foundation Include Funds to Improve Health Outcomes, Expand Opportunities for Refugees and Immigrants, Support Youth Leadership Programs, and Help Arts Programs Recover from the Pandemic

WATERBURY—Connecticut Community Foundation recently awarded $705,300 in grants to over 68 nonprofit organizations serving residents of Greater Waterbury and the Litchfield Hills. The funds will bring vital programs and services to people in need in 2021.  

Julie Loughran, president, and CEO, stated, “Over the last year, the Foundation has focused on ensuring that our grant-making process is clear, transparent, and in line with our mission of fostering an equitable and inclusive community in Greater Waterbury and the Litchfield Hills. We’re grateful for all the community partners who make these grants possible: the donors who trust us to deploy their charitable dollars where they are most needed, the community volunteers who review applications and guide our grant decisions, and the local organizations whose creative and purposeful work increases equity, expands access, and meets the needs of the community every day.”

Recent grants include:

  • $312,993 to 14 nonprofit organizations working to improve outcomes in health and environmental justice. Grants will support a wide range of efforts, including programs providing free and low-cost pregnancy support services, expanding health education services and training to Latinx families in Waterbury, and mental health intervention treatments for child trauma victims ages 7-17.
  • $107,531 to eight organizations working to build equitable opportunity for local residents. Among these awards are grants that will support the efforts of local organizations working to strengthen and reform local and state-level systems and improve opportunities for children and youth of color, as well as refugees and immigrants.
  • $70,380 in grants to seven nonprofits that improve quality of life for older people. Grants will fund home visits, chore support, and the creation of a network of volunteers who can provide older adults and physically disabled residents with home-based help and companionship.
  • $45,000 in funds to strengthen seven nonprofit organizations through technology, consultation, and training that will build their internal strength and capacity to pursue their missions and serve the community.
  • Grants totaling $102,548 to 14 nonprofit organizations focused on arts and culture. These grants will help the arts sector to readjust and recover from the impact of the pandemic, address disparity in access to the arts, and increase access to art experiences led by Black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) artists.
  • $4,500 in grants to two Waterbury-based organizations led by grassroots leaders. One grant will support a youth-led homeless outreach effort, and the other will fund a resident-led gardening and community building group.
  • $30,348 in grants to four organizations working to foster self-esteem and resilience in young women and girls. Grants include afterschool Girl Scout experiences and a leadership and empowerment program for Latino youth.
  • $32,000 in five grants to benefit residents of Southbury through the Southbury Community Trust Fund. Projects funded include providing a safe alcohol and drug-free environment for graduating high school seniors, building partnerships with human services agencies and faith communities and funding costs associated with a program that fosters and adopts older cats for seniors.

One of the many grants awarded will fund Waterbury-based Women’s Choice Charitable Association’s Community Doula Program, which supports mothers and their families holistically through pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. The program primarily serves Black families and strives to diminish the disparities in both access and outcomes that Black women face during pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period. 

Ashanti Rivera, founder and executive director of Women’s Choice Charitable Association, explains, “We are delighted to have been the recipient of this grant for our Community Doula Program. Maternal and infant death rates in the Black community are higher than that of any other race. Our program has been working and will continue to work towards better pregnancy, birth, and postpartum outcomes by educating and supporting Black families in our city of Waterbury.”

Grants are made possible by the generosity of donors who have established more than 500 charitable funds at the Foundation to benefit residents of Greater Waterbury and the Litchfield Hills.

View all the grants awarded by the Foundation in the December 2021 grant round at www.conncf.org/grants-awarded.

Established in 1923, Connecticut Community Foundation aims to foster an equitable and inclusive community in Greater Waterbury and Litchfield Hills by inspiring generosity, supporting organizations, and cultivating effective leaders. While serving this region, the Foundation works to address the community’s critical issues, funds programs benefiting local residents, supports efforts to improve systems to foster more equitable outcomes for residents, strengthens local organizations through learning and outreach, and works with individuals, families and corporations to steward charitable and scholarship funds.  Learn more at www.conncf.org.