Groundbreaking Funding For Youth in the Southern Region
Aug22018
Granite United Way’s volunteer-led Southern Region Community Impact Committee and the Norwin and Elizabeth Bean Foundation announced on Thursday morning their decision to fund the innovative, three-year youth-focused programs that were part of the Youth Enrichment RFP, a special request for proposal process.
Nearly $1.5 million will be distributed to fifteen local nonprofits in the Greater Manchester area, with thousands of young people from across the region benefiting from the investment.
“This is the single largest commitment to youth our volunteers have made, and we are proud to partner with the Bean Foundation in these efforts,” said Patrick Tufts, President and CEO of Granite United Way. “Our volunteers made the strategic investment because they were inspired by the collaborative opportunities our nonprofits partners demonstrated. This vision will provide a new level of support to young individuals in our community.”
Some of the highlights of the investments include
• Utilizing current spaces throughout the city as identified community hubs for youth
• Bringing together traditional and nontraditional youth serving organizations across Manchester
• Providing access to enrichment programs at no cost to benefit the youth of the city
“As a longstanding champion of youth in Manchester, we know that addressing the needs of teens in our city takes all of us, working together. We are excited to be part of this collaborative opportunity to bring access to affordable, safe and engaging programs during critical after school hours,” said Diane Fitzpatrick, CEO of Boys & Girls Club of Manchester.
“I would like to applaud the Granite United Way for their community partnership vision. Creating partnerships is the most effective and efficient way to reach a common goal. By bringing Manchester's youth serving organizations together we are weaving a web of service that will lift up our youth, building healthy, confident, productive teens. The Manchester Police Athletic League is proud to be a part of this initiative,” noted Jayna Stevens, Director of Operations and Development for the Manchester Police Athletic League (MPAL).
“The Bean Foundation trustees have been very excited to partner with Granite United Way to launch this groundbreaking work which will benefit middle school youth in Manchester. We believe this significant investment to support youth serving organizations in our community will transform the ways in which organizations collaborate and work together to change young lives,” noted Leslee Stewart, Trustee, Norwin and Elizabeth Bean Foundation.
The Southern Region volunteers chose to keep this process separate from Granite United Way’s annual request for proposals, recognizing that this work was different and had a specific focus on the youth sector. Unlike the annual funded programs, this youth initiative will be funded over a three-year span.
“It is critical to diversify our funding investments. By allocating funds to programs that sustain our community fabric like the ones during our annual funding process and creating new ways to address specific needs, we will continue to strengthen our community,” said Tufts.