COVID-19 Response Fund Awards $725,000 to 26 Nonprofits in Latest Grant Round
SPRINGFIELD — The Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts announced new grants totaling $725,000 to 26 local nonprofits through the COVID-19 Response Fund for the Pioneer Valley, targeting employment assistance, food insecurity, homelessness and foreclosure prevention, and other immediate needs during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Including this latest round, the Response Fund has awarded more than $5.5 million in grants to nonprofits in Western Mass. that are on the front lines of serving vulnerable populations affected by the crisis. The statewide Massachusetts COVID-19 Relief Fund has provided $4.3 million in funding to support the Community Foundation’s response to the pandemic crisis in this region.
The 26 nonprofits that received the most recent grants from the COVID-19 Response Fund from the Pioneer Valley include Amherst Community Connections, Amherst Survival Center, Brick House Community Resource Center, Center for New Americans, Chicopee Boys & Girls Club, Community Upliftment Program, Dress for Success of Western Massachusetts, Franklin and North Quabbin Children’s Advocacy Center, Franklin County Community Meals Program, LifePath, Mary Lyon Education Foundation, Mental Health Assoc., Montague Catholic Social Ministries, Pioneer Valley Project, Pioneer Valley Workers Center, Project New Hope, Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts, Rivera and Rivera Acts Against Foreclosure, Safe Passage, Springfield Partners for Community Action, St. Mary’s Parish, Sunshine Village, United Service Organization of Pioneer Valley, Valley Opportunity Council, Wheelhouse Farm, and Westfield State Foundation.
The Response Fund has raised $7.6 million from 650 donors, including foundations, businesses, and individuals, as well as resources from the statewide Massachusetts COVID-19 Relief Fund.
According to Katie Allan Zobel, president and CEO of the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts, “the pandemic is adversely impacting individuals, families, and communities in the region. This round of grants includes funds to address the economic instability that many are facing.”
The Community Foundation welcomes additional donations to the COVID-19 Response Fund for the Pioneer Valley. One hundred percent of donations go to community needs. Gifts can be made online at www.communityfoundation.org/covid19.